News Taffy

Junior Auxiliary of Jonesboro kicked off JA Week with a proclamation by Mayor Harold Perrin declaring April 7-13 as Junior Auxiliary Week in Jonesboro. The proclamation was presented during JA of Jonesboro’s monthly board meeting held on Monday, April 8 in the Integrity First Bank board room.

Junior Auxiliary of Jonesboro has served in Jonesboro since 1950 and currently has 87 active members serving on 10 service projects. During the 2011-12 service year, members gave 9,614 hours and to date have given more than 7,000 hours toward this year’s projects and education.

During the year, members have served through CYS, Girls Enrichment, Growing Healthy, Kick Start Kindergarten, Literacy and More, Lunch Buddies, Scholarship, Share and Wear/LOCK Box, The Learning Center and Times Tales. JA of Jonesboro has also been able to contribute financially to a number of other community organizations in their own efforts to reach children of Craighead County. Through these projects, members of Junior Auxiliary are able to reach thousands of children in our community.

Junior Auxiliary of Jonesboro is one of the 100 chapters of the National Association of Junior Auxiliaries, NAJA, a non-profit organization founded in 1941 with headquarters in Greenville, MS. NAJA has more than 15,000 active, associate, and life members Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Tennessee and Texas. Collectively, NAJA members worked 278,315 service hours and invested $2,433,822 in their communities in 2011-12. 

The hard work goes on year-round, but during the first week of April each year, the Junior Auxiliary of Jonesboro along with other NAJA chapters pause to say thanks to the community for another great year.

            "This is such an exciting week for us, because it gives us a chance to thank all of the citizens of Jonesboro and Craighead County for supporting us in this work, and to recognize our wonderful corporate sponsors who finance these projects," said Shaila Creekmore, JA of Jonesboro public relations chair. "The families and children we serve are so deserving and thankful for this assistance, and none of that would be possible without the support of the entire community."

The NAJA slogan is “Care Today – Character Tomorrow.” Junior Auxiliary Chapters are working more than ever to provide care to those less fortunate in order to make their tomorrows better.

“Junior Auxiliary has a rich history of service, and the Junior Auxiliary of Jonesboro is carrying on that tradition. This Chapter embraces the founding principles of our national organization, ‘helping children and making a difference in their lives,’” said Amy Davis, Junior Auxiliary of Jonesboro president. “We are so appreciative of Mayor Perrin for declaring it JA of Jonesboro Week and for his support of our work in Craighead County.”