Committee of One Hundred for the Ozark Folk Center

The Committee of One Hundred for the Ozark Folk Center, and specifically founder Dr. Bessie Boehm Moore, had the unparalleled vision to gather statewide support for the Folk Center by bringing together a group of women who could get-things-done. Dr. Moore was a force of nature who knew presidents, governors, and officials—all of whom would answer her call and say “yes” to her request. This resulted in a committee that, 50 years later, has impacted the arts and humanities, non-profit and for-profit businesses, community service, and education.

It is fair to say that without this group of women, craft apprentices, the Music Roots Program, and the Heritage Herb Gardens would likely never have existed. It is also noteworthy that many of the crafters, musicians, and herbalists are women. Without those hundreds of crafters, thousands of folk music students, and inestimable number of visitors to the herb gardens and symposiums the current state of folklife in Arkansas might be dim or non-existent. The Committee of One Hundred for the Ozark Folk Center has given Arkansans and visitors a living link to the pioneer past and a thriving cultural and economic future.

For 50 years, the Committee of One Hundred has existed to support the Ozark Folk Center’s mission of folklife preservation. While much has been funded over those decades, there are three major areas of focus: the Music Roots Program; craft apprenticeships; and the Heritage Herb Gardens. The Ozark Folk Cultural Resource Center received considerable funding from the Committee of One Hundred and this major collection of Ozark folk history is now housed at the Arkansas State Archives.

The Music Roots Program

The Committee of One Hundred has been a primary funding partner of the Music Roots program since its inception over 25 years ago. The results have exceeded expectations with student enrollment ranging between 50 to 130 students per year. Over the past 25 years, conservative estimates would put the total number of students between 1,500 and 2,500. Students have learned to play instruments, work with other musicians by forming ensembles and perform on a stage. Beyond that, the students, their families, and the community have gained a greater appreciation for the music heritage of the Ozarks. In 2006 the Music Roots program earned a Henry Award, tourism’s highest honor and in 2023, Music Roots received the Arkansas Art Council’s Arkansas Governor’s Art Award for Folklife Preservation.

During the summer of 2023, the Committee of One Hundred was a sponsor of the Smithsonian Folklife Festival. Five women represented the music of the Arkansas Ozarks and all were associated with the Music Roots program. At every performance, these musicians told the audience about the Music Roots program and the talent of these women dazzled audiences leading to so much national publicity that it became impossible to track. In addition to the Music Roots program, the Committee also funds the highly successful Next Generation concerts at the Ozark Folk Center which feature multiple generations and provide performance opportunities for up-and-coming student talent.

The Committee of One Hundred for the Ozark Folk Center’s dedication to folk music preservation has resulted in a huge economic impact with musicians ranked highest in creative jobs in Stone County and music instrument sales and repairs—in tiny Stone County—reaching 1.7 million dollars. The impact of this music legacy is impossible to measure but it is fair to say, that without Committee funds, folk music would not be thriving in Arkansas!

Crafts Apprenticeships

From its earliest years, the Committee realized that traditional craft skills were being lost and founding members based their apprenticeship program on lessons learned while travelling to and in dialogue with Colonial Williamsburg. The Committee of One Hundred has funded almost $200,000 in crafts apprenticeships over the decades. Uniquely, both the master crafter and the apprentice were paid and apprentices were not required to remain at the Ozark Folk Center thereby spreading these craft skills and folk culture throughout Arkansas and the nation.

It is impossible to measure the economic impact of the numerous small businesses that were created through the apprenticeship program but the impact of the Committee’s investment resonates throughout Mountain View and beyond. The first craft apprenticeships began in 1978 and two apprentices in that group founded companies still in existence today. David Mathews was a blacksmith apprentice who later founded Stone County Ironworks and was Arkansas’ Small Businessman of the Year in 1991 and was also named to Inc. Magazine’s list of the country's 500 fastest-growing privately held companies. It was the only Arkansas company to make the list.

Original apprentice, Jerry Lovenstein learned broom making from Bill and Jim Ford going on to found, with wife Judy, Grassy Creek Brooms where they make brooms by hand in a workshop on the land that they homesteaded. In 1985, Jerry was a master artisan in the National Endowment for the Arts’ folk arts apprentice program and a recipient of the Arkansas Arts Council’s 2001 individual artist fellowship in traditional craft. Numerous other Folk Center artisans and apprentices have contributed to the creative economy through awards, teaching, and founding arts-related organizations.

Heritage Herb Gardens

In June of 1977, Committee of One Hundred members Elizabeth Warner, Sidney Nisbet, and Billy Joe Tatum tilled and planted a cabin garden with native and European herbs. Over the years, the gardens flourished and by June 12th of 1986, the Heritage Herb Garden was dedicated to the people of Arkansas by Arkansas First Lady Hillary Clinton. In 1993, the herb gardens were recognized with Arkansas State Parks Director’s Commendation for the advancement of the State Parks System through the Sumptuous Herbal Feast and Workshop.

Additional awards for the Committee of One Hundred include a 1985 Henry Award for Outstanding Volunteer Service, the 2001 Partners in Parks Gold Award from the Arkansas Tourism Foundation, 2007 Partners in Parks Platinum Award from the Arkansas Tourism Foundation, 2012 Arkansas State Parks Director’s Commendation for the advancement of the State Parks System through the Music Roots Program, and the 2023 Folklife Award for the Music Roots Program from the Arkansas Arts Council’s Governor’s Arts Awards.

The economic impact of the Committee of One Hundred’s fifty-year legacy can be measured through direct funding at almost $2,000,000 and volunteer hours valued at $2,202,112. Difficult to measure although vitally important are the impacts of the craft apprenticeship program, Music Roots program, and Heritage Herb Gardens which have spawned local businesses and helped to build the creative economy and vibrant culture for which Mountain View is known today. Over the past fifty years, the Committee has given almost $2,000,000 in direct funding to programs that include craft apprenticeships, the Heritage Herb Gardens, the Ozark Cultural Resource Center, and Folk Center Special Projects and Staff Awards. This amount, adjusted for inflation, is a conservative summary that does not include any fundraising costs or Committee events. The Committee of One Hundred is an entirely volunteer organization and the financial impact of their volunteer hours is approximately $2,202,112. A conservative estimate of annual Committee volunteer hours would be 3129 hours per year or 156,400 hours over 50 years.

The Committee of One Hundred has contributed to the well-being of Arkansans by preserving the pioneer skills of craft and plant usage as well as the folk music that served as entertainment and salve for the soul in times of sorrow. The Committee was an early contributor to Arkansas’ creative economy resulting, five decades later, in Arkansas’ reputation as a source of fine craft, music preservation, and herbal knowledge.