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Helping Hands: A Premier Student Organization

Helping Hands is a SSS sponsored, Recognized Student Organization on the campus of Northwestern State University. The organization was revitalized in Fall 2001 by former SSS Counselor Shawanda Woods for the purpose of providing a source of social-peer interaction for SSS students.

Sponsored by Catherine Faucheaux and Jamie Flanagan, the current club has grown to over thirty members, and has won recognition and distinction as one of NSU's top student organizations.

In 2005-2006, Helping Hands members participated in a variety of community service projects, fundraisers, and mentoring activities.

In the Fall 2005 semester, Helping Hands helped at the Red Cross Hurricane Relief shelter. The club participated in the Homecoming Parade. They held their First Annual Fall Festival. Community children came on campus for a fun, safe evening. The group donated Christmas presents to the Boys and Girls Club of Natchitoches.

In the Spring 2006 semester, the group assisted at the Women's Resource Center (Crisis Pregnancy Center), the Boys and Girls Club of Natchitoches for their Annual Steak and Burger Dinner, and visited the Cane River Children's Home.

They visited an area nursing home several times to play bingo with the residents and held candy sales to raise funds during the fall and spring semester. New t-shirts were sold.

At the last NSU Gavel Club Meeting of Spring 2006, Helping Hands received the Most Community Service Hours award.

Black History Program

Helping Hands is credited with initiating the first Black History Program celebration on the NSU campus in 2002. Through the vision and hard work of Helping Hands students, the Black History Program received NSU 's Program of Year award for 2002.

The fifth annual Black History Month Program was held on Thursday, February 23rd, 2006 at 7:00 p.m. in Magale Recital Hall. The program drew over 400 NSU students, faculty and staff. A presentation by the Helping Hands group, "If Anybody Asks You Who I Am...Tell Them I'm a Child of God" by Roosevelt Wright was selected for presentation at the 19th Annual NSU Research Day on April 18, 2006.

Activities

Cultural Enrichment

SSS staff provide a variety of cultural enrichment experiences for its students. One of the most popular of the recent activities included horseback riding with Catherine Faucheaux.

Helping Hands Images