[April 02, 2014]      

Monday morning Mayor Keith Snyder of Lincoln had the great honor of visiting the children and staff of the Logan 1, 2 and 3 Head Start classes. His purpose for twofold. First, he was there in observance of the Mayors Day of Recognition of National Service.

In that role, Snyder talked to the children about some very special people in their school lives, their foster grandparents. The Foster Grandparent program is one of the many services offered by the Community Action Partnership of Central Illinois. In the program, seniors volunteer to spend a portion of their day with area children in the classroom setting. They help the children with class work and perform many chores to assist the teachers.

In return, the seniors receive a nontaxable stipend that can assist them with their daily monetary needs.

The Foster Grandparent program is utilized in Logan County by day cares, Head Start and other educational programs.

Pictures by Nila Smith

The children of one class quietly take their places on the floor while they wait for the other two classes to arrive.

In the background is foster grandparent Elaine Ray.

 

More students arrive, and it is about time to start.

Becky Leamon of Community Action prepares the children for their special guest.

 

She then introduces Mayor Snyder.
 

He shows the kids the official city of Lincoln proclamation naming April 1 a day of recognition in Lincoln.
 

Mayor Snyder asks all the children to tell him their name, all at the same time.

He then shows the kids the "thank-you" certificates the foster grandparents will receive and seeks out volunteers to help him hand them out.