DeWitt Era-Enterprise

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artin luther king day

(USPS 088-820) Vol. 131, Number 5 DeWitt, AR 72042 • 14 Pages • 2 Sections • 75 cents

AROUND THE COUNTY

The Martin Luther King Jr.’s Birthday and Black History Banquet was held Saturday, January 26th. See Page 13A

Serving Arkansas County, Arkansas Since 1882

Thursday, January 31, 2013

Best of DeWitt - Good Neighbor of the Year

DMS First Semester Awards Assembly The DeWitt Middle School “First Semester Awards Assembly” will be held Friday, February 1 in the cafeteria. 6th grade awards will be presented at 8:50a.m. 7th and 8th graders will be presented at 9:30a.m. This event is open to the public.

DeWitt Athletic Booster Club Honoring 9th grade basketball players and cheerleaders The DeWitt Athletic Booster Club will honor the 9th grade basketball players and cheerleaders on Thursday, January 31st, after the 7th grade games. Games will start at 5:30.

DeWitt Athletic Booster Club Meeting The DeWitt Athletic Booster Club will meet Wednesday, February 6th at 5:30 in the DeWitt High School Library.

Coming up: February 4 – 4-H Officers and Leaders Meeting, 5:00 p.m. at Extension Office, DeWitt February 7 – Rice Production Meeting, 8:00 a.m. at Rice Research & Extension Center.

Jean Prange (6th from the left) and Betty Cotner (4th from the right), Good Neighbor of the Year winners, at the ribbon cutting for the Caring and Sharing Food Pantry.

BY VALENYA FRANKS EDITOR valenyasphotos@gmail.com

The Best of DeWitt Good Neighbor of the Year award went to two women who work hard to help the community, Jean Prange and Betty Cotner. “If you looked in the dictionary by good neighbor, you would find a picture of these two ladies.” Kenneth Graves, the food pantry director, stated. They helped start the Caring and Sharing Food Pantry, and they also contribute a lot of time to running it. Jean Prange read that many children in South Arkansas County go to bed hungry every night and wanted to do something. She could have given a donation to some distant agency. Instead,

she chose to go into action. She contacted Betty Cotner to assist her. Together they visited a local food bank in Stuttgart to find out how to get started, held town meetings to gain local support and rented a building on the Court Square. It was a dream that took a lot of work but got started a lot quicker than expected due to their determination. In less than two months, they were open for business and have now served approximately 300 families. This has been for the good of the community and the surrounding areas. Being a good neighbor is about being someone who cares about and wants to help others. Jean Prange not only helps with the food pantry, but she also helps with the free clinic as well as the com-

munity center in Crocketts Bluff. She keeps a positive attitude no matter the situation. Betty Cotner is active in her church at Unity Missionary Baptist Church. Since she lives in town, Betty often stops what she’s doing to respond to emergency calls from the Food Pantry. Both women work hard to see that people of the community who are less fortunate have food. They make sure the pantry is always stocked and want to do whatever they can to help others. These women want to help. Kenneth Graves states, “Being a good neighbor is an honor to receive. Congratulations to two outstanding people that I can call friends.”

DeWitt High School DAR Good Citizen BY VALENYA FRANKS EDITOR valenyasphotos@gmail.com

DeWitt High School senior Bethani Hoelzeman was chosen as the DeWitt High School DAR Good Citizen. The senior class student that selected as the school DAR Good Citizen must have qualities of dependability, service, leadership, and patriotism. Bethani was selected to represent DeWitt High School because she has demonstrated, in an outstanding way, the qualities of a good citizen. Bethani is active in many clubs and school activities. She has been a cheerleader for 6 years and she was a part of All-American Junior High and Senior High. She has been a member of the DeWitt Middle School and DeWitt High School band for 7 years, with 1 year as All-Region Junior High, 2 years as All-Region Senior High, and 1 year as All-State Senior High. She has been a part of the student council for 6 years, serving as the vice president her junior year, and the president her senior year. For 5 years, from 8th grade to 12th grade, Bethani has been a member of FBLA. She was a member of Junior Beta Club for 2 years, serving as the president in 9th grade,

Bethani Hoelzeman, DeWitt High School DAR Good Citizen, smiles as her mother, Dikina Hoelzeman, fastens her DAR Good Citizen pin to her blouse. Helen Walfe (left) presented the pin, certificate and card to Bethani on behalf of the Arkansas Post DAR. DeWitt High School counselor, Ashley Smith (right), was the one to suggest Hoelzeman as the DAR Good Citizen.

and has been a member of Senior Beta Club for 2 years. She served on the yearbook staff in 11th grade and was a part of the Quiz Bowl Team for 3 years. The summer after 11th grade, Bethani attended Girls State. Bethani is active in her community. She tries to be a part of any community service project that she can. She worked on a breast cancer awareness project this past October and has worked towards cleaning up the community near Merrisach Lake. She worked as a guide at the Arkansas Post for Ghosts of the Past and helped out at Walk for the Cure this past summer. She says she has enjoyed every moment of her service and would not trade her experiences for anything. After graduation, Bethani plans to attend the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville where she hopes to play in the marching band and major in biology. She hopes to someday go to medical school to become a pediatrician. As the DeWitt High School DAR Good Citizen, Bethani received a DAR Good Citizen pin, a certificate, and a wallet recognition card. All three were presented to her by the Arkansas Post Chapter DAR.

DeWitt Chamber of Commerce

Best of DeWitt Awards Banquet January 31, 2013 Banquet 6:30 p.m. DeWitt High School

Guest Speaker - New Arkansas Speaker Of The House of Representatives Davy Carter

Tickets are $12 and will be availabe at Farmers & Merchants Bank, Arkansas County Bank, DeWitt Bank & Trust in DeWitt, and at the door.


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