When you see FOX16’s Donna Terrell take her spot in the anchor chair every weeknight, she won’t be wearing a hair net. No old aprons or plastic gloves make their way to that big, shiny desk.
But when she’s not on air, that’s not such an out of the ordinary look for Terrell. For the past five years, she’s been a member of the Little Rock Chapter of The Links, Incorporated, an organization of women dedicated to enriching the lives of African Americans and other persons of color through volunteer and community service.
The Links started in 1946 when Philadelphians Margaret Hawkins and Sarah Scott decided the only way to make change happen was to work toward it themselves. The Links now consists of 280 chapters in 41 states, including the Bahamas. It also includes the Little Rock Chapter of The Links, Incorporated, which has been in operation for 58 years.
Terrell was approached regarding membership and was inducted in June 2009.
“Someone thought that maybe, just maybe, I would make a good Link,” Terrell says, “and because they believed in me, I have spent these last five years trying to do everything that I can to follow through on that belief.”
Working under the motto “Linked in Friendship, Connected in Service,” the organization is divided into five facets, or committees, into which each Link is slotted every year. These include everything from the arts to international trends and services to health and human services. The facets then work to provide the community with betterment opportunities related to each division.
Sometimes these projects mean an afternoon at the theatre, like taking a group of students to a special performance at the Arkansas Repertory Theatre, most who have never been to The Rep, and some who don’t even know it exists.
Other projects require a little more grit, like the Move Your Body event in October. Hundreds of kids and families came to the Metroplex to learn fun exercises and better ways of preparing food they already have in an effort to fight childhood obesity. Terrell and team donned the traditional lunch lady attire to serve guests healthy options, while also measuring BMI and giving away activity-promoting items like basketballs and jump ropes.
Considering the chapter’s involvement with everything from scholarship opportunities to outreach for kids with incarcerated parents, it’s surprising how the organization has continued to fly largely under the radar. While a little confusing, this seems fitting with its purpose.
“We do our work for the community, but we don’t necessarily go out and boast about it. This is something that’s in our hearts and our spirits. We just feel like it must be done,” Terrell says. “And if you go into some neighborhoods and you mention the Little Rock Chapter of The Links, Incorporated, they know exactly who we are.”
Her passion for community service may have been what initially got her involved in the chapter, but she soon learned that being a Link means much more than fulfilling a number of community service hours.
In 2011, Terrell lost her daughter Queah, 34, after a long battle with colon cancer, a devastating loss that her fellow Links helped her through.
“I hadn’t been in the organization that long, but I had all of these women reach out to me and do everything in their power to make it easier to deal with the loss of my daughter. It’s not like I’d known them all my life, but the way that they helped me was as though we had been connected for so long.”
“And that’s why I’m a Link. We care about the community, we care about each other.”
It’s that same drive to serve that Terrell often gives her own time to. Her career in broadcast involves somewhat of an expectation for work in the community, something that makes many groan, but that she considers a perk.
Even in past cities, before her life as a Link, Terrell has made volunteer work a priority. She often finds herself going beyond expectations set by any establishment. With this mindset, when the opportunity came along for her to join the Little Rock chapter, it was “a no-brainer.”
“I decided as a young adult that doing something for someone other than myself, other than my family, to help people in need was going to be important to me,” she says. “I would not be able to tell you what that catalyst was, but it was like a lightbulb came on. I realized how good it felt when I walked from a situation where I gave of myself. It’s when you get in there and get your hands dirty, when you see that what you’re doing is making a difference, even if it’s for just one person.”
This kind of mentality bleeds into just about every aspect of her life, one often opening doors for the other. If The Links are part of a newsworthy endeavor, she’ll have an interesting story to pitch to the station. If she’s working on a story and notices a need, she’ll bring it up with The Links.
Somewhere along the line, however, Terrell became somewhat of a prominent public figure, though she doesn’t see herself as such, literally laughing at the idea. It’s not a rarity to get asked to be a part of various community service activities or emcee events or judge chili cook-offs.
Yes, she’s a newsperson whose job is to tell the public about things. Yes, she’s used to being invited to events and met with disappointment at the lack of a television crew. However, in true Link form, the prominence and the publicity are never her focus.
“No, I’m the messenger. That’s all I am. I just interview people of prominence,” Terrell said. “But if I am those other things, it’s not because that’s what I set out to do. It is because I got into a business where I thought maybe I could do something good, or be good at this and end up helping people.”
In her world, the community service, The Links, her career: It’s all seamless. Everything Terrell does is about telling stories and serving people. When asked if she’s the Donna Terrell from FOX16, of course the answer is yes, but waving her title on a banner isn’t a thought, especially when there’s chili to judge.
Perhaps her biggest labor of love for The Links is chairing the annual Holiday Jazz Brunch and Fashion Show featuring world-renown Liberian-born designer and stylist Korto Momolu. As the marquee event for the organization’s fundraising efforts, there’s much to do, not to mention all of the facets’ projects that depend on the brunch’s success.
Every scholarship, every basketball, every meal the chapter provides takes money. With over 400 guests in attendance last year, they expect even more this year at the Little Rock Marriott. But if Terrell is stressed about it, it doesn’t show. Her focus is on balancing putting on a nice event with keeping the purpose of the event at the forefront, making sure their supporters have faith in the organization’s ability to do good work.
When the event is over, no matter who was there or who is or isn’t talking about it, the most important thing to Terrell is that The Links continue their mission. She has confidence that the story will be told, whether it be by a larger press vehicle or by word of mouth from the families they help. It is simply the kind of need that doesn’t go away or ever lose its weight.
But for now, there is work to be done and Terrell is there to roll up her sleeves, determined not to lose perspective.
“We get so caught up in our own lives, myself included. My daughter passes away and the focal point is ‘woe is me, how could something so horrible happen.’ Then you go somewhere where people have not only lost children, they’ve lost everything. It’s then that you’re able to put your own life into perspective. Yeah, I’ve been dealt a bad hand, but I’m really blessed.”
“I have struggled with the loss for three and a half years, but I get these reminders that even though it’s so painful to be without her, I am still so lucky. I’m lucky to have had her and because God continues to bless me. You don’t want to forget that. If you can take some of those blessings and share with people who really need it, then that’s what it’s about.”
The Links Holiday Jazz Brunch and Fashion Show
When: 11 a.m., Saturday, Dec. 6
Where: Marriott Little Rock
Tickets: $75 per person. Corporate Tables for prime seating also available.
Info: Gloriaatcmg@SBCGlobal.net