Making Waves of Change

The Literacy Council and Lost Pizza Co. partner to empower adult students
By Katie Stone

Jenny Walker and Jenny Wilder have been friends for as long as they can remember. They danced together at Carol Cooper’s studio at the age of four. They cheered together through their high school days at Liberty Eylau (LE). After schooling, both went on to establish careers in Texarkana: Jenny Wilder became a nurse, and Jenny Walker became a teacher. “A lot of our friends we grew up with moved away. It was important to us to stay here and make Texarkana a better place,” Walker said.

When Wilder’s teenage son became involved with the Literacy Council through his Eagle Scout project in 2017, she joined the nonprofit’s board. When the director retired during the pandemic, Walker applied for the position. Wilder knew that her friend was a wonderful candidate. The interview process included multiple Zoom interviews as well as a socially-distanced in-person meeting with the board. Despite the challenges of the COVID-era hiring process, the board was excited to extend a job offer to Walker, who became the director of the Literacy Council of Bowie and Miller Counties in July 2020. 

“That entire process was stressful in some ways, but at the same time, I had an unreasonable peace about it and some respect for it. I believe that sometimes in life you must take a risk and see how strong your wings are,” Walker said. “I knew it would be the biggest mountain I would ever have to climb.” Once she accepted the position at the Literacy Council, “the Jennys” got to work.

While Jenny Walker was ushering in the rebirth of the Literacy Council (and pursuing her doctorate simultaneously), Jenny Wilder was working as a hospice nurse and volunteering on the Literacy Council Board in her free time. However, in 2022, Wilder pivoted: she and her husband, Patrick, opened Lost Pizza Co. 

“I wanted to challenge myself by offering a food option with a fun atmosphere, and I knew I would use it to help the community,” Wilder said. “I wanted it to be a safe and fun environment to work in. You don’t have that in a lot of service industry jobs nowadays.” 

In the Wilders’ new business venture, the two old friends found new ways to serve Texarkana. Through a partnership of Lost Pizza Co. and the Literacy Council’s workforce skills program, they collaborate to provide training and employment to disadvantaged adults.

While many understand “literacy” to mean reading and writing, the Literacy Council defines the word more broadly. Along with ESL and language-learning classes, the organization also offers basic education and GED classes, workforce solutions, and life skills classes, all at no cost to students. The workforce credential program caters to individuals who are not in school and are of working age and need employment skills. Walker works closely with several businesses in the Texarkana community, like Lost Pizza Co., to ensure that the Literacy Council’s classes are providing their students with the skills necessary to gain future employment—and to ensure that workplaces are hospitable environments for the potential employees, who belong to vulnerable communities.

“We want employers to have great candidates working at their facilities, and we also need employers to provide a space that is helpful to the adult students we serve,” Walker explained. “It’s sometimes easier for employers to give grace to 16-year-olds because they are just teenagers, but when the inexperienced employee is a 35-year-old it might be a bit harder to extend that same grace. We often expect a person to know better, but the reality is that those skills have not always been taught.” 

The program does not end with a certificate to hang on the wall (though certification is an aspect of the program). After being placed in employment positions, the students of the workforce program continue to attend Literacy Council classes to learn more about work skills, how to receive constructive criticism, and how to grow professionally. 

Jenny Wilder and Jenny Walker are passionate about making a difference in the community that they have called home their entire lives. Mother Teresa said, “I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create many ripples.” These two friends are creating ripples that are sure to lead waves of change.

For more information about the Literacy Council and their workforce skills program, visit literacytxk.org.