JACKSON VOLUNTEERS GET READY TO YELL

Jackson civic and business leaders and interested individuals are gearing up to "YELL" for literacy education.

Volunteer leaders met Thursday morning at the Jackson U.S.A. Signal office to finalize plans for the annual Youth, Education, Literacy and Learning (YELL) Day, set to take place Tuesday.

On YELL Day, nearly 30 civic-minded volunteers will hit the streets of Jackson to sell a special edition of the Southeast Missourian featuring a colorful and informative special YELL section.

Proceeds from the sale of this special edition in Jackson, Cape Girardeau and surrounding towns goes entirely to fund the Newspapers In Education (NIE) program as well as numerous other literacy programs in the area. Proceeds from Jackson sales go entirely to Jackson literacy projects.

Volunteers in the Jackson area say they are excited about the opportunity to once again make a contribution to literacy and education in the area.

Among those gathering for Thursday's meeting was John M. Thompson of Boatman's Bank in Jackson.

This year marks the fourth year of YELL volunteering for Thompson, who hopes to sell more "$100 newspapers" this year.

During last year's YELL Day, Thompson was selling YELL papers near Boatmen's Bank when a local man pulled up and purchased a paper for a surprising price.

"At the time, I didn't know the guy," Thompson recalled. "He pulled up and gave me a $100 bill and I said, 'Oh, my gosh! I might not have enough change for this,' and he said, 'That's O.K,' and drove away."

That kind of support for the program is not too different from Thompson's own. He feels as though the volunteer work he does with the YELL program is a way of returning the favor to others in the community who did similar volunteer work when he was a child.

"Somebody was doing this kind of thing a long time ago and it went to my benefit," said Thompson, "and now here is an opportunity to pay that back."

Pearla Murphy of the Jackson chapter of the American Business Womens Association said the YELL program mirrors the educational orientation of her association. The club and YELL go hand in hand, she said.

"We've been involved in the program for all the four years that it has taken place in Jackson so it has become a routine part of our calendar.

"We are an education-based organization and anything having to do with education is something we like to have our hand in, especially with the support the Southeast Missourian shows to the local schools."

Murphy said her group will be selling YELL editions on the busy corner of Main and Hope streets this year.

"We're getting a little bit cocky and think we can handle the extra traffic," she laughed.

Terri Tomlin, a member of the Jackson Public Library's Board of Trustees and a volunteer coordinator for the library's volunteers, said the library felt it was very important to take part in the annual YELL Day. During the past year, YELL funds have helped the library implement an adult literacy program.

"We've benefited from the program with funds to start our adult literacy program," she said. "Although we conduct the [literacy] program with volunteers, we do have to buy learning materials.

"I also volunteer for YELL because I enjoy it," she said.

In addition to literacy programs like the one at Jackson Public Library, YELL proceeds also fund the important Newspapers In Education Program in Jackson Schools.

According to YELL coordinator Kim McDowell, the NIE program provides Jackson students with free copies of the Southeast Missourian which instructors use to teach subjects ranging from current events and social studies to math and language skills.

"This is a teaching tool that excites the students and the students don't even know they're learning because it is so fun to read the newspaper!" said McDowell, who also coordinates the NIE program.

Teachers in Jackson request the newspapers, which are delivered free of charge to classrooms each Tuesday.

In the coming year, 1,314 copies of the Southeast Missourian will be delivered weekly at a yearly cost of $10,000 in Jackson alone.

YELL monies are the only source of funding for the NIE program.

"Money for this project comes from the sale of advertising in the YELL edition along with half of the money received from the sale of the YELL edition," McDowell explained.

Jackson schools participating in the NIE program are North Elementary, West Lane Elementary, Orchard Drive Elementary, R.O. Hawkens Junior High, the Millersville Attendance Center, the Primary Annex, the Burfordville Attendance Center, Jackson High Schools and the Immaculate Conception and St. Paul Lutheran Schools.

This year's YELL edition will feature a contest with several major prizes, a comic book, informative articles on area literacy programs along with a number of interesting articles on the United Way and other reading programs.

YELL volunteers selling the edition can be found at several locations throughout Jackson Wednesday morning.