Page 47 - 1930 October - To Dragma

46 To DRAGMA

Our second aim was to help those boys and girls, men and women on
the farms, to a better adjustment. We felt something must be done
to arouse in these people a wholesome respect for their occupation—a
feeling that their job was worth while. We must give them an inspira-
tion and vision of things as they could be—beautiful, successful, happy.
Then after they were awakened, we must give them information on
modern methods so that these newly glimpsed goals would seem possible.

Then, there was still a third aim, to erase all dividing lines. There
must no longer be a class of "country boobs" on one hand and "city
guys" on the other, but all must be regarded as fellow workers at dif-
ferent parts of the same machinery.

I t was about this time that our state community worker came to
us and suggested the Folk School as a solution to our problems. At
this school, country and town folk could become acquainted, and old
barriers and prejudices would be forgotten in these newly formed friend-
ships. We could bring to this school speakers who would inspire our
folk, dispel their apathy and awaken in them the old high purpose.
After this was accomplished, our people would then readily avail them-
selves of information about modern methods, which we would also pro-
vide in other departments.

So we laid plans; we would hold this school five days during July
after the crops were laid by. The women would be taught home-making,
the men more efficient farming, and the children, for, of course, the
children were included, as their parents could not come without them,
would have games, social contacts and exposure to activities that their
lives ordinarily lacked. We planned our program with our needs in
mind. A reference to the program will show talks to the men on soil
fertility, permanent pastures, commercial fertilizers, cow testing, cotton,
marketing, dairy products. For the women there were talks on beauti-
fying the home grounds, homecraft and home reading, the profession
of motherhood and increasing the home income, besides many inspira-
tional talks by men and women who had made good in agricultural
and other lines. (We had come to believe that one reason for the dearth
of ideas in our rural communities was due to lack of contact with stim-
ulating personalities.) We planned rather an extensive program for
the children. There were trained nurses for the babies; for the tots,
a nursery school and kindergarten; for the older children, trained play-
ground workers, professional story tellers and art craft experts, a con-
ductor for the rhythm orchestra, and playground apparatus, which would
tempt the most timid as well as the most blase!

Perhaps you will want to know something about how we carried out
this plan into the farthest parts of the parish. Whenever we heard of any
organization meeting, some member of the committee was there to tell
about "Folk School," and the definite part that they could take in
helping foster i t . Within six weeks every organization in the parish
was not only acquainted with the plan, but had made it their own.
Many of these organizations helped with the attendance. In each com-
munity the leaders were made acquainted with the plan, local attendance