Jefferson County is $17,000 richer, thanks to state legislative general improvement funds allotted in three presentations Thursday at Saracen Landing in Pine Bluff.
State Reps. Toni Bradford, Hank Wilkins IV, Ephrem Elliott and James Word helped in presenting checks of $15,000 to the city and $1,000 each to the Jefferson County Single Parent Scholarship Fund and the New Hope AME Church of Sherrill Scholarship Fund.
The city funds are earmarked to help in the purchase of a programmable digital marquee sign that will be placed near Saracen Landing to help promote activities throughout the municipality. Controls for the electronic sign – expected to carry a final cost of $17,000 to $27,000 – will be located in the Pine Bluff Parks and Recreation Department office at Saracen Landing.
“This is great for Pine Bluff,” Wilkins said of the sign. “All the members of the legislative delegation felt this was important for the entire city.”
Elliott said he was pleased that the county affiliate of the state Single Parent Scholarship Fund received $1,000.
“My mom was a single parent and they didn’t have this fund when she went to college,” he said. “She had to work two or three jobs to be able to attend college.”
The New Hope Church has only nine members but has raised over $375,000 in the past 25 years to support University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff students. The church will apply its newly-received funds to its scholarship program. New Hope currently counts more than $125,000 in its endowment fund, according to chairwoman Jimmie Edwards.