Ohio Valley Goodwill Industries

Ohio Valley Goodwill will be partnering with Turfway Park on Friday, September 18, 2009 to present an old-fashioned “Sock Hop” party in celebration of the race track’s 50th Anniversary.  The theme for the evening will be straight from the 1950′s and will include music, games and prizes for the best ’50′s costumes.  A host of other fun activities are planned for the 7:00 pm to 11:00 pm event.  Admission for the party is only $5.00 or a new pair of socks which will be donated to Goodwill Industries.  “We are so excited to join in with Turfway Park for this exciting and fun event and to help party-goers learn more about the services offered by Goodwill Industries,” said PR and Marketing Director, George Palmer.  For more information about the event visit the Turfway website at www.turfway.com and click on Events.  See you at the Party!

L to R, Albert Brotkin, Goodwill Advocate,
Cheryl Phipps, HCB Sup’t
and Kate Hawkins, HCB Levy Coordinator

Ohio Valley Goodwill was proud to be the host location for one of several Speakers Training events being held on behalf of the Hamilton County Board of MR/DD on Wednesday, August 26th, at its headquarters in Woodlawn. More than 20 attendees representing different human service organizations attended the event which was designed to teach speakers about levy specifics for upcoming community outreach presentations.

As Goodwill and the Hamilton County Board of MR/DD gear up for the upcoming Levy campaign season, hosting a Speakers Training event is only one of the many collaborative activities that the long-time partners organizations will support.

“Passage of this year’s levy is essential for the more than 8000 families that the Hamilton County Board and its partner agencies support,” said Sharon Hannon, Goodwill Marketing Specialist. “Goodwill will be actively engaged in community outreach and education efforts through Election day on November 3rd,” added Hannon.

Look for more Levy campaign news in upcoming blog posts.

Forum For Ohioans With Disabilities
(pictured left to right): Linda Kunick,
Michael Rench, RSC Administrator, Leslie McCurley,
Stephanie Mitchell and Kathleen Sheil

On Tuesday, August 18th, Leslie McCurley, Goodwill’s Assistant Director of MR/DD Services and Stephanie Mitchell one of Goodwill’s self advocates traveled to Columbus, OH to attend an open forum for Ohioans with disabilities.  This event was hosted by the Ohio Developmental Disabilities Council, Ohio Statewide Independent Living Council and the Ohio Governors’ Council on People with Disabilities.  This forum provided people with disabilities, their families, friends and people who serve them an opportunity to inform policymakers about their personal work experiences.  Stephanie along with other self advocates from Hamilton County gave their testimony regarding their ideas on how to develop successful employment opportunities.  Their testimony was recorded and will be shared with people who can make a difference – service providers, legislators, and government officials. 

Goodwill’s star was shining brightly on the evening of Thursday, August 20th when the organization’s Vice President for Administrative Services, Doug Ostholthoff was named Large Nonprofit CFO of the Year by the Cincinnati Business Courier.  Doug has served Ohio Valley Goodwill Industries for 33 years and has been in his role as Chief Financial Officer for the past 31 years.  The organization is one of the most successful and largest nonprofits in Southwestern Ohio, serving more than 2600 individuals each year.  Doug has been responsible for helping the organization grow from a small $2 million a year company to the large $30 million employment and training center that it is today.  As CFO, Doug provides leadership in accounting management and has helped make Ohio Valley Goodwill one of the most financially stable and respected nonprofit organizations in the region.  As the Chief Financial Officer for Ohio Valley Goodwill, Doug has been directly involved in all decisions affecting the growth of the organization which has included the annual and long range strategic planning process, all policy development, financial stewardship practices, and oversight responsibilities in tandem with the organization’s board and President and CEO. Beyond his role at Goodwill, Doug has been involved in the local community by serving as treasurer and as a board member for the Drop-In Center, a long established temporary housing shelter for the homeless in downtown Cincinnati.  “We are delighted that the Cincinnati Business Courier has selected Doug to be honored for his service and dedication to Goodwill,” said Joe Byrum, Goodwill President and CEO.

Now in its third year, the CFO of the Year program is an extension of the Courier 250, a publication detailing the biggest and best 250 companies in the Tri-State.  The Courier 250 publication includes the region’s 150 largest private companies, public companies, 25 of the largest nonprofit organizations and the region’s largest employers.

Ohio Valley Goodwill congratulates Doug on this outstanding recognition.

(Left to Right) Neil Hutchinson, Dormitory Case Manager,
Brittany Elking, Field Representative,
Representative John Boehner’s Office,
John Briggs, Community and Veterans Liaison

Ohio Valley Goodwill Industries was pleased to welcome Brittany Elking to the facility on Tuesday, August 18th to visit and to tour the organization. Of particular interest for Ms. Elking was Goodwill’s dormitory facility which provides housing for the many homeless veterans that Goodwill serves. During the tour, John Briggs, Community and Veterans Liaison and Neil Hutchinson, Dormitory Case Manager, explained the many facets of how Goodwill serves the individual and vocational needs for the homeless veterans that benefit from its dormitory services. During the tour, Ms. Elking also had the opportunity to see other work training areas and to see some of the vocational opportunities that are available to individuals with disabilities and barriers to employment. “We were happy that Brittany was able to visit with us and to talk with some of our key staff so that her office will have a better understanding about how Goodwill serves the vocational needs of individuals,” said George Palmer, Director of Public Relations and Marketing.

L to R: Neal Hutchinson, HVRP Specialist,
Brooke Hill, SW Regional Director,
and Mick Fusco, HVRP Grants Mgr.

Ohio Valley Goodwill Industries was delighted to have Brooke Hill, SW Regional Director for Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown visit the facility on Thursday, August 13th. Ms. Hill was particularly interested in visiting with the staff in Goodwill’s Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program which provides programs and services for veterans in Southwest Ohio and Northern Kentucky. Ms. Hill informed the Goodwill team that Senator Sherrod Brown has a veteran’s liaison through his local office and she would put that representative with Ohio Valley Goodwill HVRP team in the near future.

Goodwill’s veterans program continues to expand its services to meet the needs of local military men and women. These services include skill training, job placement, housing and on-going case management support. “Over the past two years, Ohio Valley Goodwill has served more than a thousand veterans in its many programs and services,” said Mick Fusco, HVRP Grants Manager.

Ohio Valley Goodwill was delighted to be the host location for the weekly meeting for the Sharonville Kiwanis group on Wednesday, August 12, 2009. Members of the group were pleased to meet at Goodwill for lunch and an extensive tour of the facility. Even though most members of the group have lived in the nearby community most of their lives, many have never had the opportunity to see first-hand how Goodwill serves the vocational needs of individuals with disabilities. “The group was amazed at how many vocational and job services that Goodwill offers and the number of individuals the organization assists each year,” said George Palmer, Goodwill’s Director of PR and Marketing. Goodwill was happy to have the group visit the facility and learn more about the organization.

Ohio Valley Goodwill was pleased to announce the launch of its brand new community outreach and education video in support of the Hamilton County Board of MR/DD levy campaign on Monday, August 10th on YouTube. The important video was put together in partnership with the self advocates that Goodwill serves, the families it supports and was produced by Public Information Officer, Michael Flannery.

The same video was also hand-delivered to the offices of the Hamilton County Commissioners on August 10th, in an effort to provide visual testimony from those most affected about the importance of the 2009 Levy campaign.

“We felt that we had to create a communication tool that would help to convey the critical importance of the 2009 Hamilton County Board levy campaign and specifically, the relevance to our families and individuals we serve,” said Sharon Hannon, Marketing Specialist.

Please take a minute to watch the new video posted on Goodwill’s YouTube page. Watch for more news on Goodwill’s on-going community outreach and education efforts during the busy Fall season.

Remember to vote to support the Hamilton County Levy on November 3rd!

L to R Chris WLWT, Courtis Fuller,WLWT,
George Palmer,OVGI and WLWT interns,
Molly Brockmann, and Whitney Kyles.

Ohio Valley Goodwill was delighted to welcome back WLWT reporter, Courtis Fuller, on Thursday, August 6th. The reporter visited the organization to do a story about the impact of the “Cash for Clunkers” program on Goodwill’s weekly Auto Auction. Fuller interviewed George Palmer, Goodwill’s Director of PR and Marketing, about the organization’s auction program, current status of donations and the potential impact of the new “Cash for Clunkers” campaign.

During the interview, Palmer explained that Ohio Valley Goodwill is fortunate to have the most successful charity Auto Auction of its kind in the country, thanks to the on-going generosity of the Greater Cincinnati community. Proceeds generated through the weekly auction are used to support the organization’s many skill training and job placement services. While Goodwill is always watchful when new donation-oriented programs are enacted, there has been no impact currently on our auto donations. “We are extremely grateful to the Greater Cincinnati community for their on-going support of our mission of putting people to work,” commented Palmer.

The segment will be included on the 5:30 news program on Thursday, August 6th on WLWT channel 5.

L to R: Nancy VanderWoude and Susan Mayberry

Thursday, August 6th marked the 2009 Greater Cincinnati Job Expo, held this year at the Scarlet Oaks Career Development Campus. Ohio Valley Goodwill team members, George Palmer, Director of PR and Marketing, and Nancy VanderWoude, Training Supervisor, and Susan Mayberry, Employment Services Manager, represented the organization at the 14th annual event.

Thousands of job seekers attended this year’s event and again, interest in Ohio Valley Goodwill’s opportunities was evident. “We handed out more than 250 position overview sheets in the first 35 minutes of the event,” remarked George Palmer, PR and Marketing Director. “It’s always been a very well attended event but I think this year, we can really see that many people are actively seeking employment, ” added Palmer.

Ohio Valley Goodwill has long been an exhibitor for the Job Expo and was delighted to once again be a resource for individuals seeking employment opportunies and/or training services.