Page 6 - ElDorado.Promise

Local, state officials praise El Dorado Promise
ocal and state officials commitment that the people believe the El Dorado of El Dorado made to their Promise has brought children’s future.
opportunity and hope to the “Thanks to the investment of
students and families of the El Dorado School District over the past decade, and the benefits the community will receive from the Promise are immeasurable.
“The Promise has given many of our young people the opportunity to further their education,” said Mike Dumas, interim president and CEO of the El Dorado- Union County Chamber of Commerce. “For some they will be the first member of their family able to attend col- lege. This cannot be anything but good for this community, our state and our nation.”
Dumas said he has found many of these young grad- uates are returning home to raise their families and serve their hometown.
“We can never put it all into words but just saying thank you to Murphy Oil for the Promise does not seem to be enough,” Dumas said. “History will one day tell us the true impact the El Dorado Promise has had on this com- munity.”
“The El Dorado Promise is a keystone program for El Dorado and south Arkansas,” said State Senator Trent Garner of El Dorado. “In my time at the Capitol, one of the topics I am asked about the most is the Promise. It has created a level of excitement for El Dorado not only in the state of Arkansas, but across the country.”
Garner said the Promise’s success is a testament to the
the Murphy Oil Corporation, the passing of additional funding by citizens and the hard work of our educators, the Promise has produced innumerable advantages to our students that will great- ly benefit our communities in south Arkansas,” Garner said.
Former Governor Mike Beebe remembers being in El Dorado in 2007 for the announcement of the Promise scholarships.
“I can tell you a story that has stuck with me to this day,” Beebe said. “We held the program in the gym- nasium, and the place was packed. As I was leaving, a black lady, who was a grand- mother caring for a grand- child, was sitting on the front row of the bleachers. As I was walking out, I saw that she was crying. She said before the Promise, she did not know how her grandson was going to be able to go to col- lege, and now she did. That story really stuck with me in terms of what the Promise means to real people.”
Beebe said the Promise was the second such program ever offered in the U.S., and it would often be the topic of conversation when he would travel around the country as Arkansas governor, meeting with other officials and gov- ernors.
“For Murphy Oil to under take this sort of a commit-
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News-Times File Photo
Keynote: Governor Asa Hutchinson delivers the keynote address at El Dorado High School on April 14, 2015. Hutchinson will be back in El Dorado to celebrate the 10th anniversary on Feb. 2.
Thank you Murphy Oil.
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Investing in our future is the best gift you can give. Our kids are our future.
6 – El DoraDo NEws-TimEs – JaNuary 29, 2017
PromisE 10Th aNNivErsary