Annual Education Conference 2017

Training provided by the National Association of Junior Auxiliaries will help members of the Junior Auxiliary of Arkadelphia better perform hands-on service in their community.

Lacy Wolfe, Erica Brown, and Amanda Baker attended the nonprofit association’s Annual Education Conference May 5-6 at the Hilton Hotel in Memphis. They took part in seminars that focus on service to children and families to fulfill the organization’s mission and exemplify its slogan of “Care Today - Character Tomorrow.”

“The Annual Meeting of our Association is the time that members from our 93 chapters around the southeast come together for learning, motivation, and a little business”, said NAJA Executive Director Merrill Greenlee of Greenville.

Among the meeting’s featured speakers:

Jimmy Wayne of Nashville, a former foster child turned country music singer/songwriter whose songs, story, and walk halfway across America in 2010 continue to help bring awareness to kids who age out of the foster system and become homeless.

Tina Meier of St. Louis, an internationally recognized expert on bullying, cyber bullying, Internet safety, conflict resolution, the roles of parents and educators, sexting, and suicide awareness and prevention. In 2006, Meier’s 13-year-old daughter, Megan Taylor Meier, took her own life after being bullied online. Meier is making a difference through spreading Megan’s story and educating others on Internet and electronic communication dangers.

Jody Urquhart of Calgary, Alberta, Canada, a former stand-up comic and author of the best selling book All Work & No SAY. Her mission is to help motivate people to derive more meaning, fun and satisfaction from their work.

“No JA member comes away from our AEC without a new idea or a degree of inspiration for a new project or a better way to manage their Chapter,” said Jeanne Hildebrandt of Slidell, La., NAJA’s president. “We offer workshops, inspirational speakers and training sessions to help our ladies in their volunteer efforts.

“Our awards banquet showcases some of our best Chapter projects and serves not only to reward great effort, but to provide ideas to our Chapters for expanding their work in their communities. Our organization continues to grow stronger because of the influence of our AEC.”

In 2016, the Junior Auxiliary of Arkadelphia performed over 4,000 hours of service. Its signature service projects include Camp Kaleidoscope and Angel Tree. During the 2017 conference, the chapter received the Martha Wise Award for Angel Tree. The Martha Wise Award is designed to encourage chapters in carrying out the basic objectives of Junior Auxiliary, to search for community needs, and to demonstrate how these needs may be met.

For more information on the Junior Auxiliary of Arkadelphia, go to arkadelphiaja.wixsite.com/arkadelphia or find the Chapter on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ArkadelphiaJA/. For more information on the National Association of Junior Auxiliaries, go to www.najanet.org

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