DR. SAM TAGGART is a family physician and writer who has practiced medicine in Benton, Arkansas, for the last 37 years. He has been writing for public consumption for the last ten years, completing two novels, We All Hear Voices and With A Heavy Heart, both based in Arkansas. Last year he was commissioned by the Arkansas Times and the Arkansas Health Department to research and write a book about the public’s health in Arkansas. The Public’s Health, a narrative history of health and disease in Arkansas, is published by the Arkansas Times and distributed by the University of Arkansas Press. It is available at your public library, your local book store, on Amazon and B&N in soft cover and e-book formats.

NIKKI TATE is a volunteer with the Clark County Literacy Council through the AmeriCorps program. With at least a 13 year focus on education, Tate has taught preschool and served as a substitute teacher. She currently directs an afterschool program for children ages 5 to 12 while volunteering with the Clark County Literacy Council, in which role she is responsible for coordinating students and tutors as well as recruitment. Tate is currently enrolled at Henderson State University, where she is working to earn a bachelor’s degree in middle school math and science. She is an active member of Park Hill Baptist Church and also volunteers in her community through Clark County 4H and the Clark County Fair Board. Tate is married to David Tate, an electrician at DeGray Lake Dam, with whom she has two teenaged children.

CHRISTA NEAL is originally from Greenwood, Arkansas, and first moved to Arkadelphia to attend Ouachita Baptist University. Neal earned her B.S. in Psychology from OBU, where she met her husband, Jay Neal. The couple moved to Northwest Arkansas where Christa attended grad school at John Brown University while Jay worked to complete law school at the University of Arkansas. She graduated with a masters degree in marriage and family therapy and community counseling and has since worked in a variety of settings as a therapist.

Neal has experience working in a community clinic, a facility for homeless teens and young adults, and in several school districts. During her time as a mental health therapist, she met many children and adults who had experienced some sort of physical, emotional, or sexual trauma. Neal received specialized trauma-focused training and is the founding director of the Clark County Child Safety Center. The Center is in the process of opening, and as such, it is important to build awareness of the facility and its services. Community support will be necessary as the Center's staff and advocates work to better inform the public about child abuse, how to help reduce the number of occurrences in our area, and how to donate to the Center.

Neal and her husband have a precious 4-month-old little girl named Georgia Faye and reside in Arkadelphia. She is also involved in the community as a member of Junior Auxiliary.