Norwood Archives – Page 25 of 29

Faces Without Places founder wants to see homeless program expand

By Newsroom

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November 13, 2012

Karen Fessler has a message she wants you to hear loud and clear: Faces Without Places is alive, well and kicking. For years, the nonprofit, grassroots organization that has provided nearly $1.5 million in educational support for homeless children in Greater Cincinnati was affiliated with the Cincinnati Public Schools. But about two years ago--and for a variety of reasons--the organization split with the school system, says Fessler, who is a board member and a founding member of the 17-year-old group. But its mission remains intact, says Fessler. “The most important part of the program is that we get kids out of shelters, we get kids off the streets and we show them that education is a way to experience a larger world,’’ says Fessler. “We want to broaden our reach. We want to broaden our horizons.” Fessler declines to discuss what led to the parting of ways, but adds the founders of the program all left their jobs at CPS as well. “But none of us lost our passion for the kids and the mission of Faces Without Places,’’ she adds. “I want people to know that we are here, and we are committed to providing services. We are toughing it out through thick and thin--for the kids.” The nonprofit helps about 3,000 school children annually in Greater Cincinnati. Last year, the group provided 7,702 services to 3,013 children, according to its website. Those services included providing taxi services to school for 112 students, uniform vouchers for 777 students, backpacks and supplies for more than 839 students and Payless gift cards for 320 students so they could get a new pair of shoes, a luxury for many, Fessler says. The nonprofit is best known for its Yellow Bus Summer Camp, which completed its 15th year this past summer. Last year, 152 children attended the eight-week camp that focuses on reading and day trips. Earlier this month, the group’s biggest fundraiser--the Yellow Bus Ball--raised more than $23,000, most of which will go to fund the camp. “The ball is critical because we have to have money to pay teachers and buy supplies,’’ Fessler says. “We can get grant money for field trips, but the fundraiser really helps us be able to put on the camp to the degree we have always done it.” Fessler has worked with thousands of homeless children over the years, and she readily admits she is biased toward teens. “A lot of people don’t realize this, but these kids are completely out on their own; they are either staying at friends' or living eight, nine, 10 kids piled up in an apartment,’’ she says. “They are squatting and some are living on the streets trying to negotiate life … they are all living life on the edge. I am most impressed by their sheer tenacity and their desire to find a better life.” Do Good: • Register for the Mt. Adams Yellow Bus Pub Crawl on Saturday, Nov. 17. • Attend the 5th annual Chili Taste Off on Dec. 9 at Northside Tavern. • Contribute to Faces Without Places' wishlist of school and personal hygiene supplies. • Sign up for the monthly email newsletter. • Give back while you shop. By Chris GravesChris Graves is the assistant vice president of digital and social media at Powers Agency

Cincinnati salon owner helps peers get new clients through HairSalonDiscount.com

By Newsroom

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Entrepreneurship

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November 6, 2012

Cincinnati area salon owner Gary Benz took a chance and offered an idea that's grown his own business — New Client Invitation — to his fellow Greater Cincinnati hair care experts. "I've been invited to try exercise clubs and exclusive country clubs by way of new client invitation," Benz says of the idea behind HairSalonDiscount.com. "If it works for them, it should work for me." Benz, who, with his wife owns Benzie Salon in Montgomery, has tripled sales since starting the salon in 2004. He attributes part of that success to his New Client Invitation marketing program, expanded online at HairSalonDiscount.com. The targeted programs attract new potential clients with half-off pricing on services. It's similar to popular major daily deal websites, but the salon services are 50 percent off at most, instead of the up to 70 percent at some major daily deal sites. It's a price point Benz says is both attractive to a potential buyer and to the business owner. Benz works to market the site to certain groups, like new homeowners and people who've moved into target neighborhoods that the salons typically service, which include Norwood, Oakley and Hyde Park. Benz, who has a background in SEO and web development, also promotes the site through organic and paid online search results, he says. The deals work like Groupon or Living Social — users go online and purchase a service deal. The deals are marketed as New Client Invitations and Benz says the goal is to attract five new potential clients each week for participating salons. That's in contrast to the major daily deals sites that market to mass buyers, with deeper discounts. Those sites can bring businesses hundreds of new customers, but often they aren't the repeat clientele that salons seek, Benz says. "We sold 350 deals (with another site), and a lot of people had no intention of ever coming back again," Benz says. "There are a lot of mass emails through those sites, and the next time another salon has a deal, they're going to hit up another salon." The site has about 20 salons on its roster so far. While the bulk are from Cincinnati, it has already attracted salons from Georgia, Northern Kentucky and Dayton. He hopes to soon add some Chicago area salons, with an ultimate goal to include salons from every state. "As long as I stay true to my brand, and to quality, I think it's a feasible business plan," he says. By Feoshia H. Davis Follow Feoshia on Twitter

Sprout Insight hones in on multi-ethnic consumers

By Newsroom

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Diversity

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October 30, 2012

“People always say, ‘Be careful working with your best friend,’ but we’ve never had those negative experiences. Our relationship and the way we know each other has been such a strength,” says Lisa Mills, a psychologist, and co-founder of research consultancy Sprout Insight, of her 22-year friendship with co-founder Kathy Burklow. Mills and Burklow became friends as graduate students in psychology, working together first at the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. In 2006, frustrated by the disconnect between scientific advancement and community engagement, they left Children’s to launch Harmony Garden, a nonprofit community research center focused on improving the health of Cincinnati girls. Building on the idea of helping community members be heard and understood, the duo pivoted last February, launching Sprout Insight, a market research and insight consultancy. These days, the leverage decades of clinical and research experience while work closely with companies, hospitals, nonprofits and branding firms that target African American, Latino and Asian shoppers. “Unless [companies] get better at collecting information about racial and ethnic minorities, they’re going to continue to miss opportunities in their industries,” Mills says. “There are a lot of consumer insight and market research companies, but very few are looking at consulting with businesses and corporations about gathering insights from racially and ethnically diverse populations.” Accordingly, the women help organizations identify what types of data they need and how to gather it, both quantitatively through customized surveys and qualitatively, often through focus groups that allow the pair to gain deeper insight into consumers. In practice, that might look like tweaking an existing survey to avoid leading questions or to gather more specific data. It could also mean setting up focus groups at a church or recreation center (rather than the typical observation room) to allow meaningful feedback and insight to flow. “Taking [people] out of their community, you may get answers, but they may not be relevant answers,” Mills says. And so Mills and Burklow keep bringing new voices to the conversation between companies and consumers, hoping for the same goal sparked their friendship decades ago. “Kathy and I are really about the bridging of the gaps,” Mills explains. “For our society to work together, everybody needs to be knowledgeable on some level so that they can sit at the table, and communicate.” By Robin Donovan

Sprout Insight hones in on multi-ethnic consumers

By Newsroom

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Diversity

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October 30, 2012

“People always say, ‘Be careful working with your best friend,’ but we’ve never had those negative experiences. Our relationship and the way we know each other has been such a strength,” says Lisa Mills, a psychologist, and co-founder of research consultancy Sprout Insight, of her 22-year friendship with co-founder Kathy Burklow. Mills and Burklow became friends as graduate students in psychology, working together first at the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. In 2006, frustrated by the disconnect between scientific advancement and community engagement, they left Children’s to launch Harmony Garden, a nonprofit community research center focused on improving the health of Cincinnati girls. Building on the idea of helping community members be heard and understood, the duo pivoted last February, launching Sprout Insight, a market research and insight consultancy. These days, the leverage decades of clinical and research experience while work closely with companies, hospitals, nonprofits and branding firms that target African American, Latino and Asian shoppers. “Unless [companies] get better at collecting information about racial and ethnic minorities, they’re going to continue to miss opportunities in their industries,” Mills says. “There are a lot of consumer insight and market research companies, but very few are looking at consulting with businesses and corporations about gathering insights from racially and ethnically diverse populations.” Accordingly, the women help organizations identify what types of data they need and how to gather it, both quantitatively through customized surveys and qualitatively, often through focus groups that allow the pair to gain deeper insight into consumers. In practice, that might look like tweaking an existing survey to avoid leading questions or to gather more specific data. It could also mean setting up focus groups at a church or recreation center (rather than the typical observation room) to allow meaningful feedback and insight to flow. “Taking [people] out of their community, you may get answers, but they may not be relevant answers,” Mills says. And so Mills and Burklow keep bringing new voices to the conversation between companies and consumers, hoping for the same goal sparked their friendship decades ago. “Kathy and I are really about the bridging of the gaps,” Mills explains. “For our society to work together, everybody needs to be knowledgeable on some level so that they can sit at the table, and communicate.” By Robin Donovan

Twenty-one Cincinnati groups get more than $800,000 for health care programs

By Newsroom

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Diversity

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October 16, 2012

The Health Foundation of Greater Cincinnati recently awarded 21 Cincinnati organizations with more than $800,000 to pursue programs designed to improve people’s health. The Foundation also granted an additional $290,000 for 22 other projects that fit better with some of the Foundation’s other funding programs. In all, 44 proposals were funded for a total of more than $1.1 million. The grants are round one of the Foundation’s “Launching Solutions: Seizing New Opportunities in Health” initiative that focuses on providing the public with access to health and prevention services. The Health Foundation opened its doors in January 1998, not as a health care provider, but as a provider of services to nonprofits that have needs for education, consultation and technical assistance in addition to grant money. The “Launching Solutions” grant process began in February when the Foundation received 126 letters of intent from organizations in Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky. Twenty-six of those organizations were asked to submit grant proposals; last week, 21 of those projects were approved for funding. The approved projects range from integrated care and prevention to healthy eating and health care reform. “There are a lot of wonderful health care providers out there that would like to do things differently,” says Dr. Pat O’Connor, VP and chief operating officer of the Foundation. “The Health Foundation is here to serve as a catalyst for change and improvement for the providers.” The Foundation awards grants to nonprofits through different initiatives, so a few of the new grantees have received assistance from the Foundation in the past. But many of them are new recipients, and there are more new recipients this year than before. Churches Active in Northside, Gabriel’s Place and Family Promise of Northern Kentucky are new grantees. In the next six months or so, the organizations will begin their projects and implement them in the community, says O’Connor. The Foundation has worked with organizations on prevention projects, but it is now emphasizing three National Prevention Plan areas : preventing tobacco use, drug abuse and excessive alcohol use; healthy eating; and mental and emotional wellbeing. Health care providers don’t traditionally do prevention, in part because others organizations and programs play a much bigger role, says O’Connor. The second round of “Launching Solutions” began in September. It emphasizes prevention and creating new Cincinnati area primary care treatment capacity by 2014. There will be a lot of people who didn’t have coverage before the Affordable Care Act who will want health care services, and getting appointments will be an issue, says O’Connor. In the second round, the Foundation will be able to work with nonprofit health care providers and help them expand their capacity for primary care treatment. “Launching Solutions” grantees: Advocates for Ohio’s Future (Public Children Services Association of Ohio), $25,000Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Cincinnati, $60,000Center for School-based Mental Health Programs Miami University, $50,000Children’s Home of Cincinnati, $50,000Churches Active in Northside, $35,700Cincinnati Health Network, Inc., $50,000Community Mental Health Center, $39,250Family Promise of Northern Kentucky, $10,000First Step Home, $75,000Gabriel’s Place (Diocese Southern Ohio), $12,000Greater Cincinnati Behavioral Health Services, $49,070Hamilton County Mental Health and Recovery Services Board, $100,000Henry Hosea House, $35,000Legal Action Center, $47,500LifePoint Solutions, $25,000Ohio Citizen Advocates for Chemical Dependency Prevention & Treatment & Ohio Alliance of Recovery Providers, $17,200PARACHUTE: Butler County CASA, $25,500Santa Maria Community Services, $25,000Sidestreams (Green Umbrella), $17,000St. Joseph Orphanage, $35,000Urban Appalachian Council, $30,000By Caitlin Koenig Follow Caitlin on Twitter

By the ‘Books’

By Elissa Yancey

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Arts + Culture

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October 16, 2012

A Books by the Banks veteran shares insider secrets about what to look for at this year's literary festival.

(3E) Summit touts, teaches benefits of green business

By Newsroom

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Education + Learning

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October 2, 2012

"Going Green" isn't just a feel-good initiative for businesses. It can have real economic benefits. Those benefits -- lower utility bills, less waste, among others -- are there to take advantage of regardless of whether the business considers itself green. That's the message organizers of this year's Energy, Economy and Environment (3E) Summit want businesses to grasp. The 4th annual 3E Summit is Oct. 5, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Xavier University's Cintas Center. Tickets are $50 each, with discounts for Green Umbrella Members and students. "There's a lot of small and medium businesses out there, the people making widgets, who don't always have time to think about how to green their business," says Cincinnati's Sustainability Coordinator Steve Johns. The Summit hopes to remedy that, giving these businesses concrete ways to become more energy efficient, as well as insight into how that affects the bottom line. There will be two panel discussions on Green Business. One is a CEO Roundtable featuring local companies that decided to incorporate green concepts into their businesses. The panel will feature Mac's Pizza, emersion DESIGN, Compost Cincy and Burke, Inc. "Most of these companies aren't producing green products, but thought it was important to take care of energy and waste needs more effectively," Johns says. A second panel discussion will feature reps from UC Health and Procter & Gamble highlighting their efforts to green their supply chain by seeking out sustainable suppliers. "You can really have a competitive advantage by having a green business," Johns explains. The Summit also will feature a "Speed Greening" session, where experts will be on hand to answer specific questions about greening businesses. Those experts can answer questions related to electric and natural gas, waste disposal, transportation and water. In addition to the City of Cincinnati, the 3E Summit is hosted by Green Umbrella, Xavier University's Brueggeman Center for Dialog, the Greater Cincinnati Green Business Council, and USGBC Cincinnati Chapter. Register and find more information at the 3E Summit website. By Feoshia H. Davis Follow Feoshia on Twitter.

Xavier receives grant to encourage talented STEM majors to teach

By Newsroom

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Cincy In The News

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October 2, 2012

Xavier receives grant to encourage talented STEM majors to teach. Read the full story here.

Family historians help preserve memories of a lifetime

By Newsroom

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Diversity

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September 25, 2012

Kristi Woodworth and Jennifer Sauers tell stories for a living, but they’re not performance artists or members of the media. In fact, they’re licensed oral historians. The business they launched together, Beyond the Trees, offers design and printing services for small runs of books, many of them celebrating milestone accomplishments or memories of a lifetime. “You get really close to people,” Woodworth says, describing how she becomes enmeshed in family stories while working with groups of people to compile photos and written memories. “It’s sort of a privilege for us to be that close to the lives of these people, because what they’re doing with these books is creating a gift of love to honor the people in their life, and it’s a thrill to help them do that.” Moving to the Norwood-based Hamilton County Business Center in 2009 helped grow the budding business, says Woodworth. “We could kick ideas around more easily,” she says. The duo also received business coaching in speed sessions during morning mentoring sessions at the HCBC. The women are currently working on products that will allow people to complete their own projects, such as legacy letters to one’s descendants, or other projects. The company offers Cincinnati-based workshops, for example, and skills taught in these classes are now being leveraged into products that anyone can use, regardless of their location. Services provided by Beyond the Trees include tribute books that can be purchased as gifts for milestone occasions, such as graduations, birthdays or anniversaries. The company issues invitations by email or standard post to friends and family of the honoree, then compile the resultant memories and photos into a bound book. Beyond the Trees also provides self-publishing services for authors who want to print and sell books of prose, poetry or other creative work. Woodworth says the trend she sees now is how much easier it is to self publish. When the company began, it was something of a novelty, and Woodworth’s partner, Jennifer Sauers, took materials to Staples to have them printed, then downtown to be hand-bound. Still, the family cookbooks she produced were a smash hit, and, soon, other people were asking about having books made. “What we’re adding to it is the value of the service. We are adding the advice and the guidance through it and the design of the product,” says Woodworth. By Robin Donovan

Psst: Cincinnati’s greener than you think

By Chris Graves

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Environment + Sustainability

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September 25, 2012

From a nationally recognized "poop processor" to a net-zero energy corporate headquarters, Cincinnati exemplifies "green" leadership to other cities and states. So why aren't more locals talking about it? Soapbox offers four conversation starters.