Frances Lucille “Dolly” Rutledge Hand (1928- ) and Homer James Hand (1928- ) were born in Belle Glade and LaBelle, respectively. Dolly’s parents had lived in the Glades just two years before the hurricane of 1928 destroyed their home. Homer’s family moved to Clewiston in the early 1940s, where he graduated from high school before joining the U. S. Navy during World War II.
After graduating from Belle Glade High School in 1943, Dolly roomed in Lake Worth to attend then-Palm Beach Junior College. She graduated from Stetson University in 1949 with a law degree, but her father’s death detoured her permanently into real estate. When Dolly and Homer married in 1954, they settled in Belle Glade, where Homer was a civil engineer.
Dolly spearheaded the drive for a Palm Beach Community College (PBCC) campus in Belle Glade, which opened in 1972; she and Homer both served as trustees. They were instrumental in establishing a $2-million performing arts center on the campus, which was named the Dolly Hand Cultural Arts Center. Dolly also helped establish the Belle Glade branch of the Palm Beach County Library System, and the Cultural Arts for Education series through the PBCC Foundation. The Hands have helped hundreds of students with everything from clothes to college scholarships. At Stetson University and Palm Beach Community College, they give annual awards to distinguished teachers and students.
In 1997 Governor and Mrs. Lawton Chiles granted the Hands the first Heartland Award for “people who exemplify long-term commitment and service to communities. ” Dolly has also received the 2003 Florida Arts Recognition Award. In Belle Glade, April 24 is officially Homer and Dolly Hand Day.