Ohio Valley Goodwill Receives Local and State-wide Recognition!
Cincinnati, OH · · March 22, 2011 · · Ohio Valley Goodwill was honored to be recognized as the 2011 ” Agency Provider of the Year” by the Butler County Board of Developmental Disabilities (BCBDD) at its 17th annual Community Recognition Awards event held on Sunday, March 20th at the Savannah Center in West Chester, OH.
Butler County Board Contracts Services Coordinator, Mark Miller, presented the award to Goodwill President and CEO, Joe Byrum, at the memorable event. ” On behalf of Ohio Valley Goodwill and the hundreds of Butler County residents that we support, thank you so much for this important recognition of our commitment to community involvement and program excellence,” said Byrum.
The prestigious award was given in recognition of the quality of the services provided through Goodwill’s Fairfield Vocational Services Center as well as its Community Access Supports program which assists individuals with disabilities to participate in their community in positive ways. The Fairfield Vocational Services Center under the leadership of Michael Goforth and Mike Sweetin, has attained a reputation for creating a culture of trust, integrity and mutual respect for the individuals they serve within their work training program. Goodwill’s Community Access program under the direction of Aimee Rittner and Ranaye Hampton, is noteworthy for its responsiveness to individualized, choice-driven involvement in community activities.
On Monday, March 21st at an Awards ceremony held in Columbus, Ohio Valley Goodwill’s Public Information Officer, Michael Flannery, was also singled out for recognition by Ohio Public Images. The organization’s mission is to promote positive perceptions of people with developmental disabilities and Flannery’s video ” Transitions” was selected for an Award of Merit in the Audio-Visual category. The piece was produced by Flannery on behalf of Ohio Valley Goodwill in order to provide an overview of choices that individuals with disabilities could make in moving from the world of school into the larger community.
” On behalf of Ohio Valley Goodwill, I am delighted to receive this honor from Ohio Public Images. It is very important to us to support the mission of this organization which parallels Goodwill’s own efforts to promote the positive perceptions of people with disabilities,” noted Flannery. In his role as Goodwill Public Information Officer, Flannery is also very active with the Advocacy in Media committee locally; a group dedicated to promoting the use of People First language and respect for individuals with disabilities.
Ohio Valley Goodwill is very proud of its award-winning programs for individuals with disabilities and celebrates its most recent recognition during this, its 95th Anniversary of service in the Greater Cincinnati community.
