Darrs awarded for foster care efforts

At a luncheon at University Plaza Convention Center, the Darrs were presented with a $5,000 Humanitarian cash award from the Community Foundation of the Ozarks.

The couple has announced they will donate the award to the Council of Churches and earmark it for Families for Children. The Darrs also will make matching grants to Boys and Girls Town of Missouri and Good Samaritan Boys Ranch.

An independent committee under the auspices of the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce chose the Darrs for their work with Families for Children, a foster care assistance program they helped establish in 2001.

The couple also has contributed to Missouri State University through scholarships and the university’s William H. Darr Agricultural Center, which they helped fund.

The Darrs were not present at the luncheon because of the death of a friend, and the award was accepted on their behalf by their son-in-law, Tom Slaight.

This is the 16th year for the award, made possible by an endowment fund created by Jewell Thompson Schweitzer, a former Community Foundation board member and current advisory director.