Loes Hedge - Lifetime Achievement in Volunteerism
Loes Hedge has devoted her life to the betterment of the Saint Joseph, Missouri community for over half a century. Arriving in Saint Joseph 51 years ago to teach, she became a cornerstone of the educational and civic landscape. She obtained her Bachelor’s degree from Lincoln University of Missouri in 1972 before going on to teach in the Saint Joseph School District for 31 years. Her first twelve years were spent at Everett Elementary until its closure in 1985. In conjunction to receiving her Master’s degree from Northwest Missouri State University in 1986, Loes’s subsequent years were spent teaching 5th grade at Edison Elementary School, where her granddaughter is now an educator. In 1996, she received the prestigious Milken Educator’s Award which honors top educators around the country.
Loes also instructed and mentored future teachers through programming at Missouri Western State College. In retirement, she has continued to be instrumental to the Saint Joseph School District. In 2010, Loes co-chaired the district’s long-range plan facilitating team under the initiative called PACT or “Planning a Course Together.” To this day, she continues to speak at area schools to educate students on topics such as inclusion, Civil Rights, and Black History.
During the initial years of her career, Loes married Rev. Dr. Willaim (Bill) A. Hedge, a fellow educator. Wed in 1975, the two of them would share a mission in educating the underserved and fighting for racial justice. Together, they have two children, Matthew Sr. and Holly, four grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren. Bill Hedge also served the Saint Joseph School District for close to three decades as an administrator, teacher, coach, and counselor. He has served as Pastor of St. Francis Baptist Temple for over 20 years where Loes is a Sunday School Teacher and Mission Leader. For 15 years, Loes and other church members operated an after-school tutoring program called TNT (Tuesday Night Tutoring) for neighborhood children.
Under the auspices of the Missouri Arts Council, Loes and three other co-authors wrote and received a $25,000 grant to fund the first official St. Joseph Juneteenth Celebration. Juneteenth, which commemorates Emancipation Day is now recognized as a National Holiday. Loes continues to serve on the Juneteenth Committee.
Loes is also a member of the Buchanan County Women’s Democratic Club, where she helps to encourage female candidates, volunteers, and provide a greater voice for women. Her political efforts have extended into voter registration and even supporting her husband’s bid for Congress.
Loes is the past president of the local NAACP and serves as its current secretary. She has been a member of NAACP for 35 years. When memberships waned in the 1980’s, Loes and several others re-organized to get the organization up and running again. That is when she assumed the role of President. The NAACP’s mission is to ensure political, educational, social and economic equity of all citizens and to eliminate race-based discrimination. A lot of what they do in St. Joseph is to educate/inform its members and community of current matters that have an impact on their lives. The NAACP’s key focus right now is registering voters and making sure they know where to vote. They also keep a watchful eye on what is going on at City Council and School District meetings and respond to issues as they arise.
In 2002, Loes was awarded YWCA’s Kelsy Beshears Racial Justice Award in recognition of her many efforts to bridge diversity, empower at-risk students and strengthen education for all. For years, she has continued to play a crucial at YWCA for the Annual Day of Commitment to Eliminate Racism where she has served as an emcee and helped with the recipient process for both the Kelsy Beshears Scholarship and the Kelsy Beshears Racial Justice Award. The Day of Commitment will be celebrating its 28th anniversary later this year. Loes’s ties to YWCA have stretched into years of service on the Board of Directors and receipt of the 2013 Women of Excellence Award for ‘Woman in Volunteerism.’
Loes was recognized in 2023 with the MWSU Martin Luther King Jr. Drum Major for Justice Award as well as one of News Press Now’s ’20 Who Count’. New Press highlighted her work as a co-liaison for the Coalition on the Lloyd Warner Community Remembrance Project, a group that has worked for more than two years in collaboration with the Equal Justice Initiative to raise donations for a marker for the teenager’s grave and memorial marker at the site of his lynching. Loes remains active with the Black Archives Museum of St. Joseph, serving on their committee. She and her husband, Bill, were both inducted into the Black Archives Museum Hall of Fame in 2007.
Today, Loes Hedge enters another hall of fame. Her lifetime of achievement as a volunteer, educator, and community leader has blazed trail for other women to make an impact. Loes’s work fully embodies YWCA’s mission of “eliminating racism, empowering women, and promoting peace, justice, freedom, and dignity for all.