First let me say that I am very impressed with the steering committee. This is not the same old people who just want to sit on committees & feel important. You will recognize some names but I truly feel more confident about this group than any other group or project that I've witnessed in my 35 years in Jefferson County. Could there be more or a few different - maybe- but its obvious to me some tough thought went into creating a strong, acceptable, talented & courageous group of persons. Just reminding you that courage matters- in the past persons who have been delivering this message have been publicly ridiculed. The preferred method to silence truth speakers in our community has been to discredit and dismiss those persons especially in public. These folks have a tough message and yet have set a goal to work towards hope and positive change. Bill Barnes President and CEO of our Community Foundation has helped lead the effort and acquire funding. He has a passion for helping our community - especially our children. He is genuinely kind, well spoken with broad experience and education. Nadja Boone BSN RN Norton-Kdh marketing- lots of local experience and connections within the community. I don't know her personally but her BSN-RN makes her uniquely qualified to understand the impact of childhood experiences on later life & our community as a whole. Her education gives her the most broad based understanding of anyone on the committee- her skills with communication and marketing will help this team disperse their message which, by its nature, is very sad and difficult to accept. Dr. Diamond Harris is a Pediatrician, Norton King's Daughters' Health & she is involved with local young women's-girls programing. This will be vital as we try to find ways to address some of the worst of our common childhood adverse experiences: sexual assault, rape, physical and emotional abuse of our daughters, nieces and mothers. Amber Finnegan is State Director of Correctional Education Ivy Tech Community College of Indiana and has excellent experience in our local community corrections. She will be invaluable as the steering committee tries to direct efforts to better understand the issues facing children of incarcerated parents, drug incarcerations etc. Brad Wood is Director of Operations, River Valley Resources and has daily exposure to our most difficult challenges related to poverty including those related to simply having enough food to feed children. He also has experience in mental health and addiction treatment and a degree in community development- all of which is critical knowledge for this committee. Beth Lichlyter is Chief Financial Officer at Super ATV Imo her degree in finance and as a CPA brings essential elements of financial legitimacy and transparency to this committee. Add to that Beth is really a very nice person and the Super ATV family, owners and even employees are known for their generosity. Super ATV has almost single handedly been responsible for raising wages in our community. The company more than any other has had an immense positive impact on reducing poverty in our area. She's a real prize to have on this committee. Dora Anim: CEO and President, Bethany Legacy Foundation is new to our community and brings a fresh, brave face. IMO, she can best be described as an agent of change. Her history in the Cincinnati area is astounding. She has experience with these types of collaborative efforts especially in health care. Keith Howard: Coordinator, Healthy Communities Initiative of Jefferson County hails from a background of adult education which will provide us invaluable insight as we attempt to find ways to tackle our issues surrounding issues involving working yet poverty level families. He can also help address chronically, underemployed, undereducated/undertrained workforce which contributes heavily to our local poverty problem.
|