Purse power used to boost reading power

More than 400 area women gathered Thursday (Oct. 8) at the Fort Smith Convention Center to help raise money for a program that helps provide free books to about 1,700 children in the Fort Smith area.

The Women’s Leadership Circle of the Fort Smith United Way held it’s annual Power of the Purse fundraiser Thursday to help fund the Dolly Parton Imagination Library program now helping children from birth to 5-years in the Fort Smith area. Through the program, a child receives an age-appropriate book each month until they reach their fifth birthday.

“We are serving about 1,700 children in a four-county area, and the only reason we’re not serving more is because of money,” said Linda Kaufenberg, lead coordinator of Power of the Purse for the Fort Smith United Way. “That’s part of what we are doing today … is letting people know that it only takes $30 a year to get books to one child.”

Valuable purses and handbags and theme purses — with market values ranging between $30 and $736 — were part of a silent auction with proceeds supporting the Imagination Library program. Corporate sponsors of the Power of the Purse were Bank of the Ozarks, Beall Barclay & Co., Hanna Oil & Gas and Simmons First National Bank. Linda Spradlin serves as the 2009 Women’s Leadership Circle chair, and KFSM-TV 5 personality Ashley Beck was the emcee for the event.

LaDonna Gatlin, the baby sister (S-I-S-T-E-R, and NOT baby sitter) to the Gatlin Brothers, was the featured speaker. Gatlin has recorded four solo albums and is a contributing author to the book series, “Chicken Soup for the Soul.”

Gatlin began her comments with a song, and then followed that with praise for historic areas in downtown Fort Smith.

“I took a history walk of Fort Smith and I have to tell you that you all got it going on around here,” Gatlin said of her self-guided tour of downtown Fort Smith.

Her speech, “Tune Up Your Life,” focused on the notes used by singers to tune their voices.
DO: Do the right thing
RE: Realize potential
MI: Mind your manners
FA: Failures can become fertilizer
SOL: Solutions begin with me
LA: Laugh
TI: Time is valuable, with brings it all back to …
DO: Do the right thing.