14 Oct 2016 Conway Regional Women’s Council presents school wellness grants

Posted at 2:27 PMh in News by

Story and photos
by Sonja J. Keith

The Conway Regional Women’s Council has awarded 15 grants totaling $7,500 to area schoolteachers to support child wellness and fitness initiatives.

“I am very proud to see the impact the Conway Regional Women’s Council is making on the health of our children through our Teacher’s Grant program,” said Dot Welch, associate director of the Conway Regional Health Foundation. “The leadership and dedication shown by this group of women is awesome. They truly care about our community.”

This is the second year for the grant program which is available to schools within the Conway Regional service area (Faulkner, Cleburne, Perry, Conway and Van Buren counties).

It offers PreK-12th grade educators financial support for innovative classroom programs promoting physical activity, good nutrition and/or personal wellness.  

The grants stem from the council’s emphasis in 2015 on childhood obesity awareness and prevention.

The women’s council received $3,500 in donations through the Second Annual Arkansas Give Day, held last spring, to help fund the grant program. The remaining funds represent proceeds from the annual Dazzle Daze fundraiser, planned by the women’s council.

Greenbrier Middle School: Taylor Stone (from left), women’s council member Amy Routt, Shelby Hamerlinck, Trey Tindall, Colin Huddleston, Preston Riddle, Genaro Torres, Presley Roberts, Kelli Martin and Dot Welch.

This year’s grant recipients:

Bigelow – Anne Watson Elementary (Amy Jones and Kathryn Weaver/running club)

Carolyn Lewis Elementary in Conway (Amanda Krell/school garden)

Conway High School (Andrea Bailey-Fournier and Laura Crow/student wellness fair)

Conway Junior High (Melissa Patterson/food for backpack program)

Marguerite Vann Elementary in Conway (Melanie Church/school garden)

Simon Middle School in Conway (Evada Fields/equipment for special needs students)

Theodore Jones Elementary in Conway (Brittany Shea Griffith and Danette Dunn/Jones’ Joggers Running Club)

Theodore Jones Elementary (Randi House/alternative seating)

Theodore Jones Elementary (basketball goals for special needs students)

Greenbrier Middle School (Taylor Stone/stability balls for alternative seating)

Greenbrier Westside Elementary (Misty Varvil/running club)

Nemo Vista Elementary (Johnna Setzer/equipment for active recess)

South Side Bee Branch (Melanie Crider/pedometers and walking program)

Vilonia Middle School (Lori Williams/equipment for online wellness journaling)

Vilonia Primary and Intermediate Schools (Brian Sharp/Wii U and TV)

Simon Middle School: Renee Bennett (from left), Gary Davis, Nevada Alexander, Emily Ladner, Jada Halley, Ian Kerr, Evada Fields and women’s council member Keri Yarbrough.

“Through the Teacher’s Grant, the Women’s Council is offering educators the opportunity to impact the lives of their students by offering programs specifically designed to promote physical activity, good nutrition and/or personal wellness,” said Jennifer Hill, president of the Women’s Council.

In its first year, the Council awarded six $500 grants for a variety of wellness initiatives — from a cooking program for kindergarteners to physical fitness equipment. Schools receiving grants were Carl Stuart Middle School in Conway, Greenbrier Middle School, Ruth Doyle Middle School in Conway, Theodore Jones Elementary School in Conway and Wooster Elementary School.

The Council hopes to continue the Teacher Grant program through donations from AR Gives Day on Thursday, April 6, and other fundraising efforts.  

Vilonia Middle School: Abby Peach (front, left), Jonathan Welch; Lori Williams, Dot Welch and Lori Lombardi.

For more information about the grant program, contact the Conway Regional Marketing and Foundation Office at 501.513.5771, email [email protected] or visit conwayregional.org/womenscouncil.