The definition of hope is "to desire with expectation of obtainment." There is a second meaning for that word here in Hot Springs and Garland County.
Project HOPE is an acronym for a movement whose mission is "to identify and address health-related needs of the community and provide a framework for coordinated ad collaborative efforts of a cross section of the people of Garland County to produce measurable outcomes and to improve the health of the community." Quite a mouthful, isn't it?
What does HOPE want to accomplish? Put simply, to make it easier for the people in this community who need help to find the resources and assistance.
The range of agencies and organizations involved is diverse; a food bank, a women and children's shelter, suicide prevention hotline, minority health fair and many, many more.
Why do so many people, so many groups, devote their time and resources to this project?
It's because even one child going to bed hungry is too many.
Because one woman hurt and abused is too many.
Because one young person trapped in the abyss of addiction is too many.
Because no human being should have to spend cold winter nights with only the protection of old clothes.
Because no one should be so alone and depressed that they feel the only way out is to end his or her life.
This list could go on and on, but it boils down to this: it is because everyone deserves hope.
Volunteers are always needed in the various organizations, but you can help in small ways, too. It can be as simple as donating your plastic bags from the supermarket at various collections points throughout the community. They are then twisted and crocheted into sleeping mats for the homeless. Just one little thing. One that everyone can do.
If you want to know more about Garland County Project HOPE, contact Amy Thomason, community liaison, Arkansas Hospice Hot Springs, 628 Malvern Ave., Hot Springs, AR 71901.
Project HOPE invites agencies, service clubs, churches or individuals who want to help, to attend the regular brown bag lunch meetings at 11:30 a.m. the first Thursday of every month at First Church of the Nazarene.
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National Newspaper Week is Oct. 4-10
The following column by Jack McElroy, editor of the Knoxville News Sentinel and president of the Tennessee Press Association, is in recognition of National Newspaper Week:
Theme of National Newspaper Week especially relevant
In 1928, Frank Capra made a silent movie called "The Power of the Press." Douglas Fairbanks Jr. played Clem Rogers, an ambitious cub reporter hungry for a scoop. He gets more than he bargained for when his big story implicates the mayor's daughter -- who just happens to be Clem's girlfriend -- in a murder.
In the end, the heroic journalist lands the story and the girl, and exposes political chicanery to boot. The film was selected in 2005 by the United States National Film Registry to be preserved by the Library of Congress because it was "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."
We're a long way from the age of silent movies, and the power of the press is being greatly affected by the changing media landscape.
"As news coverage democratizes and as producers proliferate, the fabled 'power of the press' may diminish," warned Carl Session Stepp, University of Maryland journalism professor, in a recent article in American Journalism Review. "Without that power, how will news organizations stand up for journalists, such as those pushed around by police in Ferguson, Mo., or targeted abroad by terrorists? Or against the Obama administration's backward policies on leaks and secrecy?"
Those sorts of questions are why the theme of the 2015 National Newspaper Week -- "The Power of the Press" -- is so relevant.
This year is the 75th anniversary of National Newspaper Week. It was created in 1940 by the Newspaper Association Managers as a time to celebrate the newspaper industry.
The week, which this year runs Oct. 4-10, is a chance to remind our communities of what newspapers mean to them, by editorializing about our watchdog role, touting our coverage of local government and politics, and reiterating our commitment to providing reliable community information and public notice.
Of course, maintaining the power of the press doesn't end with National Newspaper Week. It's a year-round priority. We all know the power of the press is still a force to be reckoned with across this nation.
Bill Elderton is the general manager of The Sentinel-Record. He can be reached via email at [email protected] or by calling 501-623-7711, ext. 101.
Editorial on 10/04/2015