News You Can Use Distributed 04/14/08
April 27–May 3 is Louisiana Volunteers for Family and Community week, as proclaimed by Gov. Bobby Jindal. The volunteer program, whose members used to be called extension homemakers, is a project of the LSU AgCenter.
Without volunteers, many agencies would not be able to function, and many tasks would not be completed, according to LSU AgCenter professor and volunteer adviser Dr. Karen Overstreet. Hurricanes Katrina and Rita reminded us again of the important role volunteers play in our communities, she notes.
Volunteers can be found planting grass in the marshlands, reading stories to children, comforting ill patients waiting for treatment, picking up litter in neighborhoods or grocery shopping for the elderly.
Louisiana Volunteers for Family and Community Inc. has a long history. Originally part of a national organization formed in 1936, LVFC began as a home demonstration club in the early 1900s. Acadia parish had some of the first organized clubs in 1921.
The adult clubs evolved from seeing the interest parents had in their children’s 4-H experiences. 4-H’ers were learning many skills that improved farm production or household efficiency. In the early 1930s, Ellen LeNoir, a home economics agent from Louisiana, chaired the national committee that created the extension homemakers organization.
Today, LVFC still provides scholarships in LeNoir’s name to Louisiana graduate students in agriculture or human ecology. Mrs. R.T. Douglas from Louisiana was elected the first secretary of the new association in 1936.
At that time, Louisiana and most of the country was rural. The clubs provided a social outlet for women who were responsible for running the household and raising the children. As important as the social aspect was, the real emphasis was on improving the lives of families and communities.
Improvement was done by including educational programs at each club meeting and through special projects. The early organization campaigned to bring hot lunches into schools, bookmobiles for rural areas, funding for public health services and numerous other community needs.
Skills learned through club lessons were critical to helping families make ends meet. Kitchen gardens, along with canning produce and meats butchered on the farm, fed their families. Material from feed bags was used for clothing, curtains, pillowcases and kitchen towels. Surplus cotton and/or Spanish moss were used to make mattresses. Women shared ideas for using surplus commodities or how to make do without.
A look at club projects is a peek into history, Overstreet says. Early programs introduced rural families to the frightening monster called electricity. Club lessons and projects during the 30s helped families cope during the Depression. Bandage rolling was a reason to gather during the war years. Stay-at-home mothers in the 50s found extension clubs to be a way to make friends while women entering the workforce in the 70s learned how to adjust to their dual roles.
Today’s clubs continue the original intent of combining social events with learning how to improve our families and communities, according to Overstreet. LVFC members can be found in workshops on the coast to learn about current coastal issues or at the state capitol to study legislation. They are responsible for hundreds of books given to new parents and various literacy programs. Members can be found working at health fairs, various charity race/walks and local special events.
Despite the devastating impact of the hurricanes on its own membership, LVFC members donated thousands of hours of volunteer time and many other resources to meet immediate needs and now the rebuilding efforts.
LVFC was the first organization to make a formal donation to the Louisiana House, a research and educational model home on the LSU campus. The home is an important part of Louisiana’s sustainable building program.
Nearly 1,300 members can be found across the state. Membership is open to anyone interested in making a difference in families and communities. The original organization was founded as a volunteer arm of the Cooperative Extension Service Home Economics program. Today the tie to the extension program is still strong.
For additional information, contact LVFC president Judy Broussard (jbroussard@agcenter.lsu.edu), Karen Overstreet, extension specialist and state adviser (koverstreet@agcenter.lsu.edu), or the LSU AgCenter extension office in your parish.
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On the Internet: LSU AgCenter: www.lsuagcenter.com
Contact: Judy Broussard (337) 898-4335 or jbroussard@agcenter.lsu.edu
Contact: Karen Overstreet (578) 6709 or koverstreet@agcenter.lsu.edu
Editor: Mark Claesgens (225) 578-2939 or mclaesgens@agcenter.lsu.edu