Diversity : For Good

GO Cincinnati engages community, serves nonprofits

Tuesday, May 14, 2013

About seven years ago, Crossroads began a transformation that positioned it as more than just a church. Its vision was to focus on ways in which it could serve others—in not just the community, but across the world.

Crossroads’ work with GO South Africa was making an impact in the lives of those battling poverty and HIV/AIDS, but at the same time, volunteers began to think about their roles in their own community.

Modeled after GO South Africa, a team of volunteers initiated GO Cincinnati. It's an outreach activity that started out with about 1,200 volunteers who completed 65 projects throughout Greater Cincinnati in a single day for nonprofits.

“People really connected with the idea of serving their city, and on the front line serving those in need,” says Kelley Kruyer, director of Cincinnati ReachOut projects and leader of GO Cincinnati. “They’re doing the hard work every single day, so we thought it would be cool to thank them for the work they do in our community.”

This year, 7,000 volunteers will combine forces on May 18 to complete 400 projects that range from painting and landscaping to putting up drywall and serving meals.

According to Kruyer, the best parts of GO Cincinnati are the long-term relationships Crossroads has formed over the years with the organizations it serves.

“We know their buildings, their properties, their needs, and we know how to best help them, so sometimes we put together a multi-year plan, and it gives them the peace of mind and helps them to budget so they don’t have to spend money on things that we’re happy to help with,” Kruyer says. “It’s just a really special day.”

Kruyer, who grew up in Northern Kentucky, left her hometown in the ‘80s. During that 10-year period of her life, she says she wondered what she was doing because everyone and everything she loved was here. She says that's the kind of passion for the city that drives Crossroads to engage and reach out.

“We love our city—and by Cincinnati, we mean all of it—from Burlington to Middletown to Amelia to Cleves—the whole Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky area,” Kruyer says. "We’re just totally committed to making it one of the best places in the country to live.”

Do Good:

• Find a nonprofit that interests you and lend a helping hand.

• Assist Crossroads in its volunteer efforts throughout the year.

• Like Crossroads on Facebook.

By Brittany York

Brittany York is a professor of English composition at the University of Cincinnati and a teacher at the Regional Institute of Torah and Secular Studies. She also edits the For Good section of SoapboxMedia.

ReUse-apalooza empowers individuals, advocates

Tuesday, May 14, 2013

Designers, do-it-yourselfers, the environmentally friendly and people who generally enjoy a good time will gather May 17 for Northside’s fourth annual ReUse-apalooza.

Building Value and its parent-organization, Easter Seals TriState, host the annual event to raise awareness about reuse and to support on-the-job training and other programs that assist people with disabilities.

This year’s event will include the Designer Challenge, which highlights some of the work BV does. The organization reuses building materials to create everything from useful pieces for the home to works of art.

Items will also be up for auction, and according to Lisa Doxsee, communications manager for EST and BV, it’s a way to “assist individuals with disabilities and disadvantages to more fully live, learn, work and play in their communities.”

Each year, the event raises close to $30,000 of unrestricted funds, which allows the closely connected nonprofits to further their missions by enabling individuals who might otherwise have difficult times securing employment to learn necessary skills and gain experience.

“They just can’t seem to get both feet on the ground at the same time, and they just need some assistance in getting the education or the training they need and the opportunity to learn,” Doxsee says. “When they do, they’re able to move out and get their own jobs and fully support themselves and often start to train others—it’s really a cool thing to watch.”

Not only does BV help put people to work, but the organization also helps keep materials out of area landfills.

“What we do is go into a home, and maybe you wanted a new kitchen cabinet set, so we take out your kitchen cabinets in a way that it can be reused and resold,” Doxsee says. “We’ve taken down full homes and salvaged 60 to 70 percent of the home with the lumber and products that come out of that.”

The ultimate goal, however, is to provide the ability to succeed to those who have encountered barriers in the past—whether those barriers be physical, mental, economic or educational.

“We believe that every person deserves to feel the thrill of success—no matter what that success is,” Doxsee says. “So everything we do is to try to help empower those individuals to find success in whatever it is that they need.”

Do Good:

• Support Building Value and Easter Seals TriState by purchasing a ticket to ReUse-apalooza.

• Donate to Building Value and Easter Seals TriState.

• Volunteer with Building Value and Easter Seals TriState.

By Brittany York

Brittany York is a professor of English composition at the University of Cincinnati and a teacher at the Regional Institute of Torah and Secular Studies. She also edits the For Good section of SoapboxMedia.

Stepping Stones celebrates 50 years of family at upcoming reunion

Tuesday, May 14, 2013

What started 50 years ago as Greater Cincinnati’s first summer day camp for children with disabilities is now a two-site operation that serves about 1,000 children, teens and adults with disabilities year-round.

Stepping Stones will celebrate its 50th anniversary on May 18 with a reunion aimed not just at celebrating the organization’s accomplishments over the years, but it's also intended to bring together the thousands of volunteers, staff members, participants and supporters who have enabled the nonprofit to grow and flourish since 1963.

Deb Alexander, 61, is a retired teacher who started volunteering with Stepping Stones in 1969. She says it was the work she did with the organization that led her down the path of pursuing a career in special education.

“I was a junior in high school—I know nowadays the kids do community service, but in those days, we didn’t really have to do that—and I had heard of Stepping Stones and just thought it’d be an interesting way to spend my summer,” Alexander says. “I didn’t really know a lot about children with disabilities. I ended up just really loving what I was doing out there, and it helped me choose my career.”

Alexander says she remembers fondly what she refers to as “Kodak moments,” where “everything comes together and a child you’re working with can do something today that they couldn’t yesterday, or that they can do something independently.”

It was moments like these that Alexander says challenged her.

“What could I do to figure out how to teach?” she says. “A quote that really stuck with me that I heard once is ‘If a child can’t learn the way we teach, maybe we should teach the way we learn.' So that inspired me to go on, and I taught for 30 years.”

Alexander is passionate about her line of work, so much so that upon retiring, she returned to Stepping Stones 39 years after her first volunteer experience. She began working part-time in the organization’s alterative education program, Step-Up, for students with autism.

Step-Up, which began in 2004, is available to students who have been referred to the program by their school district and who are no longer able to attend public school because of extreme behavior.

“Just to see a student successfully get through the day without a behavior outburst and to really gain confidence in themselves that they could learn new skills was really neat,” Alexander says.

Though Alexander has returned to Stepping Stones many times since 1969, she says she’s looking forward to returning once again to experience the 50th anniversary reunion.

“It’s a place where we all learn together and have grown together, and that’s such a big part of it—the relationships,” Alexander says. “There’s a lot of people that I think their heart’s out there, and they just keep coming back or they return because it’s just a place that meant a lot to them—the staff as well as the students."

Do Good:

• RSVP for Stepping Stones' 50-year anniversary celebration May 18.

• Support Stepping Stones by donating.

• Get involved with Stepping Stones by volunteering.

By Brittany York

Brittany York is a professor of English composition at the University of Cincinnati and a teacher at the Regional Institute of Torah and Secular Studies. She also edits the For Good section of SoapboxMedia.

Learning to survive, then thrive, at Junia and Company

Tuesday, May 14, 2013

Zakia McKinney knows all too well the heartbreak and inability to reach one’s full potential when trapped in an abusive and unhealthy relationship.

“I just thought the world had ended," she says. "I couldn’t trust anyone. I felt I wasn’t worth anything."

McKinney was stuck in a cycle that she says lasted throughout her late teens and twenties. But at the age of 30, she made up her mind that she could no longer live in that manner.

“I had an instance where a young gentleman had beaten me in the middle of the street,” McKinney says. “And I just thought I can’t do this—I can’t live life like this.”

It’s been more than 20 years now since McKinney started helping women, but she says she made a promise to herself that as soon as she was able to help herself, she was going to dedicate her life to helping others by empowering them. And that’s what she’s done through her nonprofit, Junia and Company.

“The word ‘Junia’ means ‘pretty flower,’ and we named it that because we believe there’s something beautiful in each woman to give back to society and the community,” McKinney says.

Since Junia’s inception, McKinney has helped more then 3,000 women do everything from break unhealthy relationship cycles to gain confidence and leadership skills and move closer to attaining their life goals.

McKinney, who recently celebrated her 57th birthday, says a few of Junia’s former clients attended her party to thank her for the changes they were able to make in their lives.

“One was a young woman who we picked up from Anna Louise Inn, and our programming turned her life around—she has a beautiful little girl—she’s going to start her own daycare business, and her husband’s going to start a photography business,” McKinney says. “Another, who we found sitting in the corner with her head down with a beautiful head of hair. Now she works as a machinist who does phenomenal work—and she’s looking to move in to other parts of the country utilizing the skills she’s acquired because she had the confidence to go after it.”

Through Junia and Company’s Ann’s House—one of three homes in the city that accept women and their children—women are given the opportunity to learn life skills and participate in all of Junia’s programming so they can break the cycle of homelessness and learn to not only survive in their community, McKinney says, but also to thrive.

Women learn computer skills. They learn to cook. They contribute to the home once they find employment. They create a savings account. They tend the garden, and they even make a cucumber salsa, which they package and sell at Lettuce Eat Well Farmers' Market.

“Whatever proceeds are made for that day, they get to put in their pocket,” McKinney says. “We try to make sure they get what we consider our 55 key life areas to have them sit on their feet, stand on their feet and stay on their feet.”

Do Good:

• Support Ann's House by partcipating in Ann's House 5K Run/Walk at Winton Woods on May 18.

• Call (513) 544-6957 to support Junia and Company by donating.

• Contact Junia and Company to volunteer at Ann's House by helping with the garden or collecting and delivering in-kind donations such as sheets and toiletries.

By Brittany York

Brittany York is a professor of English composition at the University of Cincinnati and a teacher at the Regional Institute of Torah and Secular Studies. She also edits the For Good section of SoapboxMedia.

Being the Somebody at Lighthouse Youth Services

Tuesday, May 07, 2013

There are more than 850 children in Hamilton County who are currently placed in out-of-home care, according to Jami Clarke, program director of Lighthouse Youth Services' foster care division. That means there is an ever-growing need for foster parents within our community.

To raise awareness about the need for foster parents, and to celebrate National Foster Care Month and the local successes LYS has seen during the past year, the nonprofit will host its second-annual Be The Somebody March May 11.

“On a daily basis, we’re getting calls for sibling sets of two and three children at a time who are being displaced from their homes and who are in need of temporary care for six months to four years,” Clarke says. “And we’re trying to match them so it’s possible within their same school district—within the same community—so they can continue to have visitation with their family members, and we can work toward reunification.”

Clarke says the separation of siblings is often even more traumatic for children than being separated from their parents, so it’s especially important that the organization find foster parents who are willing to take on the responsibility of not just one child, but two, three and sometimes four or five children at a time.

Tasha Boyd, 33, is a North College Hill resident, who is one of those more-than-willing foster parents. She has been with LYS since 2007, and has been a foster parent for about eight years.

Boyd, who initially thought about running a daycare because she says dealing with kids is her "specialty," started to look into foster care instead. She says she understands that there are many children in our community “who need love.”

“A lot of homes are broken, and there are a lot of homes out there that can help,” Boyd says. “We need foster parents out here. It’s a hard thing to do, but at the same time, you’re rewarded every day—it’s a blessing.”

Boyd, who has a soon-to-be 14-year-old son of her own, says she loves what she does and that her son has “no problem sharing his mother” with the 10 children she has brought into their home over the past five years.

She currently has a sibling set of two girls in her home, and for the first time in her life, Boyd will transition from foster care to adoption. The mother of the two girls has decided to release her rights because she can no longer care for them due to mental health issues.

“The two have been in the house since they were nine months old and three days old," Boyd says. "I’m all they know. I was not going to turn my back on them.”

Do Good:

• Sign up for the Be The Somebody March and picnic lunch.

• Learn more about becoming a foster parent.

• If foster parenting is not for you, but you would like to help, consider becoming a mentor. Contact Jami Clarke for more information.

By Brittany York

Brittany York is a professor of English composition at the University of Cincinnati and a teacher at the Regional Institute of Torah and Secular Studies. She also edits the For Good section of SoapboxMedia.

Teens create, learn, grow through ArtWorks' summer jobs

Tuesday, May 07, 2013

When it comes time for teens to find summer jobs, becoming a muralist doesn’t typically top the list of possibilities. Unless you live in Cincinnati.

With ArtWorks’ Adopt-an-Apprentice campaign, however, 110 teens from around the city will be hired to collaborate with each other and community partners to create 10 new murals this summer.

For Kyra Watkins, who has been an Apprentice since her freshman year of high school and who hopes to finish out her senior year with yet another apprenticeship, the opportunity is full of benefits.

“Besides the fact that you become a muralist in your own right—because that’s not a profession even most adults have—[ArtWorks] always cared about the youth,” Watkins says. “It’s not just, ‘Give a child a paintbrush, and if they do well, you pay them.’ They set up financial sessions and youth nights where you get paid to learn how to manage your money, to budget your money and to be smart.”

Watkins says the experience is particularly beneficial because each set of teenagers works under a project manager who helps them learn to identify their skills, learn new ones and ultimately work together to create a final product.

A new addition to this year’s campaign will be the involvement of ArtWorks’ SpringBoard business graduate, Chef Frances Kroner, who will lead a select group of Apprentices in developing, producing and selling a new snack mix. Apprentices involved in that project will experience the summer program's first-ever entrepreneurial opportunity.

For students who are passionate about art and who want to make it part of their lives, being an Apprentice allows students to gain real-world experience while leaving a lasting impression on the city.

Watkins, a senior at Withrow University High School, will soon graduate and begin a new chapter in life as she pursues a degree in political science with aspirations to go to law school. But no matter where she goes, she says, a part of her will always be in Cincinnati.

“No matter where I travel, my art will always be here—it’s very homey, like you left something at home and you always have something to come back to,” Watkins says.

Do Good:

• Help employ an Apprentice by donating to the Adopt-an-Apprentice campaign.

• Like ArtWorks on Facebook.

• Get involved with ArtWorks by volunteering.

By Brittany York

Brittany York is a professor of English composition at the University of Cincinnati and a teacher at the Regional Institute of Torah and Secular Studies. She also edits the For Good section of SoapboxMedia.

BOOST partners with Dress for Success Cincinnati to inspire women's confidence

Tuesday, May 07, 2013

Jenny White, owner of BOOST, says she’s always loved giving back, and now that she’s a business owner, she has a platform to better serve others.

BOOST, an offsite meeting space, was intended to boost productivity and creativity. After contemplating what nonprofit would best fit the BOOST business model, White decided to partner with Dress for Success Cincinnati to inspire confidence in women who are searching for jobs, but may not have the needed professional attire they need for job interviews.

“It’s rewarding to give back in any way, but when I think of specifically working with Dress For Success Cincinnati, it means even more because it’s woman-to-woman,” White says. “It’s very empowering to me as a woman to know that I’m helping empower other women to move in a positive direction.”

Both the downtown and Mason locations of BOOST now have collection areas, and meeting attendees are encouraged to bring in any unneeded professional attire that could benefit DFS Cincinnati’s clients.

“I just found it to be a simple and convenient way for our meeting attendees, as well as BOOST, to make a significant difference in women’s lives,” White says. “Even our male attendees can get involved, talk to their wives, see what they don’t want anymore and bring it in.”

White says the new collection sites should be particularly helpful because DFS Cincinnati’s only drop-off locations are downtown and in College Hill. With a location in the northern suburbs, more clothes will start to come in.

In addition to providing women with business attire, DFS hosts self-esteem workshops to further encourage women to succeed. As a result of the new partnership, White says she’s getting ideas about how to successfully run selfesteem workshops of her own.

Enabling women to feel better about themselves is a mission White can get behind and one she understands personally.

White says she was picked on as a child, and it kept her from doing things that she otherwise would have done. By the end of the year, White says she’s determined to host a workshop for young girls to "boost" their confidence as well.

With the new DFS and BOOST collaboration, the ultimate goal for White is that women no longer have obstacles that hold them back from moving with their lives.

“I firmly believe that if you’re looking good, then you’re feeling good, and you’re dedicating more of your whole self to that interview,” White says. “I hope the clothes they put on will give them the boost of confidence that they need to acquire a job.”

Do Good:

• Donate women's business attire and accessories to Dress for Success Cincinnati at one of their drop-off locations, or at the downtown or Mason BOOST meeting space.

• Support Dress for Success Cincinnati by making a financial contribution, volunteering or hosting your own clothing drive.

• Like Dress for Success Cincinnati and BOOST on Facebook.

By Brittany York

Brittany York is a professor of English composition at the University of Cincinnati and a teacher at the Regional Institute of Torah and Secular Studies. She also edits the For Good section of SoapboxMedia.

Children, Inc. merges with VISIONS, extends reach to Ohio

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

The best communities have a lot of people who get involved, according to Rick Hulefeld, founder and executive director of Children, Inc.

Children, Inc., a Northern Kentucky based nonprofit, aims to ensure that young people are successful both in school and in life. And a primary way in which the organization succeeds in doing that is by developing partnerships with schools and other community-based nonprofits in order to maximize resources to help as many as possible.

Its most recent partnership is with Cincinnati’s VISIONS Community Services, which sought out Children, Inc., as a partner for a merge. With the merger comes a new division of Children, Inc., which will now operate in both Kentucky and Ohio.

As a result of the merger, Children Inc. will continue its programs, which include everything from before- and after-school care to service learning initiatives in schools, while building its programming by incorporating VISIONS’ multi-generational approach.

“They had something unique,” Hulefeld says. “They had a certified family counselor on staff who would meet on a regular basis to help—that’s a model that needs to be carefully expanded and taken to the next level. But we want to do something VISIONS has already been doing, and then bring a lot more resources to it.”

One way of doing that, Hulefeld says, is to partner with other organizations that have similar goals.

“There are organizations who really want to help families to become self-sufficient,” Hulefeld says. “Sometimes, little things get in the way of big dreams.”

If organizations could partner to provide families with funds for bus fare to get to job training, and if they could also enroll their children in the center, Hulefeld says the children would ultimately do better in school “because they won’t always be at the mercy of the next financial crisis.”

“We can’t live in communities where just a few people do everything,” he says. And it’s this motto that makes its way into the service learning initiatives that Children Inc. sets up in local schools so that students can learn by doing, while also giving back and making a difference during the process.

Recently, the organization set up a project for a group of first grade students who were learning about the effects of the sun.

“If you get too much of it, it’s bad,” Hulefeld says, so Children’s Inc. provided the school with funds to purchase bracelets that would change color based on how much sunlight the wearer was getting. The students then sold the bracelets and made $843, which they gave to Shriners Hospital for Children to help provide funds for burn victims.

“What you really want to teach kids is that you can make a difference—and not some day—you can make it now,” Hulefeld says. “We all know that we cannot by ourselves do what the community needs us to do. None of us can do this by ourselves, but we can get together with other people and figure out, ‘How do we do what we’re doing better?’”

Do Good:

• Like Children, Inc. on Facebook.

• If you are a teacher interested in a service learning program, contact Children, Inc. for free assistance.

• Contribute by making a donation to Children, Inc.

By Brittany York

Brittany York is a professor of English composition at the University of Cincinnati and a teacher at the Regional Institute of Torah and Secular Studies. She also edits the For Good section of SoapboxMedia.

Santa Maria promotes healthy living, helps clients navigate healthcare system

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Santa Maria Community Services’ Health and Wellness Program has served as a vital resource for uninsured and underinsured Price Hill residents and Cincinnati community members since 2001.

About 30 percent of the organization’s clients are Spanish-speaking individuals who are new to the country and need assistance when it comes to navigating the healthcare system.

“We have a pocket here,” says Laura Brinson, director of the wellness program. “Some of the Spanish speakers come from very rural pockets of Central American countries—Guatemala is a big one in this part of town. And a lot of the clients we serve need that extra helping hand to get access to needed medical services.”

Brinson says clients are particularly grateful that there are individuals who are willing to help them—so much so that at the organization’s most recent health fair this month, two clients wanted to give back because of the services Santa Maria had provided them in the past. So they and their reggae band played for participants.

Santa Maria provides two health fairs a year with free screenings and health-related information, but Brinson says the nonprofit tries to go above and beyond the typical format for a health fair.

“We collect results for each person at the health fair, and then instead of sending them on their way and giving them a flier because their cholesterol may be high, we follow up with each and every one of the clients to make sure they understood their results and also help them get into a medical home,” Brinson says.

“They might not have a primary care physician to go talk to about their results, so we follow up and help them enroll in a clinic, we provide education, answer questions—we try to work with them throughout the year and make sure they get the help they need to help improve their outcomes.”

In addition to offering health fairs and providing general assistance with finding doctors and understanding transportation routes to clinics and pharmacies, the wellness program provides translators who can explain medical information to clients and help individuals fill out financial aid forms for treatment. They even offer cooking classes that emphasize healthy options.

“Good health is essential to all things in life," Brinson says. "You can’t be a productive worker at your job if you’re not healthy—you can’t be a parent to the best of your ability if you’re not healthy yourself. So many people lack access to proper care, and I’m passionate about making sure they get the services they need so they’re able to take better control of their lives, their health and feel better so they can be more proactive and productive members of their society.”

Do Good:

• Take your family to Carnival the Day Away at Washington Park on May 11. All proceeds benefit Santa Maria Community Services.

• Support the Wellness Program's efforts by registering to attend the Bienestar Recognition Luncheon.

• Support Santa Maria by donating money or items to the organization.

By Brittany York

Brittany York is a professor of English composition at the University of Cincinnati and a teacher at the Regional Institute of Torah and Secular Studies. She also edits the For Good section of SoapboxMedia.

ReSource launches new programs to serve nonprofits

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

ReSource redistributed products to assist 330 local charities last year, and it has the potential to be able to reach even more organizations this year through its two new programs, which the nonprofit will unveil at its May 15 Launch Party in Sharonville.

For more than 20 years, ReSource has collected surplus donations from corporations, and then made items like office furniture and personal care products available to nonprofits for pennies on the dollar.

“We’re the connector to the nonprofit organizations,” says Development Director Martha Steier. She says ReSource’s ability to bring businesses together has broadened her ability to make an impact in the community.

Steier says the organization’s mission is to help build stronger nonprofits, so ReSource provides warehouse space for member organizations to come shop for what they need.

“So much we have here with a little creativity and a little open-mindedness can be put together for reuse,” Steier says.

In addition to offering needed items for low-cost purchase, ReSource will now offer items for rental with its Event Décor Rentals program.

“We’ve had—for about five or six years—a fall fundraiser, as many nonprofits do, and we have a decorations committee who is responsible for decorating tables and making invitations,” Steier says. “And we’ve had several board members that do these same events for other nonprofits, and everyone borrows from everybody else, or they go and buy things and end up storing them in their basements.”

Rather than buying things and getting limited use from them, ReSource had the idea to get donations for décor, store the items in the warehouse space and then make them available for rental. This allows nonprofits to save money, which they can instead put toward serving the community, Steier says.

In addition to the Event Décor Rentals program, ReSource will launch its room makeover program, which already has two clients: the YWCA Clermont County women’s shelter and the Lower Price Hill Community School.

ReSource has several architects on its board with the skill and talent to show rather than tell community members the benefits of the nonprofit.

With an all-volunteer design team, ReSource will create specifications to transform rooms within area nonprofits so that they are more useable and conducive to serving the organization’s mission.

For example, ReSource will replace ripped carpet and make the YWCA’s living room more inviting for women and children. The organization will also renovate a 50-year-old annex within the LPHCS so that it can serve as a classroom for individuals enrolled in the Cincinnati State Technical and Community College’s Bridge program.

“It’s sometimes hard to explain our story,” Steier says. “We really want to be able to show everyone what nonprofits can do with the corporate donations.”

Do Good:

• Attend ReSource's Launch Party at its Sharonville warehouse space.

• Contribute to ReSource by donating.

• Become a member nonprofit if you would like to shop at ReSource for needed items.

By Brittany York

Brittany York is a professor of English composition at the University of Cincinnati and a teacher at the Regional Institute of Torah and Secular Studies. She also edits the For Good section of SoapboxMedia.

Reds Hall of Fame and Museum improves accessibility

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

The Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame and Museum is “by far, the largest and most active” facility dedicated to a Major League Baseball team in the United States, according to Executive Director Rick Walls. He says there are only about six museums like the Reds' even in existence.

To build on that activity and allow more fans of the game to experience the history of professional baseball, which is rooted in Cincinnati, the museum sought a grant to improve accessibility to its exhibits for visitors with visual or hearing impairments.

About 42,000 people in the Greater Cincinnati area alone are blind or visually impaired, and Walls says 31 million individuals in the U.S. have experienced hearing loss.

“You hear these ideas and start to think about baseball, and how people sat at home and listened to the game on their radios and how a commentator had to paint the picture of the story behind it, and then you hear about the others who would go to the baseball field who remember the green grass and the lights on the field,” Walls says. “Baseball provides all these senses to different people in different ways. And to some, you provide only some. To others, you provide all of it, so I thought—how do we bring that color out? How do we let people experience the Hall of Fame in different ways?”

After receiving nearly $21,000 from the Erma A. Bantz Foundation and partnering with the Cincinnati Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired for advice on how to best use the funds, the Reds' Hall of Fame went to work.

Larger font sizes, more effective sound and lighting levels, and closed captioning are all improvements that Walls says were simple and cost effective, but the non-profit also invested in large-print maps and assisted listening devices.

“Competing sound and how it affects people differently was something we became aware of, and with every audio element within the museum, there will be a transmitter to these devices,” Walls says.

But the organization’s partnership with CABVI extends beyond the improvements. The two nonprofits will team up to bring various groups to the museum for tactile tours during which participants will be able to do more than see and hear about Reds history—they’ll have the chance to experience it by touching artifacts.

“I think this ends up being a program for everybody, and not just those who have impairments because the tactile tour is going to become popular—who wouldn’t want to hold a piece of history?” Walls asks.

Walls says he’s excited that more people will now have the chance to experience all the museum has to offer.

“I think that’s one of the most important things we do—and that’s when a grandfather or grandmother comes in with their grandkids, with their son and daughter—they don’t have a lot in common these days because of technology,” Walls says. “But when they do come in here, they have something in common, and it’s the simple game of baseball. And when they look at the wall, a grandparent will point at a player on the wall and say, ‘Look at this guy,’ and then the grandkid will point at Brandon Phillips or Jay Bruce, and then all of a sudden, they’re together, and that’s really a neat phenomenon.”

Do Good:

• Plan your visit to the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum, and consider becoming a member.

• Support the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum through the Legacy Brick Campaign or the Joe Morgan Statue Campaign.

• Support CABVI by donating or volunteering your time.

By Brittany York

Brittany York is a professor of English composition at the University of Cincinnati and a teacher at the Regional Institute of Torah and Secular Studies. She also edits the For Good section of SoapboxMedia.

Cincinnati Montessori Society celebrates 50 years

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Fifty years ago, a group of parents who were passionate about Maria Montessori’s philosophy of education developed the first Montessori preschool in the area.

And following the preschool’s inauguration, the group formed the Cincinnati Montessori Society, a nonprofit whose focus is to promote Montessori education while serving as a resource to countless schools, teachers, parents and students in the community.

“One of my favorite quotes is, ‘Follow the child,’” says Heather Gerker, vice president of CMS. “We meet the child where they are developmentally.”

Montessori classrooms, which are both child-centered and composed of mixed age groups, are set up so that children can learn through a multisensory approach that allows them to figure things out at their own speed—and the philosophy works, Gerker says.

At CMS’s Annual Spring Conference and celebration of 50 years of success, neuroscientist Dee Coulter delivered the keynote address.

“This work that Maria Montessori did over 100 years ago is now being proven through neurological work happening now,” Gerker says. “[Coulter’s address] was really affirming and validating to the teachers there.”

Not only were teachers excited to go back to work on Monday after hearing Coulter’s presentation, Gerker says, but they also had the opportunity to participate in breakout sessions that were aimed at providing strategies and insight that lead to better education.

Topics ranged from promoting mindfulness through music to strategizing ways of better assisting children with ADD and autism.

Gerker says she’s particularly passionate about the resources that CMS provides because they’re based on a philosophy that’s now scientifically proven, and she’s seen it work in the lives of her own children.

“It gives them a solid sense of self, that they’re so independent and happy, which I think is the ultimate goal,” Gerker says. “I just want to make sure it’s available to all children.”

Do Good:

• Become a member of CMS.

• Check out the resources offered by CMS.

• Connect with CMS on Facebook.

By Brittany York

Brittany York is a professor of English composition at the University of Cincinnati and a teacher at the Regional Institute of Torah and Secular Studies. She also edits the For Good section of SoapboxMedia.

Elementz provides safe venue, creates outlet for expression

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Jori Cotton, who grew up in North Avondale, says she wrote poetry to express her feelings and struggles throughout high school. When she went to college at The Ohio State University, however, she took a step back from her poetry. She attended open mic nights, she says, but performing wasn’t for her.

“I enjoyed it, but it wasn’t for me to get up there,” Cotton says. “I was just taking the art in.”

After graduating college, Cotton returned to Cincinnati, and one of the first places she says she went was to another poetry open mic session. And in October of 2006, she finally performed.

“I’ve just been addicted ever since,” says Cotton, who now leads Voices of Freedom—a spoken word program at Elementz.

The non-profit Elementz, which is located downtown in OTR, provides a safe place and a creative outlet for young people who want to turn the negative influences or surroundings in their lives into positives.

“I like to give a voice to what you may call the underdog,” Cotton says. “I like to expose the truth—things that have happened historically—I like to let people know about how to reach their higher self and to believe in themselves and take time to work through emotions. We’ve all been through things, but we have to work through them.”

Cotton’s group of 10, which is composed of participants who are primarily between the ages of 16 and 24, meets for two hours once per week.

“One of the things about spoken word is getting the juices flowing about our story, so we take time to talk,” Cotton says. “We talk about the disparities in education; we’ve talked about gun violence, rape victims, some of the good things and not so good things that have taken place in Cincinnati. We talk about domestic violence, just real issues—relationships, self esteem—we talk about pretty much everything.”

Once everyone’s had time to talk, they put their words onto paper and then share their work in a judgment-free environment, which Cotton says is important to her because it allows everyone to feel empowered. It’s usually the shyest ones who end up sharing some of the most powerful ideas, she says.

“It just gives them hope that the environment they’re in right now isn’t the best, but it can get better,” Cotton says. “Spoken word helps you feel confident when you get up there and you’re sharing your pieces, and that confidence will spill over into other areas of life.”

Do Good:

• Support Elementz by making a donation.

• Learn about the various programs offered at Elementz, and show up during a session to see if the program is the right fit for you. The first visit is free, and if you enjoy yourself, become a member.

• If you're a teen, celebrate National Poetry Month by submitting one of your pieces to the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County's Random Acts of Poetry contest. Attend one of Jori Cotton's spoken word workshops at the library.

• Support Elementz by attending their monthly showcase, which takes place on the third Thursday of each month.

By Brittany York

Brittany York is a professor of English composition at the University of Cincinnati and a teacher at the Regional Institute of Torah and Secular Studies. She also edits the For Good section of SoapboxMedia.

Grailville, public library encourage poetry, sharing

Tuesday, April 09, 2013

Poet and teacher Pauletta Hansel leads a group of 13 women toward spiritual and personal growth in her weekly Practice of Poetry class at Grailville, a retreat center that takes up more than 300 acres of farmland in Loveland.

The women meet in a 19th-century Victorian home where they learn, write, listen and share their work with one another.

In one of her most recent classes, Hansel says the group of writers looked at the “events, people and places that live on in our memory in a way that we always come back to them as personal touchstones.”

The women work together to see what they can “make come alive” in each other’s work, Hansel says. Just this past week, they had the opportunity to share their work on a larger scale through their partnership with The Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County for the 15th annual Poetry in the Garden Series.

Seven of the 13 women from Practice of Poetry read their work in front of the audience of 58. Though most have read their poems in front of others before, Hansel says the event provided many of them with their first real opportunity to share in a more public way.

“One woman read a poem that she had brought recently to craft class, and that was about a moment when both her parents were still alive, and she walked in and saw them in a very quiet, intimate moment at the kitchen table,” Hansel says. “It was about how moving that was for her to see her parents sitting quietly holding hands and taking that moment to—you know, [with] illness and their children’s worry swirling around them—to just be quiet and just be in love.”

It’s these powerful and important life moments that Hansel’s poets and other community members have the opportunity to share during the Poetry in the Garden Series, which features contest winners in addition to local and regional poets who appreciate the art of poetry.

“They’ve worked incredibly hard to promote and create a group of readers that is really diverse,” Hansel says. “There are some academically connected poets, but most in the group are community poets. They are people who are working in other walks of life who are using poetry as a way to communicate.”

The series also provides audience members with the chance to read their work at an open mic session that follows each set of readings.

Hansel says participation in the Poetry in the Garden Series was incredibly meaningful to her group of poets because many of them are inspired by listening to what they hear.

“Just coming and having the opportunity to use writing as a way to pay attention to their own inner lives and listen to themselves and be listened to by other women is the most important thing.”

Do Good:

• Learn more about Grailville's programs, and register to participate. A new Practice of Poetry series will begin this summer with registration opportunities coming soon.

• Attend readings or share your own work at the Poetry in the Garden Series, which takes place at 7 p.m. each Tuesday in April.

• Like Grailville and The Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County on Facebook to keep up with each organization's latest news and events.

By Brittany York

Brittany York is a professor of English composition at the University of Cincinnati and a teacher at the Regional Institute of Torah and Secular Studies. She also edits the For Good section of SoapboxMedia.

Everybody Rides Metro Foundation ensures available transportation to all

Tuesday, April 09, 2013

The Everybody Rides Metro Foundation, which is the first program of its kind, provides affordable transportation to about 30,000 low-income individuals each year.

Metro subsidizes rides at $1 and has partnered with about 70 different social service agencies to cover the remaining 75 cents of fares for riders in need of medical or work-related transportation.

“Many of our riders feel like this is the only way they can try and succeed—it’s somebody giving them a lift when they need it the most,” says Joe Curry, executive director of ERM. “The greatest outcome of this is that you’re getting people toward self-sufficiency. It’s something that stays with them forever—it helps them out until they earn money and start budgeting once they have a job; and self esteem is a large part of that overall package.”

According to Curry, many of ERM’s riders are paroled into the Talbert House and have anywhere from $0 to $20 to their name after coming out of prison. Once they’ve been rehabilitated and have participated in job counseling, they may need to interview at up to 20 different businesses before they find work.

“Once they land a job, the worst thing that can happen is not to show up during the first week of employment, so we give them additional money, if needed, to subsidize their rides during the first few weeks,” Curry says. “It’s to help them out temporarily so they can establish a budget—it’s not a lifetime pass.”

In addition to helping riders get to job interviews and places of employment, ERM provides rides to medical-related destinations so individuals can receive preventive care.

“Society of St. Vincent De Paul runs a free pharmacy on Bank Street in the West End, and if you can’t afford your meds, they’ll give you a 30-day supply for free so long as it’s not a narcotic, but you have to get to the location,” Curry says. “If you’re diabetic or are undergoing cancer treatment, meds are absolutely essential, but if you can’t get to a place where you can get your meds, you may get sicker. You may be one of those people who take that $1,500 ambulance ride, and that’s one of the things we’re trying to prevent.”

Beginning in January 2014, 40,000 more individuals in the Cincinnati area will be eligible for Medicaid, and according to Curry, anywhere from 50 to 70 percent of those people will need public transportation to get to a healthcare provider or pharmacy.

“Those are the people we’re worried about," Curry says. "If public transit isn’t available to them because of the cost, how are they going to get treated? More than 30 percent of our population lives in federally defined poverty—that tells you we really need to do something and think outside the box about how to solve some of these public transit issues.”

Do Good:

• Donate to the Everybody Rides Metro Foundation.

• Like Cincinnati Metro on Facebook.

• Follow the Cincinnati Metro on Twitter.

By Brittany York

Brittany York is a professor of English composition at the University of Cincinnati and a teacher at the Regional Institute of Torah and Secular Studies. She also edits the For Good section of SoapboxMedia.