CONWAY — The first Dare to Dream banquet sponsored by Deliver Hope in Conway will honor the “unsung heroes,” employees of the Faulkner County Juvenile Court, said Lori Melton, chairwoman of the organization’s board.
The inaugural fundraising event will take place from 6:30-8:30 p.m. Saturday at First Baptist Church, 1719 Robinson Ave. in Conway. The evening will include a catered dinner, silent and live auctions and entertainment. Tickets are $35 each or $50 for two. They are available online at www.deliver-hope.org or d2dream.net.
Deliver Hope founder Daniel Tyler of Conway will speak at the event, as well as 20th Judicial District Prosecuting Attorney Cody Hiland.
Tyler said he came up with the name of the fundraiser because “it was a matter of, if we could get kids to dream again, it would change the life of an at-risk youth.”
Deliver Hope is a nonprofit Christian organization that serves at-risk youth, a designation that is familiar to Tyler.
While growing up in Conway, he spent time in the juvenile detention center more than once.
Tyler’s life turned around, and he founded Deliver Hope in June 2013. Programs include a juvenile-justice ministry, as well as mentoring and tutoring programs, a program for teen mothers and more.
The ministry’s resource center is at 1403 Robinson Ave., across the street from the Faulkner County Detention Center. Tyler said he wants young people to “see hope” as soon as they get out of jail.
It seems to be working, he said.
“It’s going really good,” Tyler said. “We’re seeing kids regularly come through and families coming by to sit down with us and find the resources they need to be successful.”
The idea for the Dare to Dream Award is to honor people who “serve behind the scenes,” Tyler said. “We want to celebrate people who are working in a really difficult job.”
A juvenile probation officer will receive the first Dare to Dream Award. The identity of the honoree is a surprise and will be announced at the banquet, Melton said.
Melton said the juvenile-court probation officers don’t do their jobs because of the pay.
“They play an important role in a teen’s life of whether they change or not,” Melton said.
She said she is most excited about honoring the probation officers.
“I’m glad we’re giving them an opportunity to shine. I’m glad we turned the corner, in that now people are knowing about Deliver Hope. We have our location, and we want to expand awareness on programs we offer.”
Melton said the live auction will include a Caribbean cruise, a fly-fishing “extravaganza,” a birthday party “with the climbing wall” at the Hendrix Wellness and
Athletics Center, two tickets to a 2016 Carrie Underwood concert in Little Rock, tickets to the Brandon Burlsworth movie Greater and a pair of glasses like the ones the late Razorback player wore, as well as a small-business e-commerce website worth $3,800 and more.
The silent auction will offer a variety of gift certificates and merchandise, Melton said.
Proceeds from the Dare to Dream event will be used to help cover administrative costs, as well as utilities and upkeep on the resource center, “to continue the impact we’re able to make and continue to minister to the kids in jail,” Tyler said.
“Our goal is to keep them from re-offending,” Melton said. “The average teen goes back [to jail] five times a year at a cost of $35,000 a year to the county. We’re trying to slow down that cycle. If you don’t stop it, they’ll become adult offenders as well.”
Deliver Hope also works with two Conway businesses to find employment for at-risk juveniles, Melton said, and the goal is to expand that.
If the teenagers have jobs, not only does that give them a paycheck; it improves their self-esteem, Melton said.
“Our whole goal is to prepare these youth to live their lives different than the way they have,” she said.
Tyler said his message is “to challenge people in our community to care about at-risk kids and do whatever they can to give them what they need to dream beyond the circumstances in their lives.”
Senior writer Tammy Keith can be reached at (501) 327-0370 or tkeith@arkansasonline.com.