Shriners working to get word out in Wayne County about services
By Steve Herring
Published in News on October 5, 2011 1:46 PM
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News-Argus/TROY HERRING
Shriner George Raecher, left, Boy Scout Sam Ferrell, Carver Principal Laurie Goodman and Shriner Charles Davis stand with the informational poster created by Ferrell. Posters were put up at many area schools in advance of Friday's fish fry to educate teachers, counselors and parents about what the club offers.
The Wayne County Shrine Club is getting extra help this year in spreading the word about the work of the Shrine Club, especially its children's hospitals, from Sam Ferrell, a student at Southern Wayne High School.
Ferrell created posters that include literature about the hospitals. There are pockets on the posters where information cards can be placed. The posters have been placed in every elementary school in the county, Raecher said.
"Sam is working on his Eagle Scout and he was interested in helping the Shriners," Raecher said. "Of course his dad (Tom Ferrell) is a Shriner. We are on a little mission this year to pick up some patients. Tom did a lot of research. I did a lot of research. Come to find out, in our school system right now we have about 18,000 students that fit the category of being eligible for treatment at the Shriners' Hospitals if they needed that kind of treatment."
Shriners were at most of the county schools' open houses where they stood next to the placards and passed out literature for people who were interested, he said.
"We have two possibilities already," Raecher said. "Nothing is confirmed yet. They have been provided applications for the hospital. I just can't believe that we don't have more people in Wayne County whose children we can help. There have to be."
But on Friday, the group will be raising money to help those it can, holding its regular fish fries at Herman Park Center in Goldsboro and Robert's Machine Shop in Mount Olive from 11 a.m. t o 2 p.m. for lunch, and then for dinner from 4 to 7 p.m.