Regional Library Director Awarded Smart Start’s Karen W. Ponder Leadership Award
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Tracy Zimmerman
Date: May 27, 2010
Phone: 919-821-9564
tzimmerman@smartstart.org
Raleigh – Jackie Beach, the Director of the Craven-Pamlico-Carteret Library System, received the Karen W. Ponder Leadership Award for her 17 years of service to young children and her community as a Smart Start volunteer. Beach was honored at the Smart Start Leadership Symposium on Tuesday, May 25 at Jane S. McKimmon Conference and Training Center in Raleigh. In addition to an inscribed award, a contribution of $1,000 will be made in Beach’s honor to her local Smart Start partnership, Craven Smart Start, Inc.
The Leadership Award honors Karen Ponder, a past president of The North Carolina Partnership for Children, Inc. The award, now in it’s third year, is presented annually to an exceptional local partnership volunteer whose public service and leadership significantly improve the lives of young children, families and the community at large. Recipients must demonstrate a commitment to building a stronger community, the ability to lead and inspire others, and personal integrity among other qualities.
Beach began volunteering with Smart Start’s Down East Partnership for Children in 1993. As a library director, she often saw children from nearby child care centers come into the library and she took an interest in the quality of care they were receiving. She became the mandated library representative of the partnership’s board and made it a personal goal to work through and with Smart Start to improve the quality of child care for all children. In the past she has said: “All parents deserve the peace of mind that you can walk into your child’s child care center at any time of day, unannounced, and find that your child is safe and in a nurturing, high quality environment.”
Beach later became the founding Board President of Craven Smart Start. Her leadership has included service in a variety of board leadership roles, including Grant Review Chair, Board Secretary, a member of the Outreach and Development Committee, and now as a member of the Executive Director Search Committee.
“I had always felt extremely blessed that I had found a career, public librarianship, that filled me with passion and never felt like work. Then along came Smart Start and my cup overflowed with blessing again,” said Beach. “It seems almost wrong to accept an award for doing something that has brought me so much personal fulfillment and joy—but I did say ‘almost.’ I am humbled by this honor and I plan to be involved in Smart Start for a long time to come.”
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The earliest years of childhood are critical. Experiences during this time literally shape the structure of the brain. Because today’s children are tomorrow’s leaders, parents and workers, everyone has a stake in making sure all children have the experiences they need to thrive. Smart Start is the system that brings together all the people involved in a young child’s life—families, teachers, doctors, caregivers, social workers, and many others—to ensure every child has all they need for healthy growth and development. For more information, visit our About page at www.smartstart.org/about.
