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From the Executive Director
Donnie E. Wheatley
Wow! We are already working on the Christmas Sponsor Program and scheduling
crews for the Christmas Tree Farm. Where has
the year gone? We are already almost half of
the way through this semester of school. The
on-campus school is once again providing
services not available in any other setting–
public or private.
While the economy is showing signs of recovery, it will be quite sometime
before Boys’ Home’s support regains the
level it enjoyed in the 2007-2008 fiscal
year. We do appreciate the loyalty shown by
donors that makes this ministry possible.
Since ninety-seven cents out of every dollar
spent comes from a private source, this
support is essential.
The Gospel 19 Pentecost was Mark 10:17-31. In this reading, Mark tells about
the rich man who approached Jesus and was
told that he needed to sell all that he
owned, give the proceeds to the poor and
then to follow him. I have heard and read
several sermons that discuss the meaning of
this message. The best that I can recall was
that Jesus was encouraging the rich to not
let the fact that they were rich be the
priority in their lives, but that they
should be responsive to the needs of others
and not to ignore their communities. In this
particular sermon, the writer went on to say
that, in the end, it would be God’s Grace
that determined who entered the kingdom.
Many of the boys at Boys’ Home come from circumstances that easily put them
last in the grand scheme of society. With
your assistance and God’s Blessings, we
attempt to change that picture.
Best wishes to you for a Bountiful Thanksgiving full of God’s Love and
Blessings.
Donnie E. Wheatley
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It’s A Barn-Raising at Boys’ Home School
Changes taking place at the Boys’
Home School do not involve teachers or
curriculum. Instead, it looks like an
old-fashioned barn raising!
The students in the Construction
Technology course are building a shed for
storage located behind the Greer Education
Center. This class meets on Mondays,
Tuesday, and alternate Wednesdays at 4:00
p.m. and the instructor is Mr. Buck Ray. The
students have also built and installed new
shelving in the school’s multi-purpose room
and library to expand the storage options
for the school. Miguel Salinas and Conner
Fagan are the primary carpenters in this
venture.
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Ivan Damulira
Participates in COW Program
For juniors and seniors in high school, preparing for college means getting
good grades, taking the required ACT and SAT
tests and earning credits in college-prep
courses. But Ivan Damulira of Chester, added
another item to his checklist. He also
attended the summer College Orientation
Workshop at the Virginia Military Institute
in Lexington.
This unique 4 week course focuses on self-development and educational
enrichment. Ivan participates in a variety
of school activities and has high ambitions.
Last February, he even job shadowed Dr.
Grimesey as the “superintendent for a day”
for Alleghany County Schools.
Ivan was nominated by Donnie Wheatley, Executive Director and and Virginia
Military Institute alumnus and another
sponsor.
At first, Ivan was not totally sure
he wanted to spend part of his summer at
VMI, but that quickly changed once he became
involved. Ivan took part in several
activities: rappelling, hiking, canoeing,
swimming, and physical training plus classes
on study skills and career exploring.
The COW program is a challenging summer program for promising minority male
students. The program’s curriculum helps
them achieve success for the duration of
their high school education by cultivating
confidence, great self-esteem and a strong
work ethic.
According to Ivan, “ The lessons I learned fit into what this program is
about. I
learned to set a goal for myself,
work on it and achieve it. I also learned to
be healthy and enjoy who I am as a person.”
Ivan must have learned these lessons well.
He was selected to be a speaker at the
graduation. Now he is proud to be associated
with cow4life.org.
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Notes and Quotes
More ideas on how to help Boys’ Home:
Box Tops for Education and Labels for
Education
are programs that benefit the Boys’ Home
School. All you have to do is clip out the
Box Tops logo or the UPC bar codes from the
Labels for Education and send them in to
Boys’ Home. The collection of Box Tops and
Labels for Education has allowed the Boys’
Home School to qualify for such items as
sports equipment, art supplies and
educational aids.
Boys’ Home is enrolled in the
Sherwin Williams Neighborhood Preferred
Customer Program. By using the special card,
Boys’ Home receives a percentage of the
total retail sales purchased. So, are you
planning a winter or spring spruce-up for
your home? If so, have us send you the
special Boys’ Home registered card. The card
may be used at Sherwin-Williams, Duron, or
MAB stores.
If you like the idea of earning money while you browse the Internet,
consider using the search engine GoodSearch.
Boys’ Home participates
in this program and also GoodShop
which donates a percentage of qualifying
purchases to the charity selected.
Penny Power for Boys’ Home
reminds everyone that even saving spare pennies, dimes,
quarters or even dollars, adds up. Sunday
school classes, men's groups or entire
churches may join together. So count your
blessings and your pennies and change a
life.
Boys’ Home participates in NAP (Neighborhood Assistance Program).
Unrestricted contributions may qualify for
additional tax incentives. June 30, 2010 is
the last date to qualify for this program.
Please contact Sandra or Jerome at 540/965-7714 for any of these programs.
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Eubank and Barrett Inducted Into Boys’ Home
Alumni Hall of Fame
“It’s been 58 years – I’m so glad you’re back at Boys’ Home.” That’s how the
evening started for Malcolm Eubanks as he
was greeted by Larry Price ‘51. The trip
down memory lane began with reacquainting
himself with Boys’ Home and former
alumni and ended with the Hall of Fame
ceremony. Roland Bob Barrett ‘55 had
similar greetings as he celebrated with the
many family and friends, some from long
distances, who gathered to honor him. This
ceremony not only honors the inductees, but
it is also a chance for current residents to
learn about past residents, their
experiences and
accomplishments. Donnie Wheatley commented,
“This has become quite a highlight in
the year at Boys’ Home.” The Alumni Hall of
Fame was started in 1997. It pays tribute to
personal or athletic achievements, or
significant contributions made to Boys’ Home
by individuals.
Roland B. Barrett was presented by his son, Johnny. Johnny described his
father as, “a man of courage and integrity
throughout his life.” Bob arrived at Boys’
Home from Norfolk, Virginia in 1949 at 12
years of age. He graduated from Covington
High School in 1955. After graduating, he
joined the U.S. Army and served for 30 years
before retiring as Command Sergeant Major.
Barrett served in Korea, Vietnam, and
Grenada. He earned Jump Wings from the U.S.
and Taiwanese Armies and received the Legion
of Merit, and Meritorious Service medal,
Bronze star (5 times) and the
Gallantry Cross with silver star.
Outside of the Army, he has been a member of
the American Legion, VFW, Disabled American
Veterans, the Loyal Order of the Moose, and
the Benevolent and Protective Order of the
Elks.
In his induction speech, Bob said in many ways, Boys’ Home prepared him for
Army duty. As a resident, he had to wake up
at 4 a.m. every day to milk cows. He
compared that to when he had to wake up in
the military and said that, “I realized that
I haven’t left the home yet.” Coming to
Boys’ Home was the best thing to ever
happened to him.
Mr. Barrett has 10 children, 18 grandchildren and 15 great-grandchildren. He
resides in Fayetteville, North Carolina with
his wife Elizabeth.
Malcolm B. Eubank was presented by Boys’ Home alumnus, Bob Ramsey. Bob
talked about Malcolm’s nickname, “Froggy”
and how work was his priority every day.
Malcolm came from Norfolk, Virginia and
stayed at Boys’ Home from 1943-1947. He
returned home and graduated from Granby High
School in 1948. After completing an
Associates degree, he served in the U.S.
Army, achieving the rank of Sergeant First
Class, until 1952. In 1958 he received a
Bachelor of Arts degree from the University
of Georgia. Mr. Eubank served as an District
Executive for the Boy Scouts of America from
1959-1969. He attributes his love of
scouting to being a scout at Boys’ Home. He
was the Executive vice president with the
Hopewell/Prince George Chamber of Commerce
from 1969-1998. He is a life member of the
Hopewell Emergency Crew and has served as
President five times. Even one of his
hobbies is tied to Boys’ Home - golfing. To
learn to play, he commented, “I dug three
holes in the ground, installed tin cans and
made a three hole golf course!” He ended his
speech by saying that, “I look on the “Hill”
and there are so many changes. The only
thing that remains the same is the boys.
They’re building character here.”
Mr. Eubank resides in Hopewell with his wife Diane. They have two sons,
Malcolm and Michael Duree.
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Charitable Gift Annuity
- A Good Investment
If you are looking for a way to increase your cash flow, have the security
of guaranteed payments and would like to
save on taxes, then a
charitable gift annuity may be just
right for you.
With declining interest rates on certificates of deposits and savings
accounts, it might be a good time to check
into funding a charitable gift annuity that
benefits both you and a favorite charity,
Boys’ Home.
In today’s world, sometimes it is
comforting to be able to count on fixed
payments which are not affected by interest
rates and stock prices.
If any of these scenarios echo your
feelings, then contact Janet Lemmer at
540/965-7715 for a discussion about
charitable gift annuities. And as always,
check with your financial advisor before
making any long-term decisions.
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