Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Youth director plans trip to Philadelphia

Delores Hodge, director of the Home Instruction for Parents of Pre-school Youngsters (HIPPY) program in Gurdon, as well as the Rural Family Friends Project, said Tuesday she will travel to a conference in Philadelphia from March 7-9 "trying to find some grant money to revitalize the local Family Friends program."

According to the National Center for Family Friends Newsline, Hodge will be among Family Friends project directors from around the country to come to the annual conference at Philadelphia.

The conference will be a time to discuss topics of mutual interest for the directors of Family Friends throughout the United States.

Hodge is a retired seventh grade English and reading teacher who also served as a pioneer in the Arkansas Save the Children Federation. Hodge began her "retirement" by helping to bring Family Friends to Clark and Pike counties.

Family Friends volunteers have made a long-lasting impact on many children through the traditional in-home family matches. Over the years, said Hodge, many parents welcomed surrogate grandparents into their homes.

As time passes, some volunteers have moved to the nursing home. The children they helped, now grown, still visit them, bringing gifts and cheer.

Hodge is known as an advocate for children in this rural area of Arkansas. She was honored by receiving an invitation to the opening ceremonies of the Clinton Presidential Library earlier this school year.

"It was the greatest experience I've ever had," she said. "It was such a thrill to see the gathering of foreign dignitaries and celebrities, but most of all three presidents and their wives standing together on the platform in unity and harmony."

As to Family Friends in Gurdon, Hodge said the program was most active for three years in the early 1990s. There was a $39,000 grant from the National Counsel on Aging, with each volunteer getting $10 a week for gasoline or things such as paper and pencils for the children.

"We had 32 senior volunteers, over 55. The men would teach the children skills, such as building birdhouses and the women would teach them how to cook or quilt. Or they might take them to a restaurant. It was for an hour a week," Hodge said. "It was in connection with our HIPPY program, and sometimes they would go on an outing or tutor the child."

Hodge said the funds depleted. She said Potlatch and International Paper donated $5,000 each to Family Friends in the late 1990s, but "it is very hard to get grants since the year 2000 for this sort of effort."

Hodge said some of the Family Friends volunteers have died off, or gotten too frail. She said 15 or 16 of them could still do this.

"If we had $20,000, we could still have a pretty good program," she said. "We received very good reports from our previous efforts. People look for Family Friends to come back. I am not going to give up. It was a wonderful personal touch."

Hodge said her efforts for youth development in Gurdon began in 1983, outdoors under the shade tree at the old middle school campus, down 5th street. She was helped through Arkansas Success. The children discovered museum items, insects, rocks, and animals.

Then the children got a house on Stovall Street, the old Mack and Wanda Crow residence. The programs were there about 11 years and came to the Youth Development Center/ old middle school campus, in 1994. The building was bought for the Youth Development Center by a Cabe Foundation grant for $150,000.

"At first, we had Save the Children as sponsors, which means we had about 150 kids, ages 5-19, involved," she said. "Boy do I miss those days."

She said the present HIPPY program and Family Friends came through the Save the Children effort. Today's HIPPY program serves 65 pre-school children, where three teachers go to their homes. Staff meetings are conducted at the old middle school.

"This year, we have a grant for $89,000 for HIPPY," she said. "I am currently working on another grant proposal for $15,650 for equipment, matching funds for utility bills here and other things connected to HIPPY for this year and next. We teach the children basic skills like numbers, social skills, how to read colors, shapes and more."

The HIPPY program serves 65 children and families in Clark and Pike Counties, with 3- and 4-year-old children, each week for 30 weeks. HIPPY meets from September until May, along with the regular school year.

Hodge said it is her 10th year to have the home-based HIPPY program. Those wanting to sign up for next year are encouraged to call: (870) 353-6145 before August. HIPPY serves 5,000 children in Arkansas, regardless of race, color or creed.

Until recently, it was the only pre-school program in the area. She said some of the children went to the public school pre-school this past year, but HIPPY has been able to make up the numbers "because our instructors go all over Clark County."

Those going to the homes are Lucinda Dickens of Gurdon, Frankie Brown of Gurdon, and Charmain Hall of Arkadelphia.

According to Hodge, the parents get involved through roll playing the lessons and the state has tests that are given to make sure the children are understanding.

"This gets the parents involved in the education of these children," she said. "With tests like work sampling instruction required by the state twice a year and dial three testing instruction once a year, it has been a busy year. But these are ways we can know the children are getting the information and will be ready for kindergarten."

Hodge said receiving funds to get Family Friends active here again, or to be sure HIPPY remains solvent, is very difficult in today's world.

"The future looks sort of cloudy, but I am going to remain optimistic and keep trying," she said. "I have always believed the children of Gurdon and the surrounding area deserve the same chances at succeeding that children elsewhere get."