The children at South Lawrence Head Start have been lucky to have some very special guest readers recently.  In October, State Representative Clay Doggett, Lawrence County Executive T.R. Williams and County Commissioner Bert Spearman all took their turns reading to the kids during the building dedication.  In January, their guest reader list took a community athletic turn.

David and Ryan Weathers surprised the kids to read to them and take some photos with the class.  The Weathers family is well-known for their community support in Lawrence County.  David and Ryan had their hands full reading a couple of the kids favorite books and the kids were more than happy to help them out while they read.

The Weathers family, while originally from Lawrence County, traveled the country while David played Major League Baseball.  From 1991-2009, he played for a number of teams coast to coast from the Florida Marlins to the Toronto Blue Jays and in 1996 pitched for the World Series Champion Yankees.  The apple did not fall far from the tree with Ryan.  He was drafted in 2018, during the first round, by the San Diego Padres.  Once the family returned to Lawrence County they started to give back in many different ways including partnering with the Lawrenceburg Rotary Club in building an outdoor basketball facility at Rotary Park.  Today the Weathers family continues to make a positive impact in the communities in Lawrence County. 

The children at South Lawrence Head Start were fortunate to catch David and Ryan before they headed west to Arizona for the Padres spring training session.  The staff at the center were able to present them with Certificates of Appreciation for their support of the site and continued support of the community.

 

     

  Ryan Weathers reads to South Lawrence Head Start students about different animals.                   

David Weathers continues story time with a book about the alphabet.

 

 

   All smiles after a special reading time with David and Ryan Weathers.   

                   

 The South Lawrence Head Start staff showed their appreciation for the visit with certificates for David and Ryan.

November roared in with frigid temperatures, but they were not cold enough to stop SCHRA from breaking ground on what will be the new Bedford County Early Head Start site in Shelbyville.  Ron and his crew spent many hours prepping the area and getting it ready for tear down.  When everyone showed up on Friday, November 1^st, they were greeted with a tract hoe ready to go to work.  Before the demolition started, Paul Rosson, Executive Director said a few words about what the new building would do for the community as well as explaining that the new building will be almost twice as big as the old building, have two new playgrounds and additional parking.  He also thanked Shelbyville Mayor, Wallace Cartwright for all of his help in procuring the site for the building as well as for his support for the program in general.  State Representative Pat Marsh, Mayor Cartwright and Bedford County Mayor Chad Graham all took their turn helping to start the tear down, handling the tract hoe like pros. 

This building was originally a Head Start site.  Due to dwindling program numbers in the County, the site was shut down at the end of the 2017 school year and the children that remained were moved to one of the other three centers in Bedford County.  Laurie and here entire staff are thrilled to have the opportunity to have this new Early Head Start site and have been working hard to bring this project to life.  The plan is to be ready to welcome the children and moms into the new site in time for the start of the 2020 school year.  They are also hoping to expand with an additional Early classroom as well as a Head Start classroom.

Head Start Main Office Staff joined by State Representative Pat Marsh, County Mayor Chad Graham, Shelbyville Mayor Wallace Cartwright and Ron Teeples and his amazing crew before the demolition begins.

 

                                                 

Shelbyville Mayor Wallace Cartwright, State Representative Pat Marsh and County                                                                           DEMOLITION BEGINS!

Mayor Chad Graham prior to their turns in the tract hoe to start the demolition.

 

 

The South Central Human Resource Agency held a grand re-opening for the South Lawrence Head Start building on Thursday, October 24^th.  State Representative Clay Doggett, County Executive T.R. Williams and SCHRA Board Member and County Commissioner Bert Spearman all entertained the children prior to the ceremony with book readings.  The South Lawrence Head Start building was previously home to the Iron City United Methodist Church which closed in June 1996.  The church allowed South Central Human Resource Agency and Head Start to lease the building beginning in June 2001.  On May 17, 2009, the Trustees of Iron City United Methodist Church deeded the building to the South Central Human Resource Agency Head Start Program.  There have been numerous renovations and improvements to the building that facilitate the continued support of the children and families in South Lawrence and Iron City.  The grand re-opening was to celebrate the new roof that was recently put on the building.  County Executive T.R. Williams read a proclamation for the re-opening reasserting the County’s support for the Head Start program and the families which it serves.  SCHRA Deputy Director Sara Brown was also in attendance for the grand re-opening and thanked the County for their continued support for the facility, the families and the children.

South Lawrence Head Start at Proclamation and Grand Re-Opening ceremony joined by State Representative Clay Doggett, Sara Brown, SCHRA Deputy Director, Lawrence County Executive T.R. Williams and Lawrence County Commissioner and SCHRA Board Member Bert Spearman

Books were read to the children prior to the ceremony by (photos left to right) Lawrence County Executive T.R. Williams, State Representative Clay Doggett and Lawrence County Commissioner and SCHRA Board Member Bert Spearman