Mission granted

JAG program at Ville Platte High School receives a grant from Walmart
Image

During a surprise ceremony held Monday, November 18, at the Walmart Distribution Center in Nuba, the Jobs for America’s Graduates (JAG) program at Ville Platte High School received a grant in the amount of $10,000.00 from Walmart.
“I’m elated,” said JAG Coordinator Dianna Johnson, “for this additional funding that will allow my students to explore.”
Johnson went on to explain, “Jobs for America’s Graduates is a program known nationwide. It’s a program that helps students who are lacking the motivation, lacking the parentalship, and lacking the support system. Jobs for America’s Graduates provides that for them.”
She continued, “I feel the opportunity that comes to them comes through exploring. We live in Ville Platte, which is a poverty stricken area, so our student population that we serve is looking for social and economic support.”
During the spring of this year, Walmart, along with actress Jennifer Garner, began the Walmart Associate Challege. “We challenged our associates around the world to voluntarily share how they were sparking kindness in their communities and share on their social media accounts using #SparkKindness and #Walmartassociatechallenge,” said Walmart General Manager Stacey Brailsford. “This could be an unexpected act of kindness, doing an action that builds a positive relationship, or acts that protect the environment.”
Over 400 posts were submitted. Of that number, Nicole Terry’s post was selected to receive a grant for the non-profit of her choice.
“I would like to thank Walmart for this opportunity,” she said. “I think it’s such an amazing blessing that I can give this gift to somebody who truly needs it. I appreciate it from the bottom of my heart.”
“I am very passionate about charity,” Terry continued. “I do charity work all the time. I have several different ones, but JAG is very special to me because it helps people who are not expected to graduate. It helps them to find a job, helps them graduate, and helps them find hidden talents they never knew they had. It instills such high self-esteem.”
Brailsford concluded, “Nicole is a great example of someone who goes out and volunteers their time to help benefit the community and to make their community a better place to be.”