Gifts To Christmas Card Helps Springdale Students

By Brett Bennett

Posted: November 26, 2009 at 4:59 a.m.

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SPRINGDALE — Barbara Ludwig collects stories about when the Springdale School District helped needy students.

“I saw a young lady working at Sonic one time. She came up to me and said, ‘You were my school nurse, and you got me glasses,’” Ludwig said.

That’s why Ludwig encourages people to donate to the Community Christmas Card sponsored by Northwest Arkansas Newspapers. All of the money donated is spent on student needs.

The school nurse can be one of the first adults to spot a student’s problem, said Ludwig, school nurse supervisor.

Identification is the first step to solving a problem. Parents may not have the money for a doctor’s visit, she said. If they cannot afford health care, a family may have other needs, such as clothing or food.

Ludwig oversees the district’s social services program, which provides assistance such as doctor visits, eyeglasses and clothing. They also collect nonperishable food to give to needy students.

“What a blessing it is to be able to tell the parent we can help,” Ludwig said. “When you know you’ve got a fund (for assistance), that makes our jobs that much easier.”

Northwest Arkansas Newspapers Publisher Tom Stallbaumer said the economic challenges of the times make it important to continue supporting the Community Christmas Card.

“Everybody’s in a harder time right now than they’ve been in the past,” George Elementary School nurse Teena Cobb said.

Ludwig said, “We’ve seen people that we’ve never seen before.”

School social services aide Beverly Charleton said last year the department provided food and clothing assistance to 2,118 students.

“The Community Christmas Card has always been a special project for us,” Stallbaumer said. “I think most of us have a special place in our hearts for children, and this program is designed to help those children who may need a little extra assistance.”

A student who has his health, clothing and food needs met will perform better at school, Ludwig said.

Ludwig said district officials always pay for a service directly in order to maintain accountability for how donated funds are spent.

“We never give away money,” she said.

When one family needed gas money to visit a child in a Little Rock hospital, the staff found a gas station that would bill the department for the family’s fill-ups, Ludwig said.

Doctors who take patient referrals through the program bill the social services office, she said.

District demographics demonstrate the need for assistance. The number of students enrolled in Springdale’s free and reduced lunch program has more than tripled since 1990.

That year the district had 18.55 percent of its students in the program, according to district profiles on the school Web site. By 1999, the number had increased to 34.78 percent.

The percentage is 60.8 percent for 2009, according to figures provided by Rick Schaeffer, district public information officer.

Donations to the Community Christmas Card are tax-deductible as a result of a partnership between Northwest Arkansas Newspapers and NWA Community Foundation.

How To Give

Beginning today, individuals wishing to donate to the Community Christmas Card may mail or deliver donations to any Northwest Arkansas Newspapers office, including both daily and weekly newspapers. Donors can designate which local school district receives the donation.

Community Christmas Card

The minimum suggested donation is $2.

Donations will be accepted until noon Dec. 23.

Take donations to any Northwest Arkansas Newspapers daily or weekly office or mail them to:

Northwest Arkansas Newspapers

c/o Community Christmas Card

P.O. Box 1607

Fayetteville, Ark. 72702

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