Update on Recovery Conservation Corps in Athens County

Nearly 40 young men and women spent the summer fixing up public properties in Athens County as part of the Recovery Conservation Corps (RCC).

The federal government’s economic stimulus package provided the funding through the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) program for the RCC in Athens County and all across Ohio. Locally, Athens County Job and Family Services has been coordinating the program with Hocking College and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR).

The RCC participants were divided into five work crews placed at Strouds Run State Park, Lake Snowden Park, Gifford State Forest, Waterloo Wildlife Area and Hocking College. The work crews also did a few special projects in the county, such as putting in a canoe ramp for the Hocking River near The Plains.

The members all did important work, earned supportive service funding, received special training, gained experience that will help them in their careers and, in some cases, earned up to 10 college credit hours. The college credit hours were through Hocking College, and were in areas such as orientation to careers in natural resources, wood shop instruction, supervision/leadership, chainsaw operations and maintenance, recreational equipment operation and maintenance, First Aid and CPR.

“All of the participants seem pretty pleased with the program,” said Sue Pepper-Warga, who has been coordinating the RCC program for Athens County Job and Family Services. Over the summer, Pepper-Warga has seen the RCC participants become more confident workers, and she has seen how the program has helped them in numerous ways.

“For some people, it probably would have been impossible to continue on with their studies at Hocking College because of financial circumstances,” Pepper-Warga said. “This has been a big boost for them.” The participants also benefited tremendously from the work experience and the opportunity to add to their resume.

“Some of them have never had any work experiences before,” Pepper-Warga said. “It’s been really great. Our retention rate is tremendous.”

Read more about the RCC program in Athens County in additional posts that will be placed on the blog later this week.
Both photos show RCC crew members working at Strouds Run State Park. Shown in the top photo is Patrick Dailey, while Brandan Cox and Ashley Dennison are shown in the bottom photo.

Waiting for assistance

Julie is an Athens County resident who proudly worked for the same company for the last 15 years. She loved her job and the people she worked with, but recently lost her job because she does not yet have her GED.
Julie is working to earn her GED and get back on her feet, but has not been able to receive the help yet that she needs from the safety net programs that are supposed to be in place for Ohio residents. She has to wait at least two weeks just to talk to someone about the Food Assistance program, and she is also waiting for unemployment assistance and other types of assistance.
But while she is forced to wait for help, it's nearly impossible for her to pay her bills and buy groceries for her children. Click here to read more about Julie.

U.S. Census count will be very important for Athens County

As part of our effort to promote the 2010 U.S. Census Count in southeastern Ohio, Athens County Job and Family Services set up booths at the Athens County Fair and Nelsonville's Parade of the Hills in August. At the booths, we handed out informational materials on the Census, let area residents see samples of the very short Census forms they will be asked to fill out next year, and raffled off two "Athens County Come To Your Census" cornhole sets. We also registered people to vote and provided information on the numerous programs that Athens County Job and Family Services offers for area residents.
Shown in the photos are (top right photo) Nelsonville resident Edith McGee with the cornhole set she won at the Parade of the Hills, and (bottom photo) Athens County Job and Family Services Director Jack Frech and Program Administrator Warren Haydon in the booth at the Athens County Fair.

For more information on how the U.S. Census count will affect the people of Athens County and why the Census count is so important, click here or scroll down and check out some of the other articles and videos on this blog.

Why the 2010 U.S. Census is so important

Here is a video produced by the U.S. Census Bureau about the 2010 Census, which will take place on April 1, 2010. It is vitally important to have everyone in Athens County and all across the country counted in the Census. Every year, more than $300 billion in federal funds are awarded to states and communities based on U.S. Census data.
The Census information is used as a guide for community planning efforts such as where to build new roads, hospitals and schools. It is also used for funding programs such as emergency food shelters, public transportation, senior citizens programs, social service programs and planning for development.
The Census figures also determine how many seats each state has in the U.S. House of Representatives as well as the redistricting of state legislatures, city councils and voting districts.

Clients face numerous challenges

Many of our clients face a wide range of obstacles that make life very difficult. Reta and Jerald, for example, are a Nelsonville couple raising grandchildren and one great-grandchild while dealing with health problems. Jill is a single mother who is unable to work anymore because of her own health problems. Ashley is an 18-year-old single mother who just earned her GED and is preparing for college in the fall. They are all facing significant challenges, but they are doing whatever they can to overcome these barriers and provide for their families. Click here to read about Reta and Jerald, click here to read about Jill and click here to read about Ashley or watch a video of her telling her story. Click here for several other stories and videos explaining how our clients are overcoming challenges, and how much it would improve their lives if the state would provide more financial assistance.