BETHESDA — The Arkansas Sheriff’s Association Youth Ranch sits on more than 500 acres in rural Independence County, Sean Clancy writes in Tuesday’s Style section. There are barns and cottages, rolling pastures and a herd of Hereford cattle. There’s a basketball court, goats and chickens.
It’s easy to see why a group of lawmen in the mid-’70s saw this secluded, idyllic setting as a home for children who often came from places not nearly as peaceful.
The Arkansas Sheriff’s Association in 1976 created the nongovernmental, privately run program for boys from all over the state. Since opening in 1977, the ranch, which operates mostly on donations, has been home to more than 2,050 boys and girls, known as ranchers.
Read more in Tuesday's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.