Pictured: Joe Waske, Byesville Rotary President, Stephanie Laube, Multi-system Youth Coordinator for Creative Options; Stevie Fairchild, Ohio Valley Educational Service Center; and Bob Werner, President—Samaritan Center.
Club business:
- Reading: None assigned for next meeting.
- Breakfast with the Bunny committee is woking on this fundraiser. Members wanting to help, contact Phyllis Jeffries. Members are asked to donate a few dollars to Larry Miller to purchase plastic egg or bring in candy that will fit into the plastic eggs.
- Oziel Jeffries is this year's Chicken BBQ chair. The first BBQ will be held April 30. See Oziel to volunteer.
- Club members voted to donate $50 to Tanya so she can purchase non-perishable food items to be donated to the food drive being held at District PETS.
- The Four Way Test competitors will present their speeches at the March 29 meeting.
Program:
“Homelessness is an emotional issue,” stated Stevie Fairchild who works as Homeless Liaison for the Ohio Valley Educational Service. Emotions caused by losing a home are particular hard on the children and young people caught in this situation.
In Guernsey County, homelessness affects families who live in or who are related to families located in Guernsey. Most homeless children are members of a one parent family.
Fairchild describes a homeless person as a child or a young person who does not have a fixed and suitable night time residence, who is doubling up and sharing a house with family and or friends, or who is a runaway living on the street or with friends or relatives. In order to help the child, Fairchild begins by helping the parents.
Local statistics as of September, 2010, identified 138 Guernsey County children as homeless.
Homelessness is a multifaceted problem that affects many different areas of a person’s life. Dealing with homelessness and the problems associated with it involves many different agencies. Fairchild and Stephanie Laube work to link up homeless families with various social agencies, services and local organizations such as churches.
One of the local organizations they work with is the Samaritan Center for Transitional Housing. Bob Werner, president of the Samaritan Center, stated that his organization has two goals. One is to provide a temporary home for 6 weeks or more. This time will allow families to get back on their feet. The second goal is to teach families how to break the cycle of homelessness by learning skills that will enable them to help themselves. Families involved in the Samaritan program are asked to save a portion of their income toward a safety deposit and first month’s rent for a permanent home.
Werner reported that a house has been donated to the Samaritan Center to serve as transitional housing. Vandals stripped the unoccupied house of pipes, fixtures and appliances. The building needs work and about $50,000 worth of materials to make it livable. Werner estimates turning this house into a home will take 2 years.
Currently, the Samaritan Center is raising funds through local fund raisers such as a Soup and Dessert Luncheon being held at the St. Benedict Activity Center on March 11, 11:00-2:00.
For more information about meeting the needs of homelessness, contact Stevie Fairchild, 439-3558, of Stephanie Laube, 432-9271.
The club’s next meeting will be 7:30 am, March 15, 2011, at the Stop Nine Senior Center at 60313 (GPS use 60299) Southgate Road, Byesville. Anyone interested in learning more about the Byesville Rotary can call Membership Chairs Marty Patchen, 740-685-3828, or Larry Miller, 740-439-2767. More information about the Byesville Rotary can be found at: www.Byesvillerotary.blogspot.com
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