Hope Center puts kids on wheels

Christmas came early this year for many of the children who live in the so-called “graveyard” apartments of Marianna.
On Tuesday, 18 of them received brand new bikes, and helmets to so they could be safe while they rode.
The local WalMart initially donated 15 of the bikes to the Marianna Fire Department, which in turned passed them on to the Hope Center of Marianna, which is headquartered in the complex.
The other three bikes were donated by Marianna Housing Authority employees and authority board members. The Pilot Club of Marianna donated the helmets.
With the help of friends and family, teacher Missy Boyette established the Hope Center earlier this year in the Weatherspoon Apartment Complex, nicknamed the “graveyard apartments” because of its proximity to a cemetery.
On the south side of Marianna, the low-income apartments are managed by the Marianna Housing Authority.
In February of this year, the city set aside a place in Apartment B for the Hope Center. Boyette’s project was off and running.
Community organizations got behind Boyette’s effort, supporting the center throughout the year in a variety of ways.
Boyette said the center is thriving. It serves 18 children who range in age from 4 to 17 years old.
The center, which also serves as a police substation, is an after-school haven for the children who signed on to participate.
The center is open Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 3:30 to 6 p.m. As soon as they arrive, the children are given a snack. Then it’s time for volunteer tutors to help with homework. After that, the children get some free time to work on computers, play video games, do arts and crafts projects or other activities.
On Thursday afternoons, a family of children come and put on a program called Character First, which focuses on character qualities as well as Bible stories.
Boyette said the children are thriving. “I have seen so much growth in my children in their school grades and behavior,’ Boyette wrote in an e-mail about the Hope Center project. “Most of my students make A-B Honor Roll. We have been truly blessed beyond measure by the area churches, businesses and community members.
“This past Saturday, we started a food bank at the center to help those families that are in need.”
In her e-mail, Boyette commented about the children’s reactions to the bike giveaway and said there is more Christmas joy in store for the youngsters.
“It was an incredible feeling, that I really can’t put into words, to see the joy on my kids’ faces when getting their bicycles,” she wrote in her e-mail.
The center’s Christmas event was a party Wednesday afternoon at 3:30 p.m. at the center. It was given by MHS’s SGA (Student Government Association) and their sponsor, Debbie Dryden. The students adopted children at Hope Center and gave them toys and clothes, as well as a party.
Today, Melvin Engineering will be giving the children and their families a dinner at St. Luke’s Missionary Baptist Church on Orange Street in their fellowship hall. The company will also be giving the children clothes.
Boyette can be reached at: or (850)693-0888, if anyone is interested in giving financially or volunteering hours.