With more than 180 hours of time volunteered and more than $2,000 in donations, the clubs that make up the Iredell County Extension and Community Association had plenty to celebrate at its Achievement Day meeting on Thursday.
Perhaps none more than Charlene Overcash, who was behind $1,577 of the donations made by the Mount Mourne club.
President Judy Athey said while volunteers often wear many hats as they help out different organizations, Overcash would receive an apron with ECA embroidered on it.
In total, the Mount Mourne club donated 174 hours of its time and $1,782, while the Oswalt club volunteered nine hours and donated $387.
The organization also recognized some of its most avid readers.
Brenda Campbell led the way with 63 books read, followed by Joyce Dobson with 56 and Overcash with 33. Among the clubs, the Clarksbury club read 163, followed by Mount Mourne with 53, and Ostwalt with 10.
People are also reading…
The group also went about its normal business and meeting events, including its Thought of the Day and a sharing of a short story, as well as its program that featured Mooresville nurse and author Cheryl Barrett.
Good grief
And while it was a day for celebrating what the ECA has done, it was also a moment to enrich themselves with words of wisdom from Barrett, who wrote “Good Grief: Strategies for Building Resilience and Supporting Transformation” after her husband died almost a decade ago.
Barrett said that one should have gratitude even in their grief, as it helps process the past and what was, the opportunity of the present, and what the future holds.
She said it is also important to remember that while a relationship like that is one where you feel you’re on a path together, it is important to remember those are side by side, and one might end before the other.
“You still have a life, and God has a plan for you,” Barrett said. “His pathway ended here, and mine kept on going. We think this is our together path, but what we’ve always had was yours and theirs, and your children’s, and whoever, and everyone has a different timeline.”
But while that grief is a moment in the darkness, Barrett said, like a seed, you can emerge anew. She said allowing for self-compassion isn’t just important for yourself, but also so one can put that compassion into others.
She said it is important to “hope” — help one person every day — as one moves forward in their grief and self-healing.
