By Shaun Limbers
Baylor University, nestled on the banks of the Brazos River in Waco, is a private Christian university and a nationally ranked research institution. Chartered in 1845 by the Republic of Texas, Baylor is the oldest continually operating university in Texas, and in fact, is older than the State of Texas itself. In 1977, Baylor became one of the first universities in the nation to create a Center for Entrepreneurship. Within the highly ranked Hankamer School of Business, the Baugh Center for Entrepreneurship & Free Enterprise (the “Baugh Center”) is the focal point for entrepreneurial development at Baylor. At its core, the purpose of the Baugh Center is to develop entrepreneurs outside the walls of the Baylor classroom and help catalyze and grow business ventures.
Baylor’s mission is to educate men and women for worldwide leadership and service by integrating academic excellence and Christian commitment within a caring community. Since its founding over 174 years ago, Baylor has continually maintained a tradition of extending its mission outside the halls of academia into the local community. As an active participant in the Waco small business community, Baylor and the Baugh Center observed a need for business and entrepreneurship training, particularly among small businesses that exhibit potential but that may lack fundamental business knowledge to achieve that potential.
The Baylor Community Entrepreneurship Program (the “Baylor C.E.P.”) is a faith-based community business and entrepreneurship training program created for small businesses, hosted by local churches or community centers, and facilitated by local successful entrepreneurs and executives. Each Baylor C.E.P. course is comprised of a total of 8 sessions held weekly at local community churches or community centers, with each session running for 2 hours. The Baugh Center provides the Baylor C.E.P. with best-in-class business and entrepreneurship content developed by some of the brightest minds in business. Unique to the Baylor C.E.P., best-in-class business and entrepreneurship content is delivered in an environment that is openly faith-based, welcoming small business participants from all faith backgrounds to learn in a caring, faith-based environment, with an emphasis placed on business excellence achieved through ethical business morals and execution. While core program content makes the Baylor C.E.P. unique, so too does its format insomuch as it relies less on traditional classroom lecturing and instead focuses on business fundamentals delivered through engaging core content provided in conjunction with interactive classroom exercises, peer problem solving discussions, real world case studies with facilitator explanations, and Baylor student collaborations – all facilitated by successful entrepreneurs and executives. This unique format is designed to achieve maximum impact, particularly with small businesses who thrive in this type of learning environment.
In addition to core business fundamentals and training, the Baylor C.E.P. is also designed to architect a network of additional business and entrepreneurship resources available to small business participants. This network of additional business and entrepreneurship resources include, among other items, QuickBooks accounting training and access provided in partnership with Intuit (a $1,000 value), opportunities to be matched with mentors and business leaders in the community, funding and loan assistance for small businesses, as well as networking opportunities.
Two Baylor C.E.P. courses were successfully conducted in Spring 2019 with large community churches based in Waco. A Baylor C.E.P. course will be offered at Highland Baptist Church in Waco beginning on September 23, 2019 and will be comprised of 8 sessions, with each session held on Monday nights from 7:00pm to 9:00pm at the Highland Baptist Church campus. While the Baylor C.E.P. provides thousands of dollars in value to small business participants, the cost is only $40.
The goal of the Baylor C.E.P. is to empower small business participants with the opportunity to achieve economic transformation, rooted in faith-based business and entrepreneurship. That economic transformation in turn provides small business participants with the opportunity to positively impact and transform the lives of their own families, friends, churches, and communities – representing a catalyst for the Waco community at large. For participants of the Baylor C.E.P., it’s an opportunity to empower themselves with business fundamentals and resources designed to help them achieve their goals. “Taking the CEP class was one of the best decisions I have made as a small business owner,” says Tonja Carpenter, owner and founder of a local small business specializing in caring for expecting and new mothers.
The next Baylor C.E.P. course will begin on September 23, 2019, and will be hosted by Highland Baptist Church. Enrollment is currently underway and is open to small business owners and their employees. Scholarships are available for those who are unable to meet the $40 enrollment fee. For more information and to enroll, please email [email protected] or send “TEXT” to Arnold Reyes at (214) 476-5456.
Shaun Limbers currently serves as Program Manager for the Baylor Community Entrepreneurship Program, having recently relocated to Waco with his wife and children from Scottsdale, Arizona. Shaun’s career has spanned numerous facets of private venture finance and investment, with an emphasis in private equity. Shaun can be reached at [email protected].
The Act Locally Waco blog publishes posts with a connection to these aspirations for Waco. If you are interested in writing for the Act Locally Waco Blog, please email [email protected] for more information.
By Lindsey Breunig
Whatever life stage you are in, let’s join the new school year and celebrate the start by making some healthy green habits. Unless your school allegiances bleed green or are celebrating a green-themed holiday, incorporating regular dark leafy greens into your diet can be tricky. When I encourage someone to eat more greens some comebacks I hear are: “they are gross” “I only like the white lettuce” “they are bitter or taste like grass” or “that is rabbits’ food” – Well today our goal is to squash these comebacks!
Some common dark leafy greens are kale, chard, collard greens, arugula, spinach, and bok choy. A half-cup serving is 10 to 25 calories and jam-packed with bursting health benefits. Dark leafy green vegetables contain many nutrients, such as vitamin A, vitamin C, antioxidants, fiber, folate, vitamin K, magnesium, calcium, iron and potassium. The USDA’s MyPlate recommends adults and children over 9 years old to eat 1 ½ to 2 cups of dark green vegetables per week. Generally, 1 cup of raw or cooked vegetables or vegetable juice, or 2 cups of raw leafy greens can be considered as 1 cup. The nutrients from dark leafy greens support a variety of functions in the body. For example, the nutrients support good vision, increase immune function, regulate blood pressure, and act as antioxidants to potentially help prevent certain cancers.
(Source: https://www.choosemyplate.gov/vegetables)
Dark leafy greens often have an intense flavor which can be off-putting. Unfortunately, simply knowing these veggies are nutritional superstars does not always make them taste any better. Below we will discuss ways to make them more appetizing! For storing, washing, and keeping leafy greens fresh click here.
- Tender greens such as spinach or baby kale are great for salads. If incorporating more leafy greens into your diet is a new change, try making the salad with a familiar lettuce and half with a dark green one. Use a citrus-based dressing to help balance the strong flavor of the greens.
- Remove tough stems. For new “green eaters” the stems are often more bitter and tough to eat. Additionally, this will reduce cooking time and help avoid over-cooking the greens.
- When cooking with kale: Tougher curly kale is best for soups or stews, while tender Lacinato (flatter leaves) and baby kale are best in salad or as chips.
- When braising at a low temperature for an extended period, a pinch of sugar can help overcome the bitterness of collard and mustard greens.
- Sauté vs. boil: sautéing greens will help lock in nutrients better than boiling. Sauté greens with olive oil, onion and garlic to add flavor. For a crunch and heart healthy fat add chopped nuts like walnuts or pecans.
Green Recipes:
A class favorite: Chicken Vegetable Soup with Kale
We made this during the summer & kids love the crunch: Bok Choy Noodle Crisp
Add kale or spinach to a fruit smoothie for a quick and delicious breakfast or snack: Simple Green Smoothie
Lindsey Breunig is a graduate of Baylor University and currently works as the Better Living for Texans Educator for the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service. She is originally from Grapevine, TX and now calls Waco home. Here in Waco she loves to venture out to Cameron Park, visit the local Farmers Market, and try out the awesome eateries in Waco. If you see her and hear a loud bark, that’s her pup Lucy just saying hello.
USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer. This material was funded by USDA’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program — SNAP. To learn more about the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) or to apply for benefits, visit www.yourtexasbenefits.com
The Act Locally Waco blog publishes posts with a connection to these aspirations for Waco. If you are interested in writing for the Act Locally Waco Blog, please email [email protected] for more information.
Top 10 “Most Opened” Blog Posts of 2019: # 2
By Phillip Ericksen
Eddy Garcia is bringing some sweets back to the neighborhood.
The 23-year-old McLennan Community College graduate is opening Helados La Azteca No. 2 – a Mexican dessert shop – at the intersection of Colcord Avenue and North 15th Street.
The shop opened Saturday in the growing North Waco area primed to celebrate local business and the Hispanic culture of the neighborhood.
Garcia was born in Los Angeles and moved to Waco with his family when he was 8 years old. He earned his associate of arts degree from MCC this Spring, on top of a certificate of completion from the MCC Fire Academy in the Fall of 2017.
“A lot of doors open up with school,” he said. “You’ve got to find the right opportunity and take it, and that’s what I did. As soon as I got my associate’s degree, this is what I’ve been doing since.”
Garcia thanked Bradley Turner, an associate professor of environmental science, who especially motivated him.
“I was taking his class while I was opening this up,” Garcia said. “He motivated me so much.”
Garcia’s family operates the original location of Helados La Azteca at 3302 Franklin Ave. This new shop will sell Mexican ice cream, paletas, fruit and other Mexican desserts. It will also carry Blue Bell ice cream, a Texas favorite.
World Cup Café and Fair Trade Market, Jubilee Food Market and D’s Mediterranean Grill surround the area that also includes Baked Bliss Baking Company, West Avenue Elementary School, Grassroots Community Development and Family Health Center.
Mission Waco, a local nonprofit, owns Garcia’s space known as The Colcord Center. Garcia credited the strength of the neighborhood and the support of all involved in the project.
He also plans to partner with the Cen-Tex Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and participate in events with other local businesses.
The location of Helados La Azteca No. 2 is just a short drive from MCC, where thousands of students are on their pathways to either a new profession or a promotion in their current field.
Potential students may explore courses and register at mclennan.edu.
Phillip Ericksen is the marketing and communications specialist at McLennan Community College. For about four years, he was a journalist at the Waco Tribune-Herald covering higher education and local government. He enjoys following the news, reading books and drinking coffee. As a San Antonio native, he is an avid fan of Mexican food and the Spurs basketball team. He holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Baylor University. He can be reached at [email protected].
The Act Locally Waco blog publishes posts with a connection to these aspirations for Waco. If you are interested in writing for the Act Locally Waco Blog, please email [email protected] for more information.
By Katie Galgano
“The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex. Congress shall have the power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.”
The Nineteenth Amendment is short yet strong. It encompasses over 60 years of struggles, enveloping many setbacks and hard-fought victories, by suffragettes, uniting both famous leaders, such as Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and every day women, such as Kate Heffelfinger and Frances Harper. This year, 100 years after the passage and 99 years after the ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment into the U.S. Constitution, we remember and commemorate the efforts of these courageous women who fought valiantly in the face of mockery, ignoration, and even violence.
The fight for women’s suffrage began in 1848 at the Seneca Falls Convention, the first women’s rights convention. At this Convention, Elizabeth Cady Stanton and the delegates created the Declaration of Sentiments, a document modeled after the Declaration of Independence, declaring that all men and women are created equal. Though the press mocked this declaration, it did not deter the efforts of the suffragettes. Despite the loss of momentum during the Civil War, the movement persisted. In 1869, Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton founded the National Woman Suffrage Association, focused on amending the federal constitution to allow women to vote, and Lucy Stone and Henry Blackwell formed the American Woman Suffrage Association, focused on amending state constitutions. These two organizations merged in 1890, becoming the National American Woman Suffrage Association. Within six years, four territories and states adopted amendments to their state constitutions allowing women to vote. Between 1910 and 1918, under the leadership of Carrie Chapman Catt, the National American Woman Suffrage Association succeeded in gaining voting rights for women in seventeen additional territories and states.
During this same time, Alice Paul founded the Congressional Union for Woman Suffrage, which later became the National Woman’s Party. As chairwoman, Alice Paul planned demonstrations and led her members in picketing the White House, an act uncommon during this time but virtually unheard of for women. These demonstrations continued for five months until finally the public and the Administration reached a breaking point. Many women were arrested, charged, convicted, and jailed for obstructing traffic.
The struggle continued. President Wilson, first an opponent of women’s suffrage, became a supporter and lobbied Congress to pass the amendment in 1918. The amendment was first drafted and introduced to Congress in 1878 by Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton. Every year between 1878 and 1919, this amendment was introduced in the Senate, but every year it failed, until finally on June 4th, 1919, the Senate passed the amendment and sent it to the states to be ratified. The amendment was ratified narrowly, with one vote breaking the tie in Tennessee to reach the required two-thirds of states on August 18th, 1920. On August 26th, 1920, U.S. Secretary of State Bainbridge Colby certified the Nineteenth Amendment, officially amending the U.S. Constitution to allow women the right to vote. On November 2nd of 1920, over 8 million women voted in elections for the first time. Despite this hard-fought victory, it took over sixty years for the remaining states to ratify the Nineteenth Amendment, with the final ratification occurring on March 22nd, 1984, in Mississippi.
In a Joint Resolution of Congress in 1971, led by Congresswoman Bella Abzug, Women’s Equality Day was established on August 26th to commemorate the ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment. Since then, however, Women’s Equality Day has expanded to celebrate the work of organizations across the country working to provide women with equal opportunities. So, today as we look back and remember those who led the fight for women’s right to vote, let us also look forward. Just as we cannot forget these courageous women in history, we cannot forget the struggles of women today. Although more women have voted in every presidential election since 1980, women are far less represented in government than men. Despite 2018 being dubbed “The Year of the Woman”, only 20 percent of Congress is comprised of women. In terms of the percent of women in national parliaments, the United States is ranked 75th. Statewide, women constitute 25 percent of state legislators and 24 percent of executive offices, with female governors making up a mere 12 percent. So on this day of Women’s Equality, let us celebrate the achievements of the suffragettes, while also continuing their legacy and carrying on their fight for equality.
Katie Galgano is a recent Baylor graduate, receiving her B.A. in International Studies. She currently works for the Twenty First Century Group and is pursuing a career in foreign policy. She previously worked with the U.S. Department of State in the Secretary’s Office of Global Women’s Issues where she helped progress U.S. policies and the advancement of women.
Nominations for the 2019 ATHENA Leadership Award are open now!
By Samantha Baker, Marketing & Communications Specialist, Greater Waco Chamber of Commerce
In 2018, the Greater Waco Chamber of Commerce introduced a new event called Leading Waco Women, a three-part summit series designed to celebrate women across Waco’s business community with a focus on the three components of leadership: serving, empowering and mentoring.
A part of the inaugural Leading Waco Women summit, which was held in November of 2018, was the presentation of the prestigious ATHENA Leadership Award®, an internationally recognized award administered by ATHENA International, is presented to leaders across professional sectors. The ATHENA Leadership Award® has a rich history and international scope and is distinguished as one of the most prestigious leadership awards one can receive.
The ATHENA Leadership Award® celebrates women who achieve excellence in their professions, serve the community in a meaningful way, and help other women reach their full potential. Over 7,000 recipients in over 500 communities in the U.S. and around the world have been honored with the ATHENA Leadership Award® since the program’s inception in 1982. Nominations are given by the community and the recipient is selected by a diverse group of local community leaders based on the ATHENA criteria.
Last year’s ATHENA Leadership Award® recipient was Jill McCall, executive director of Compassion Ministries. Ms. McCall is intensely dedicated to the Waco community and is passionate about making positive changes for women and children through her work at Compassion Ministries. She’s served our community in various capacities for decades, and under her leadership, hundreds of Central Texas parents have created stable home environments for their children and found full-time employment and permanent housing. Thousands of children have benefited from the training their parents received through Compassion Ministries; this is due, in large part, to her leadership and vision.
Waco, we need your help to identify and nominate potential ATHENA Leadership Award® recipients for 2019. Within your organization and circle of influence, there are undoubtedly individuals who are most deserving of this honor.
You can help us find the next deserving ATHENA Leadership Award® recipient by nominating one (or a few!) of the exemplary female leaders in your life. Nominations are due by Friday, August 30 and can be submitted online at WacoChamber.com/Leading-Waco-Women. Criteria for the ATHENA Leadership Award® can also be found on that website, as well as a link to purchase tickets to the Leading Waco Women Summit held on Thursday, November 7 at the Phoenix Ballroom, with special guest speaker Dr. Linda Livingstone, president of Baylor University, and guest emcee Ann Harder, news anchor at KXXV Channel 25.
We are looking forward to a successful ATHENA celebration and Leading Waco Women, and thank you for your help in nominating the potential next recipient of the ATHENA Leadership Award®.
Samantha Baker is a born and raised Wacoan currently serving as a marketing and communications specialist at the Greater Waco Chamber of Commerce. She has been involved in the Waco community her whole life and has enjoyed seeing the way Waco has developed and grown in recent years. She and her boyfriend Michael have four cats and enjoy live music and trying all the new restaurants that are constantly popping up around town.
The Act Locally Waco blog publishes posts with a connection to these aspirations for Waco. If you are interested in writing for the Act Locally Waco Blog, please email [email protected] for more information.
By Madison Fraser
Since United Way Worldwide was founded in 1887, we have been known as fundraisers – but we are so much more than that. In small towns and big cities around the world, we engage millions of people who seek to change lives and communities through service, collaboration, and impact. The United Way of Waco-McLennan County is no exception to this effort. Right here in Greater Waco and surrounding McLennan County, we are actively working to bridge community volunteers to the impact and important work of our local nonprofits.
Volunteerism is core to the mission of United Way across the globe. In 40 countries, over 2.8 million volunteers are engaged in United Ways and are actively serving their communities. United Ways share a vision of a world where all individuals and families achieve their human potential for education, healthy lives, and income stability. To realize this vision and thrive globally and locally, we work to ensure our donors and our community leaders can engage in volunteer experiences that enable them to witness firsthand the power of their personal philanthropy and support our work with their time and talents.
United Way’s GET CONNECTED volunteer portal, found at www.volunteergreaterwaco.com, exists to be the volunteer hub of McLennan County. It provides a real opportunity for you to give back beyond making a financial contribution. Every volunteer hour given is the equivalent of $24 going back into our community. GET CONNECTED can connect you to local organizations, including the recent 2019-20 funded partner organizations, that are seeking volunteers to assist with the crucial work they do in our community every day. GET CONNECTED will also help connect your employee volunteer teams to meaningful volunteer experiences. Whether it’s a one-day activity or on-going team-building projects, GET CONNECTED is available to assist you through the entire process.
Surprisingly, over 71% of volunteers donate their time to only one organization per year. There are many factors to take into consideration as to why this might be, however, the most common seems to be that most volunteers are not aware of all available opportunities in their communities. Sixty-seven percent of people found more volunteer opportunities online in 2014 vs 34% in 2006, according to the Corporation for National & Community Service. GET CONNECTED is a great online resource for individuals to be informed of volunteer opportunities in their local community. The user-friendly portal is designed for individuals to create a user profile and specify their areas of interest and skills, such as education, health, food prep, manual labor, etc. Then, as new opportunities become available in the volunteer’s areas of interest, the portal will send them a notification so they will always be informed on current volunteer opportunities in the community.
The GET CONNECTED portal is your resource for both individual volunteers and for corporations and organizations who are looking for group volunteer opportunities for their employees. Volunteering as a group with your coworkers is beneficial for numerous reasons, including team bonding, reducing stress in the workplace, increasing motivation for leadership, and improving skill development. The portal allows for a team leader to easily sign up their team for an opportunity, quickly upload all required documents necessary to volunteer at an organization, and track volunteer hours.
Volunteers who feel meaningfully connected to an organization and their work stay engaged longer, donate more, and recruit other volunteers and donors. Offering a variety of volunteering opportunities is critical to responding to and meeting the needs, interests and availability of volunteers. Diverse points of entry to United Way’s volunteering landscape help form long lasting contributions and relationships that in turn will help United Way of Waco-McLennan County achieve its goals to improve the quality of education, health, financial stability, and safety net services in Waco-McLennan County.
If you are interested in volunteer opportunities in the Greater Waco or Waco-McLennan County area community, please visit www.volunteergreaterwaco.com.
Madison Fraser is a recent graduate of Baylor University where she earned her BA in journalism in 2018. Currently she serves as the Campaign and Communications Coordinator at United Way of Waco-McLennan County where she discovered her passion of community building and advocacy through the work of nonprofits.
The Act Locally Waco blog publishes posts with a connection to these aspirations for Waco. If you are interested in writing for the Act Locally Waco Blog, please email [email protected] for more information.
by Kelly Atkinson
The Cove is a teen nurturing center designed to provide a safe space for students experiencing homelessness to access the resources they need to thrive. Waco ISD high school students typically arrive at The Cove after school to receive wraparound care which includes anything from tutoring help to hot meals.
With the
end of summer nearing, we are excited to share all that our students have
accomplished in the last few months. To kick the summer off, we celebrated
graduation for 12 local seniors who both experienced homelessness and graduated
high school! At an invitation-only, after-hours celebration at the Magnolia
Silos, graduates celebrated an accomplishment some never dreamed possible. With
dinner and ambiance provided by Magnolia, The Magnolia Baking Co., and Captain
Billy Whizzbang’s, Cove scholars heard from Cove Co-Founder Rosemary Townsend
and local teen mentor, Darryl Thomas, with The Size of a Man. Together they
reminded students that:
“Regardless of where we come from or where we’re going, we need to hold
hands, be in community, respect and love one another.”
So, what are the next steps for a recent Cove graduate? While it is always our desire to help students successfully transition into college, full-time work, the military or a certificate program, we don’t always know what Cove scholars choose to do next. What we do know is that some students stay connected and we get to journey with them into life after high school.
One of our May graduates came to us in the spring having just transitioned out of the foster care system. She was a hard-working student with plans to attend a local college this fall. Since our Nurturing Center was open all summer, we learned that this student did not have the immunizations she needed, access to her birth certificate and financial information, or stable housing. While she was perfectly capable of performing academically, she had no access to the resources she needed to actually enroll in higher education.
Throughout the summer, our staff team, volunteers, and local community partners like Caritas, The TSTC Foundation, Mission Waco’s MPowerment program, and the Department of Children’s Protective Services worked together to help this student realize her dreams. Just last week, she moved into an on-campus apartment, got a laptop, and started a new job!
Most Cove Scholars have similar dreams and obstacles. We know that every student needs to know that there are people who care about them, who will help them realize those dreams.
People can help The Cove in two ways – by giving donations in the form of snacks, sensory items, and hygiene items all of which can be found in our Amazon wishlist here and by supporting financially to help fund our operations. Whether you’re helping as an individual or with a group of friends, every bit of investment is appreciated.
Kelly Atkinson’s passion is to see individuals and families thrive in healthy communities. She came to The Cove in March of 2018 and enjoys working with a strong team, grant writing, and strategic planning. While not at work, she can be found relishing time with her three children and husband, John.
The Act Locally Waco blog publishes posts with a connection to these aspirations for Waco. If you are interested in writing for the Act Locally Waco Blog, please email [email protected] for more information.
Press Release
Grassroots Community Development is proud to announce a phase V of its highly successful roof repair program to help low income families with repairing their roofs. In the rainy months we receive calls from families with terrible roof problems. This fifth phase of our program hopes to address some of that need. Grassroots Community Development is finishing up the completion of 125 roof repairs for families and is starting a Phase V of these efforts.
The services provided by Grassroots Community Development Corporation are made possible in part through a grant from the City of Waco. The program is free to low-income families that live in the City of Waco. We have enough funds to repair around 15 roofs. We will open up enrollment for the program August 15th with a deadline to accept applications of October 15th. We will begin evaluating homes in October/November, then we will be hiring roofing contractors to complete the roofing projects.
Applications are available at our office or via our Website: www.GrassrootsWaco.org or we can email you an application.
For more information about the Roof Repair Program or about Grassroots Community Development call Mike Stone 254-235-7358 Ext 206
About Grassroots Community Development Grassroots Community Development was formed in 2001 and is located at 1624 Colcord Avenue. Our mission is “committed to a brighter future for children, neighbors and communities.”
Grassroots Community Development is committed to a brighter future for children, neighbors and communities. The organization operates with the mindset that cultivating healthy neighborhoods is more than just building attractive and affordable homes. Community members must work alongside each other to create sustainable change. Building intentional and authentic relationships with neighbors is at the heart of what Grassroots does. The team at Grassroots aims to bring neighbors together to work towards community driven change. Children are served through community supported reading clubs at the elementary schools. Neighbors are served through leadership development training classes, and free education and counseling to prepare families to become homeowners. Communities are served through roof and external home repair programs for the disabled and elderly, building new homes and community enhancement projects. Contact the team for how they can help you.
Visit http://www.GrassrootsWaco.org or the Facebook page https://facebook.com/ GrassrootsCommunityDevelopmentWaco to learn more information about Grassroots Community Development.
Press release –
As the Texas summer heat settles in and the index raises to triple digits, The Salvation Army reminds people about their cooling station open in downtown Waco, open to anyone seeking some salvation from the heat.
The cooling center is conveniently located at 300 Webster Avenue and remains open until 4:30pm, closing only briefly to allow the staff to prepare for dinner service when the center reopens its doors as the Community Kitchen, ready to serve anyone seeking a nourishing meal.
“The cooling center is open any day the temperature or heat-index reaches 100 degrees or higher, which it is doing pretty consistently” says Jorge Delgado, The Salvation Army Shelter Director. “Prolonged extreme heat, as is about more than discomfort, it is a public health risk. Our cooling centers are open to everyone. Guests can stay for hours, or simply stop-in to cool-off and have a refreshment before continuing with their day” said Delgado. “Our guests run the gamut” he continued, “Some may be homeless or residents living in homes without air conditioning. They may work outside or be one of the passersby strolling through downtown. The dangers of extreme heat can affect anyone, from any walk of life, which is why we welcome all to stop in our center.”
Cooling centers truly do serve the health of the community by providing two things necessary to reduce the risk of heat exposure:
- Hydration. It’s especially important for people to drink water before they get thirsty and to continue drinking throughout the day.
- Cool-down time. Time spent in air-conditioned environments helps the body cool off and lessens the likelihood of getting overheated.
Refreshments, including water and snacks, have been provided by the community. The Salvation Army is most in need of donations of bottled water or beverages so they may continue serving during these final days of summer.
This summer heat also serves as a reminder to check on neighbors such as the elderly, shut-ins, or those neighbors living in much older homes with insufficient cooling systems. The Salvation Army has several box fans available free of charge to anyone in need, thanks to a recent Fan Drive with Keith ACE Hardware locations throughout Central Texas.
Contact The Salvation Army at 254-756-7271 for additional information.
By Amy Hammerton
August has somehow sneaked up on us again, which means back to school season is in full swing. For college students, going back to school means lots of additional expenses. Between tuition, text books, and housing costs, it’s no secret that college is expensive. With all these costs, it can be hard to find room in your budget for the fun stuff like a new wardrobe for the new semester and cute dorm decor. But don’t worry because there is a solution for all your budget-conscious needs: shop at Goodwill. Thrifting is the best, most sustainable option for updating your wardrobe, decorating your dorm room, and finding just what you need to start off the school year right.
Buying secondhand at Goodwill means you can find stylish (even name brand!) clothes at a tiny fraction of what you would normally pay—perfect for the tight college budget. And Goodwill has something for every occasion. So whether you’re looking for workout gear, an outfit for a night out, or that pair of comfy sweatpants you’re probably going to live in come finals week, Goodwill has got you covered.
You can also find almost everything you need to deck out your dorm or apartment. Need a lamp, end table, desk, or chair? Why not check Goodwill for some of the best deals you’re likely to find anywhere. You can also find wall décor and picture frames perfect for displaying all your favorite college memories. And don’t forget to check the glassware section for storage options for all your desk supplies and knickknacks. Especially if you get a little creative with it, the possibilities are nearly endless.
Not only can you score great finds at even better prices when you shop at Goodwill, you can feel good about doing it. One of the best parts about shopping at Goodwill is that you know exactly where your money is going. Every penny you spend at Goodwill supports their many mission service programs. These programs help empower people through work, creating opportunities for those with disabilities or other disadvantaging conditions to develop the skills and resources they need to find sustainable employment. So when you shop at Goodwill, not only do you know you’re getting good prices, you know that your money is going to support the community—a great deal all around.
Amy Hammerton is a Baylor University Senior studying English Literature, Journalism and Graphic Design. This summer, Amy has worked as a Heart of Texas Goodwill Marketing Intern developing social media content, creating brand collateral and promoting the mission of Goodwill through various media outlets. In her final project, she leans on her own experience as a college student living on a budget. In this blog series; Goodwill Goes to College, Amy shares how Goodwill can serve as a significant resource for her fellow student body to save money, get organized and be socially responsible keeping unwanted items out of the landfill through donations.
The Act Locally Waco blog publishes posts with a connection to these aspirations for Waco. If you are interested in writing for the Act Locally Waco Blog, please email [email protected] for more information.