Motivated to Make a Difference

Improving the community propels Southwest Arkansas Arts Council’s Lindsey Honea to stay involved

by Ellen Orr

photo by ROBIN ROGERS

Southwest Arkansas Arts Council’s Lindsey Honea, Jason Campbell, and Amanda Lance stand in front of the Kindness Travels exhibit displayed at the State Capitol last March.

When Hope-raised Lindsey Honea moved back to her hometown with daughter, Sophia, in tow, she consciously decided that they should be active in community service. Her intention was in-line with the famous JFK-ism: ask not what your small town can do for you but what you can do for your small town.  “I thought, ‘Okay, if we’re going to live here, we should try to be more involved,’” she explained. “‘If there’s a chance to do something that might improve the community, then we should just go ahead and do it.’”

As she raised Sophie from infant to preschooler and helped run her family’s business, Main Street Cleaners, Lindsey tried to volunteer as much as she could. But, once Sophie was in grade school, Lindsey felt the tug to dive more deeply into community service.

During Easter last year, Lindsey spent some quality time with her daughter, Sophie, who she admits is her “happy thought.”

So, in 2017, when Lindsey was asked to join the Southwest Arkansas Arts Council, she just said yes, despite feeling somewhat insecure about what she had to offer. “I wondered, ‘What could I bring to this organization?’” Lindsey recalled.

Lindsey did not let her humility impede her volunteerism. For the first year, she mostly just did what was asked of her, which was often grunt work—setting up for the annual Holiday Bazaar, for example. However, as a talented organizer and communicator, she was quickly put to work on various committees, connecting skilled people in the community with SWAAC projects. Unsurprisingly, it wasn’t long before she was convinced to join the Executive Board as first vice president—and then vice president, and then president, and now past-president.

Each week, Lindsey, Jennifer Block, Amanda Lance, and Jennifer Cunningham host a podcast, “Hope Grown,” which features events happening around Hempstead County.

Under her leadership, SWAAC has flourished, even throughout the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Over the last two years, SWAAC has live-broadcasted multiple productions by their new theatre troupe, solicited and distributed kid-made cards for healthcare workers, begun the process of creating a gallery of therapeutic art for children in the foster care system, and much more. All of this has been made possible in part because of Lindsey’s innate ability to connect with, inspire, and support community partners: the local television station handled the theatre broadcasting, the card project was facilitated with FEMA and the state health department, the art-therapy initiative will be in partnership with Southwest Behavioral Counseling.

As if her work with the Arts Council isn’t enough, Lindsey is also involved in the Junior Auxiliary of Hope and acts as a co-host of the weekly “Hope Grown” podcast, produced by THRIVE Hempstead County.

In July, this group of clowns was part of a play called “Calamity at the Circus” which was a Southwest Arkansas Arts Council production involving community theater, arts, and education programs.

Community service comes naturally to Lindsey. Her mother, Mary Moses, was a public health nurse who passionately promoted health literacy, often bringing along a young Lindsey to help with tasks like pamphlet distribution.  “I honestly hit the jackpot as far as family goes,” Lindsey said. “Both of my parents are some of the nicest, sweetest, most outgoing people. Years ago, around Christmastime, my mother was rear-ended at a stoplight by a lady who had a young son in the car. My mom refused to be seen [by the paramedics] until she knew that the young boy was okay. Then, later on, she learned that the lady did not have auto insurance. Instead of being upset about such a thing she was like, ‘If she can’t afford auto insurance, she can’t afford Christmas for her son.’ So we had to go out and buy toys to make sure that this child had Christmas gifts.”

Lindsey spent Christmas 2016 with her close-knit family who she admits are some of the best people she has ever known.  Pictured with her are her mother, Mary Moses; father, Larry Moses; brother, Eric Honea; nephew, Christian Honea; and daughter, Sophie Finigan.

Lindsey’s mother died in 2017, but her father carries on her spirit of generosity. Combining his own passion for service with his love of barbeque, he and Lindsey formed a 501(c)(3) called Main Street Smokers in 2019. He holds fundraisers for other nonprofits as well as individuals who might need money for things like emergent health care. “In March, when he fundraised for the Unity Youth Group, we sold out 250 plates in an hour and 15 minutes,” Lindsey said. “When this community gets involved in something, they really get involved.”

It’s that eagerness—that “if we’re going to do this, let’s really do this” energy—that most motivates Lindsey. “When I see how hard other people are working to improve our community, that’s what drives me,” she said.