AUBURN — Last August, 40 students from St. Anselm College in Manchester, N.H., raised $18,500 in donations by walking 130 miles from Lewiston to Manchester, N.H., and then donated the money to charities that serve people along their route.

Community Concepts, one of the charities located at the start of the trek, received $1,600 from the St. Anselm students.

Community Concepts used the St. Anselm “Road for Hope” gift to send four Head Start parents to the New England Head Start Association Parent Conference in Nashua, N.H. on Dec. 8 and 9. The parents, representing Community Concepts Early Head Start and Head Start programs, were Candi Holbrook of Jay, Head Start Policy Council Chairperson Melissa Burnham of Rumford, Elizabeth Eaton of South Paris and Melissa Cox of Fryeburg.

“The greatest thing about attending this Head Start conference is developing connections and networking opportunities with other parents throughout New England,” said Burnham. “Hearing other Head Start programs struggles and successes lets us figure out how we can improve our own Head Start programs.”

The four women enjoyed workshops discussing the role of a Head Start Policy Council including budgeting, funding, terminology and how to run effective meetings. They also participated in workshops entitled “Parent Leadership: Becoming an Effective Leader in Head Start” and the “Grassroots Politics of Head Start.”

Every Head Start program throughout the United States has a parent Policy Council comprised of parents with children receiving early education at Head Start. The councils’ role is to advise the Head Start provider, help develop and review Head Start budgets, participate in Head Start staff hiring and help to establish enrollment priorities for the local Head Start program.

“This Road to Hope gift from St. Anselm College made a huge difference for our Head Start program,” said Jim Wilkins, director of advancement for Community Concepts. “It enabled us to send these four women to a first rate conference where they could learn new skills and understand all of the many issues that our Head Start program encounters everyday. Community Concepts is very grateful that the students at St. Anselm College have, once again, selected our agency to receive a contribution from their charity work.”

The Community Concepts’ Head Start offers both Early Head Start and Head Start for families throughout Oxford and Franklin Counties. Parents interested in enrolling their children in Head Start may call Community Concepts at 1-800-427-1251 or on the Web at www.community-concepts.org.