The Jefferson County Civitan Club recently marked seven years of community service.
Since May 13, 2005, the club has been helping others in Pine Bluff through fundraisers and local projects. Members of the club, known as “Civitans”, volunteer regularly to help others in the community, through a range of projects. Some of these programs include working with, participating in and sponsoring members for the annual Polar Bear Plunge that assists with Special Olympics; volunteering for Special Olympics and presenting the Matthew Featherston Sportsmanship Award; working concessions for Challenger League Baseball and sponsoring the end of the season team party for the athletes and families; sponsoring the annual Christmas Parade; donating toys and canned foods to the Salvation Army; providing annual Valentine’s Day celebration for Chapel Pines and donating fans to the Area Agency on Aging of Southeast Arkansas.
Several Pine Bluff residents were recently elected to leadership positions in the local Civitan Club and will be managing the club’s charitable projects in the area beginning Oct. 1. The new officers are Nancy Dempsey, president; Harold Davis, president-elect; Priscilla “Pat” Hurst, secretary; Rena Allen, treasurer; and Jimmy Graham, chaplain.
The new officers are looking forward to a productive and rewarding year of providing service to the community, and people with and without developmental disabilities and/or cognitive disorders, a spokesman said.
Civitan International is an organization of community service clubs with roughly 40,000 members across four continents. Each club works to help others and fulfill needs in their community, with a special emphasis on helping people with developmental disabilities. Civitans also continue this mission through fundraising for the UAB Civitan International Research Center, a world-class medical facility dedicated to researching developmental disabilities and other cognitive disorders.
For more information, visit www.civitan.org or call 800-CIVITAN.