| The WSOS Press - August / September 2002 |
Sandusky River Tour 2002 brings stakeholders to Sandusky County
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| Participants of the river tour search for organisms that would indicate the health of the Sandusky River during the stream monitoring demonstration by ODNR officials, which was part of the Sandusky River tour in July. |
Monica Chibucos, coordinator of the Sandusky River Watershed Coalition, in July partnered with state Rep. Rex Damschroder and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) to organize the Sandusky River Tour 2002 in Sandusky County. The group coordinated a similar event in Seneca County in 2000.
"We don't want to be remembered as the generation that failed to protect Ohio's most abundant resource," Damschroder said.
Due to low water levels in the river, the tour became a driving tour that took about 35 representatives of various area organizations to various locations to give them a closer look at the river.
The trip began at Wolf Creek Park then returned to the park for a stream monitoring demonstration by ODNR representatives, which was followed by dinner at the park. Participants then engaged in discussions of various topics affecting the health of the river such as the proposed reservoir in Fremont, agriculture run-off and nitrate levels, to name a few.
Organizers hope that the tour would help residents feel a se of ownership in protecting the river from pollutants.
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Ohio poverty expert conducts demographics workshop for WSOS leadership
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| George Zeller |
George Zeller, author of Ohio's annual poverty report, spent July 17 with WSOS Leadership discussing "The Importance of Demographics in the Grant Application Process, Public Information and Advocacy."
Zeller is the Senior Researcher at the Council for Economic Opportunity in Greater Cleveland (CEOGC) where he has worked since 1985. His research analyzes the relationship between sluggish job growth and the large welfare cuts that have been implemented in Ohio, including measures of the economic status of former welfare recipients.
"As a community action agency, it is vital that we understand the importance of using accurate demographic data in our grant application processes," said WSOS President/CEO Don Stricker. "Demographic data can tell us surprising information about our communities." WSOS uses demographic information to determine the needs of the communities it serves, then it solicits funding to fill those needs.
Zeller's most compelling findings indicate that while Ohio's poor are no longer on the welfare rolls, they are just as poor, but now working. He said the recession hit Ohio earlier than other places and it is still surviving in Ohio. Ohio's children are still suffering.
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Board member Profile
Thatcher wants to ensure the best use of available funds at WSOS
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| Terry Thatcher |
Name: Terry Thatcher
Address: Croghan Street, Fremont
Family: Wife, Donna; adult children, daughter Dawn Hammer; sons Troy and Todd; and three beautiful grandchildren Emily Miller, and Erin and Alex Thatcher.
Employment: A native of Cambridge, Ohio, Terry has been a Sandusky County Commissioner since 1997. Before that, he served as a Fremont City Councilman for nine years. In addition, he practices as a chiropracter since his graduation from the Lincoln Chiropractic College in 1966.
Goal as a board member: As a board member, Terry says he wants to ensure the best use of available funds.
Board Status: He joined the board in January.
Hobbies/Interests: He loves to spend his time investigating his family genealogy.
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Family Services launches new program and secures two more
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| Tatiana Ioujakova, second from left above, and Balazs Holenda, second from right,, display cakes WSOS staff bought to mark Balazs' departure for Hungary. Balazs, a Hungarian student and Ioujakova, a Russian student, spent the summer as interns at WSOS. Ioujakova will leave in October. Others pictured are Nadine Thompson, left, Ladonna Tarris, center, and Jamie Munoz, right. |
Family Services got its first client for the new Community and Employment Services (CES) program and is on its way to serving the disabled population of Seneca and Sandusky counties.
CES targets disabled individuals who are seeking employment services. The program provides job placement and specialized training for individuals with physical, mental or emotional disabilities. These individuals will receive help to enter or re-enter the workforce. They will participate in career exploration, job placement, job coaching, as well as follow up assistance and many other employment-related activities.
Participation in the progam is by referral only and that referral comes from the local office of Rehabilitation Services Commission (RSC). To determine eligibility, the participant must contact the local RSC office at 1-800-589-6772. RSC can also answer questions about your social security benefits.
After a year's absence Employment and Training staff were successful in securing again the Workforce Investment Act's (WIA) Youth Program for Ottawa and Seneca counties. It continues to serve youths in Sandusky County.
The WIA Youth program serves youths 14-21 years old who are either in or out of school. The program has a menu of services that consist of 10 required elements: tutoring, alternative secondary school services; summer employment opportunities; paid and unpaid work experiences; leadership development opportunities; occupational skills training; adult mentoring; follow-up services; comprehensive guidance and counseling; and support services.
The program depends on partnerships with local employers and educational facilities for its success. Employers provide paid or unpaid work experience for the youths. The youths are given the opportunity to find a job on his/her own and, if unsuccessful, the mentor will step in to help.
Youths interested in this program either must be income-eligible, have a barrier to employment such as being a school dropout, teen parent, an offender, and/or have a documented disability.
Call 1-800-775-9767 for more information.
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Director's Corner
Housing & Energy
New program can save residents utility costs
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| Chuck Wright |
The Universal Services Fund, Targeted Energy Efficiency and/or Education programs is Housing and Energy's newest weapon in its arsenal to fight rising energy costs among low-income, qualified residents of Northwest Ohio.
Services will consist of installation of electric efficiency measures such as fluorescent bulbs, energy audit of refrigerators for possible replacement, state regulated weatherization program ,and delivery of consumer education. There are three levels of service including baseload efficiency only weatherization for those with moderate or high electric heating load. An educational program is available for each of the service levels and is based on a customer's electric consumption and payment behavior, which is determined through in-home visits, in-home case management, group workshop participation and home study/mail packets.
Customers who accept this service are, in most cases, combined with other WSOS Housing and Energy services to give the greatest energy reductions and savings on the customer's utility bills. The services provided to the customer is combined, whenever possible, with one or more of the following :
- The Home Weatherization Assistance Program (HWAP)
- The Columbia Gas Warmchoice Program(subcontracted through Groundlevel Solutions Inc.)
- The First Energy Partner Program for Toledo and Ohio Edison customers
- The AEP Targeted Electrical Efficiency Program (through a subcontract with the Corporation of Ohio Appalachian Development)
Customers from a state provided Percentage of Income Payment Plan (PIPP) list of high consumers will receive a call from the WSOS Housing & Energy representative. Those who receive this call are urged to accept this free service, which provides a savings of hundreds of dollars in utility costs.
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| New Directions Summer School Program students, above, try to ride the unicycles donated to them by Fremont Kiwanis at the end of summer session picnic August 2. |
Housing and Energy will move its offices from Howland Street to 2228 Hayes Avenue, effective September 30. Phone numbers remain the same, but note the address change. Also, former Director Don Corley, now the Housing Development Coordinator, is located at the Brady building's second floor. Chuck Wright takes over as director.
Child Development plans to open a new childcare center in Oak Harbor in September. The new facility is in the Lapointe Methodist Church, West SR 163. For more information, call Gabi Felter at 419-734-2652.
Senior Programs is operating the new Caregiver Support Program in partnership with many area agencies. Also, Evelyn Thorbahn, the former site manager at Port Clinton senior center, is now site manager at the Oak Harbor center. She replaces Darlene Hinds who resigned in July. The Oak Harbor center is located at the Riverview Senior Healthcare Campus on West SR 163.
The Fremont Kiwanis Club donated five unicycles to the Fremont City Schools, Summer/After School Program, which were welcome additions to the program. Classroom/Recreation Aide Jason Meade took over the cycles and trained a group of interested students at Otis Elementary School to use the cycles. The group demonstrated their new found skills during the Sandusky County Fair Board's parade on August 11.
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Familiar Face
Chris Reed's job provides her the added benefit of some special friendships
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| Chris Reed |
Name: Christine Marie Reed
Address: County Road 247, Fremont
Family: Husband Tim; daughters Andrea and Erin; and pets, Travis and Ebby, the family's black labradors.
Employment: Fiscal Specialist for the newly created Community Development department. Until about three months ago, Chris was the MIS Specialist of the Great Lakes Rural Community Assistance Program. She originally joined WSOS 17 years ago as a member of the Employment and Training staff.
Favorite part of the job: Chris says as a detailed-oriented person, she really enjoys her job because it entails working with numbers. She has also enjoyed all the people she has come in contact with, especially since some of them are her special friends.
Goals: She says that currently her only goal is to learn all there is to know about the changes taking place within her department so that she could do her job to the best of her ability.
Hobbies/Interests: Chris loves to spend time with her family and friends, especially doing things outdoors. She recently began spending more time outdoors since she began experimenting with landscaping the new property she and husband Tim bought two years ago.
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