A community improvement organization in Bogue Chitto is invitinglocal elected and law enforcement officials, area ministers andmembers of the general public to an information sharing session tohelp upgrade the rural areas of Lincoln County.

The Bogue Chitto/Lincoln County Community Center plans to givean update on its progress and goals and seek advice from sessionparticipants on ways to expand its services at the meeting at itsfacility on Highway 51, just south of Bogue Chitto AttendanceCenter, at 6 p.m. Thursday.

“The meeting is mostly to voice our intentions and possibly seeif people have any suggestions of any known resources we can use toaccomplish our goals,” said center president Charles Edwards.

Edwards said the center looks to work closely with localchurches and schools and law enforcement to enhance its programs,which are aimed at educating and entertaining the elderly and youthin rural Lincoln County for the development of a strongcommunity.

For the youth, the center has already executed many improvementsto its baseball field, basketball court and playground, and plansto provide athletic education and organized team sports like acommunity baseball team and three-on-three basketballtournaments.

Edwards said the center and its more than 50 members subscribeto the belief that sports activities keep youth occupied away fromdrugs and other criminal activities.

“With the community center, I think we can do some things thatwill keep them off the corner – keep them busy doing something,” hesaid. “Most of the metropolitan parts of our state have all thefacilities people can easily access. We’re trying to get somethingsimilar in the rural part of the county, so rural residents willnot have to travel so far to participate.”

During the school year, the center also provides afternoontutoring sessions coordinated by school officials.

For the elderly, Edwards said the center is looking to increasethe number of educational seminars at its facility and host tripsaround the state to provide general information on subjects usefulto the elderly, like details on Medicaid/Medicare and generalhealth fairs.

“A lot of senior citizens know about these things, but theydon’t really know the full details,” he said. “We want to get theexperts in several fields to visit us and provide us with someinformation.”

The center also hosts a weekly senior citizens breakfast, andthose who cannot attend have their breakfast delivered.

Such activities are all geared toward bringing the ruralcommunity closer together, Edwards said. He said the involvement ofelected officials, law enforcement, ministers and other members ofthe public are necessary keep the center and the overall communitycoordinated and working together.

“We want them to come down and see if they can give us anyadvice, so we can do what we can to help make their jobs easier andthey can help make ours easier,” Edwards said.