BOBBY ARDOIN Editor/Contributing Writer
Hope For Opelousas is expanding its citywide vision.
The 15-year-old organization which oversees after school tutoring, life skills and discipleship for school-age youths, has plans to double the size of the program over the next several years, says Hope For Opelousas executive director Loren Carriere.
Carriere, who discussed his prospective intentions last week during a weekly Opelousas Noon Rotary Club meeting, said he eventually wants to add at least another 100 students to the program now housed in several locations around East Madison Street.
Hope For Opelousas now contains an extensive student waiting list and Carriere told the Rotarians that he wants to reduce that number for the program which is funded primarily through grants, private donors and other forms of revenue.
Additionally Carriere added that his expansion strategy includes starting an early learning center for children who are younger than those already enrolled in grade levels one through 12.
When he began the Hope For Opelousas venture in 2008, Carriere said he intended to redirect the paths of city youths who were at risk from endemic issues that they experience as they begin to mature..
“You could see the brokenness and the hardships that so many of our young people were facing,” Carriere recalled.
So far that goal of reconstituting the direction for many of Opelousas’ youths is being accomplished, Carriere pointed out.
Hope For Opelousas, Carriere said, has sustained a 100 percent high school graduation ratio, which he pointed out is well above the state and parish averages.
The March 21 Art Show
Students enrolled in the Hope For Opelousas program are sponsoring their annual art show March 21 at the East Madison Street location.
Carriere said proceeds from the show will enable students to again attend a summer camp in Missouri that hosts urban youths nationwide.
“Our students will have their artwork on display and members of the public will have the chance to bid on the projects. The students are always excited about having their art valued by those outside our program and it has developed into an event that has been well-attended in the past,” Carriere said.
Spring Break Assistance
A number of college students are again spending their annual spring break week in Opelousas, working on rehabilitating and maintaining some of the residences around the Madison Street area, said Carriere.
This year the primary focus for the students’ volunteer assistance has been rehabilitating a two-story house on South Union Street, Carriere pointed out.
“The students have also been engaged with a lot of painting. In addition many of these students also come down to Opelousas and spend parts of their summers with us,” Carriere added.
