Charolette Tidwell was raised conserving water by sharing a tub with her nine siblings, but she learned that even when someone has very little, there is always enough to share.
"If my mom cooked a pot of beans, then the two older ladies down the street or a mom with three kids got a portion of those beans," Tidwell said. "It was community back in those days."
Born in 1946, Tidwell knew from the time she was young that she would carry on the tradition of helping others that her parents and church taught her. That seed of compassion has grown into a lifetime of service that some say makes Tidwell a Fort Smith icon.
After spending decades working in the hospital and nursing home field as an administrator, Tidwell retired to open Antioch for Youth & Family, a nonprofit that now feeds more than 800,000 people a year through the help of volunteers.
The pantry, which has operated for 21 years, is more than just food.
"I believe in community effort," Tidwell said Thursday. "And I believe people do inherently want to help other people."
The nonprofit is a hope that she can spark in others the compassion her mother gave her.
Belva Ross, 51, was 15 years old when her mother died of a heart attack, forcing her to "grow up."
"I had to learn about life," Ross said. "People like Charolette Tidwell helped me go the right way."
Tidwell invited Ross and other children into her house, Ross said. She provided Ross with emotional and financial support.
"One thing I learned is what God gives you doesn't belong to you," Ross said. "It is not for you, it is for others."
Ross, a Realtor, has been married 20 years and now has a daughter the same age she was when her mother died.
The example of service Tidwell's mother passed to her was passed to Ross and now rests in her teen daughter.
Ross, who volunteers at Tidwell's nonprofit, said her daughter also wants to serve by becoming a nurse.
Tidwell has spent decades building programs that engage youths to give back, including one that teaches children in the juvenile court system how to garden and distribute the food to those in need.
She also has worked with local, state and federal governments and nonprofits to change the way resources are provided in the community. This includes all children receiving a free breakfast in Fort Smith schools.
"Every child needed a meal, so the stigma that only the poor children needed a meal would be lifted," Ross said.
She has engaged local educators, hospital staff, mental health providers and police officers to provide a holistic community approach to services offered.
Tidwell also has partnered with businesses such as Harps to teach children how to read labels and create financial food budgets.
Zena Featherston Marshall, executive director of student services at Fort Smith Public Schools and Antoich, said she fails to have the adequate words to describe Tidwell.
"She is persistent and she doesn't give up when there are obstacles, even ones that seem monumental," Marshall said.
Officials in Fort Smith know Tidwell will get a job done.
"She is a nurse by skill set and brings a level of knowledge to the issue of food insecurity that everyone can't bring to the table," Marshall said. "When she speaks, people understand she is speaking from her heart but also her training in caring for individuals."
Tidwell has received many awards and recognition for her work throughout the years. Most recently, in 2020 Frito-Lay's selected her smile to be featured on chip bags during the company's Operation Smile campaign. The company pledged to donate $1 million to the Operation Smile nonprofit, which provides safe surgical care to those with cleft conditions.
A reception was held to honor Tidwell and the work she has done in Forth Smith by the city ahead of the release of the chip bags.
At 75 years old, Tidwell keeps giving back to the community.
She almost becomes more determined, Marshall said.
"She is trying to change outcomes for people who are food insecure and she is trying to change behavior of ones, like me, who can go out and volunteer and understand more about what this issue looks like," Marshall said.
Tidwell says she still has more work to do.
"I go from here to a level of really seeing that the tide is turning for a better community for every person in that community," she said. "I don't have to see the total end results. I have seen the tide turning. I have. I want to see a little more of that. One by one."
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Lessons as child led to life of caring - Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
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