2011 CSA Finalist: Phyllis Pipkin

The art of homemaking has been important to Arkansas women and their families for 200 years. As early as 1912, home demonstration clubs began to pop up around the state.

Now they are the Extension Homemakers' clubs, in partnership with the Cooperative Extension Service of the University of Arkansas.

Our first 2011 Community Service Awards monthly finalist is from Garland County, and she is the new E. H. C. State Council President.
    
Phyllis Pipkin of Royal is starting her two-year term as state president of the Arkansas Extension Homemakers Club.

"Phyllis has tried very hard to bring us up-to-date and kinda modernize our way of thinking. And women need to start thinking about more than just cooking and cleaning and gardening, you know. There's insurance factors, how to buy a house, things that weren't pertinent to women years ago," says Judith Brink, with the Garland County E.H.C.

As a Garland County E. H. C. leader, Phyllis has originated several of the organization's programs. Cooks-R-Us, Sharing Our Skills, and Coaches, counseling older adults in cognitive and healthy eating  strategies.

"UAMS started this program and they were looking for some people to become coaches to teach older adults. You had to be 60 or older and you help older adults to eat the right foods and take care of themselves. If they were overweight to try to lose some of that weight and some light exercise was introduced into the program.

"I think it's that she's a doer, you know. She doesn't wait for other people to come up with stuff for her to jump into, she sees what needs to be done and she rallies everyone to go to help her to do these things." says Lisa Gilmore with the Garland County Extension Service.

"She serves as an elder, she's the clerk of our session, she is involved in Sunday School, she teaches a kids Sunday School class,  works with the Lake Hamilton Cumberland Youth, fundraisers, she's the chairman of the Fellowship Presbyterian Church  Committee," says Rev. Duawn Mearns, Pastor of Lake Hamilton Cumberland Presbyterian Church.

"Because it makes me feel good to do those things and so I will do those things until they just, you know, I'm six feet under," says Phyllis.