Ohio's October Unemployment Rates
Ohio's unemployment rate was 9.0 percent in October, down from 9.1 in September. The U.S. unemployment rate for October was also 9.0 percent, down from 9.1 percent in September.
In the Region:
Athens: 8.8%
Hocking: 9.0%
Meigs: 12.6%
Monroe: 10.4%
Morgan: 11.4%
Noble: 11.4%
Perry: 10.5%
Washington: 7.6% |
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Buckeye Hills Executive Board
Morgan County:
Board President
Ron Moore
Buckeye Hills Board President Ron Moore has been affiliated with Buckeye Hills since 1999 when he was elected as Commissioner in Morgan County. Prior to then, he was a teacher and administrator in the Morgan Local School District for 30 years. Ron has also taught English and writing at Zane State College and Washington State Community College.
Ron enjoys tennis, reading, hunting, daily crossword puzzles, and playing with his grandchildren. He has two children and six grandchildren. Currently, he and his wife, Marge, help his parents with a small beef cattle farm. He is a past-president of Six County, Inc. and serves on that board. Other organizations he is involved with include the Morgan County Learning Center and the Pisgah U. M. Church Administrative Council.
Ron considers it a privilege to serve on the Buckeye Hills Board. He is most impressed with the variety of services offered through Buckeye Hills. From needed economic development through valuable assistance to seniors, he feels Buckeye Hills is critical to the improvement of the quality of life of citizens in our counties. Ron attributes the success of Buckeye Hills to the leaders and individuals who work hard to sustain and promote our region.
Morgan County Commissioner
Dean Cain
Board Member Dean Cain has been involved with Buckeye Hills for the past seven years when he was elected as a Morgan County Commissioner.
He shared that the knowledge he receives and support from Buckeye Hills are unbelievable. He said he doesn't know how counties would do things without its support.
Dean noted that he has never had an address outside of Morgan County except when he served in the military. He was in the U.S. Army's 1st Calvary Division in Vietnam.
Of the Morgan County and Appalachian regions, he shared that the people are the most receptive. They are willing to listen and are tremendous to work with and try hard to get things done.
When he is not at the office, Dean enjoys spending time with his wife, children and grandchildren. He also has the responsibility for a cattle farm.
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Small Business
Seminar Hosted
Senator Sherrod Brown's Office and the Small Business Administration will be hosting a Small Business Seminar in our region on December 2.
10am-12pm
(Registration begins at 9:30am)
The Inn at Hocking College
15770 State Route 691
Nelsonville
RSVP, by email at Brown_RSVP@brown.senate.gov or by calling 216-522-7272.
Participants will learn how the Small Business Jobs Act that President Obama signed into law last year can help small businesses by unlocking the small business lending market.
- Officials from the Small Business Administration (SBA) will discuss combinations of loan guarantees and programs that are available for small businesses.
- Officials from the Procurement Technical Assistance Center will discuss the resources to help businesses sell to local, state, and federal government
- IRS representatives will discuss new tax incentives such as Section 179 and Bonus Depreciation which help business owners purchase new equipment and make new investments in their business.
- IRS representatives will also cover the credits available in the new health care law that will help employers afford insurance for their employees.
- Representatives from the U.S. Department of Commerce will discuss the National Export Initiative (NEI) and various export assistance programs that can help businesses boost their export sales, expand their business and hire more workers.
- Representatives from the US Dept. of Agriculture, Rural Development office will discuss the Business and Industry loan programs as well as the Rural Energy for America Program
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Buckeye Hills Continues Legislative Advocacy
for Appalachia
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Left to Right: Misty Casto, Buckeye Hills Executive Director; Bob Proud, OVRDC Chairman; Sherrod Brown, US Senator-Ohio; John Hemmings, OVRDC Executive Director; and Roger Rhonemus, OVRDC Vice Chairman presenting Senator Brown the Area Leadership Award.
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One of Buckeye Hills' partner districts in Appalachia is The Ohio Valley Regional Development Commission (OVRDC). Bob Proud, OVRDC Chairman and John Hemmings, OVRDC Executive Director presented the Area Leadership Award to Senator Sherrod Brown with Buckeye Hills Executive Director Misty Casto for his outstanding service, commitment and advocacy for the Southern Ohio region and for his support of the Appalachian Regional Commission, Economic Development Administration and USDA Rural Development as well as his continued support of the Ohio Local Development Districts.
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Buckeye Hills Supports Formation of Appalachian Ohio Geospatial Data Partnership
 The formation of the Appalachian Ohio Geospatial Data Partnership is an important step forward for Southeastern Ohio in geospatial knowledge and technologies.
For years, only a few parties (a limited number of county governments, municipalities, and regional organizations) in the region have been actively sustaining an ongoing GIS effort. Concentrating on bringing the benefits of this technology to the residents of the region, Buckeye Hills was pleased to participate in the formation of the new partnership. It will give our organization the opportunity to formalize some of the informal working relationships that have been developed over the years.
The partnership provides the region (which has generally been underserved and underdeveloped in terms of GIS data, GIS application development, and overall GIS knowledge) an opportunity to capitalize on the concentrated efforts of an organization that exists solely:
- to promote the development of standards-based spatial data,
- to share that data, and
- to ensure that spatial data and knowledge is transferred to any interested parties within the region.
Prior to the formation of this group, these efforts were headed by organizations like Buckeye Hills, ILGARD at the Voinovich School (Ohio University), and the Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District in an informal manner, using whatever resources were available. The Appalachian Ohio Geospatial Data Partnership provides an opportunity and a vessel by which specific GIS projects can be completed which may be outside what could be accomplished by any of the member organizations or governments on their own.
From this partnership Buckeye Hills hopes to increase the dissemination of spatial technologies to areas and populations which may have been previously unreachable, and to also further the concept of thinking spatially to all of our constituents and interested organizations.
"It is my personal hope that this organization, through a combination of efforts and resources can spur a new round of spatial data creation in the Buckeye Hills region," said GIS Manager Bret Allphin. "GIS enabled data will not only provide benefits for the immediate need of trying to respond to petroleum exploration efforts in the Utica and Marcellus Shale, but this will also provide benefits to the economic development community, to the planning and administrative capacities of local governments, and to local landowners as a whole."
Allphin added that the spatial data needs of the region are great, especially when compared to the capabilities of the regions and areas surrounding the AOGDP service area.
"I'm hopeful that the cooperative efforts of the parties involved in the AOGDP can start to bring Southeastern Ohio not only to a level playing field with the rest of the state, but push us into the lead as an example of what can be accomplished through focused, coordinated efforts by flexible and knowledgeable groups in the region," added Allphin.
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Sen. Jason Wilson Appointed Director of Governor's Office of Appalachia
 Sen. Jason Wilson (D-Columbiana) will be the new director of the Governor's Office of Appalachia, Ohio's lead agency for fostering job creation and development in Ohio's 32-county Appalachian region. Under the direction of Sen. Wilson the Governor's Office of Appalachia will focus aggressively on economic development and workforce development.
Since 2007, Senator Wilson has represented Ohio's 30th Senate district, which includes Columbiana, Belmont, Jefferson, Harrison and part of Tuscarawas counties. In the Senate, he served as Assistant Minority Whip and as a member of the Senate Finance Committee. Born and raised in Belmont County, Wilson is the Senior Vice President of Wilson Funeral and Furniture Company, received his bachelor's degree from The Ohio State University and earned an MBA from Wheeling Jesuit University. He lives in Columbiana with his wife Leah and their three children.
As an advocate for Ohio's Appalachian region, the Governor's Office of Appalachia works with the Appalachian Regional Commission in Washington, D.C. to promote the region's assets and support local, regional, state, and federal initiatives.
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Funding Opportunities Announced
Community Improvement Grant Program Offered in Appalachia
Buckeye Hills-HVRDD now has application guidelines and forms for the newly announced Community Improvement Grant program available through the Governor's Office of Appalachia (GOA). Non-profits, governmental entities, and grassroots organizations with appropriate tax status located within Ohio's 32 county Appalachian Regional are welcome to apply for 50% of a project's total cost, up to $30,000 for projects that fit within one of these topic areas:
- Community Investment;
- Community Facility;
- Summer Program for Children;
- Health-Physical Fitness Equipment, or
- Streetscape Beautification.
Specific guidelines for eligible and non-eligible activities are available on the Buckeye Hills website. Priority is given to ARC designated distressed counties and communities with population of 5,000 or less. All 32 Appalachian counties in Ohio are eligible to apply. For 2012, the "distressed" counties in the Buckeye Hills region include Athens, Meigs, Morgan and Noble.
Download Guidelines & Application
Funding will be awarded on a first-come first-served basis, but applications must be received by the GOA by March 1, 2012. Submit your application as soon as possible!
The Alternative Stormwater Infrastructure Loan Program:
The Ohio Dept. of Development announced a recent addition to the funding spectrum for stormwater management that you may be interested in utilizing for your community's stormwater management needs. The Alternative Stormwater Infrastructure Loan Program is a partnership between the Ohio Department of Development and the Ohio Water Development Authority. The program can provide loans of up to $5 million for alternative stormwater infrastructure projects such as bioswales, pervious pavement, green roofs, rain gardens, etc. The loans will be provided at below-market interest rates to qualified borrowers, not to exceed 2%, with a maximum 10-year payback period. Governmental entities are eligible to apply, but private and non-profit entities are encouraged to partner with public entities to utilize the loans as well. The projects must be highly visible and result in economic and/or community benefits.
Please see the program web page for more information on the program. If you have questions or would like to set up a meeting regarding a potential project, you can contact Diane Alecusan at 614-728-1229.
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 Person-Centered Care Program Announces Facility Partners
The Area Agency on Aging 8 (AAA8) Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program will initially be working with the following facilities across the region to support the person-centered care "Culture Change" efforts.
Selected facilities include The Arbors at Marietta, Logan Health Care Center, Hickory Creek Nursing Facility, Rocksprings Rehabilitation Center, New Lexington Care and Rehabilitation Center and Overbrook Care Center.
The Ombudsman program addresses concerns about the quality of long-term care services and negotiates for the solution of problems that arise between providers and consumers of long-term care services. Culture change is the common name given to a national movement for the transformation of older adult services based on person-centered values and practices.
Person-centered care is not about more forms, more lists, more reporting, or more work. It is about finding a decent and kind way to serve older adults that makes their lives and the lives of their caregivers more meaningful, a common-sense approach to bringing care back into caregiving at the nursing home and enriching the lives of those that live and work there.
For more information, call 1-800-331-2644. To learn more about the Person Centered Care initiative, visit http://www.centeredcare.org.
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At his home in Monroe County, PASSPORT client Albert McCormick (seated) is shown with Area Agency on Aging 8 Housing Coordinator Joe Gage; Beverly Anderson, USDA Marietta Area Specialist and Michael Rutherford, USDA Area Director. USDA and AAA8 partnered on a housing project for McCormick.
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PASSPORT & Housing Programs Support Region's Seniors and Caregivers
Enabling seniors who wish to stay at home and receive care in the community rather than in a nursing facility, caused two programs serving the aging to coordinate services for one Monroe County family.
On their farm near Lewisville, Albert and Ann McCormick receive support for Albert's care through the Ohio PASSPORT home care program. They also recently received support for a Housing project to revitalize their bathroom to facilitate Albert's care at home.
For seniors trying to "age in place" in older homes, one program through the Area Agency on Aging 8 is making a difference. Albert has been served by the PASSPORT program in his home since 2010. Through the program, Albert was also eligible to be considered for Housing support to install a walk-in shower and other newer bathroom items. The Housing project was supported with nearly $5,000 in funding through the United States Department of Agriculture's Rural Development Section 504 housing repair grant program.
"We helped more than 130 individuals in the Marietta Region with the housing repair program last year," said Beverly Anderson, USDA Marietta Area Specialist. "We were pleased to partner with AAA8 on this project to provide Albert with handicap accessibility and even a new hot water heater."
Speaking of Charity Howell from Summit Acres Health Care, Ann said "Our home health aide is just wonderful. She comes twice a week and does a lot for Albert."
Albert's PASSPORT Case Manager Vicki Bennett, RN, explains that Albert receives support like personal care, home maker services, home delivered meals (through GMN Tri-County, Inc. and Monroe County Senior Center), necessary medical equipment and an emergency response system.
"Funded through Medicaid, last year PASSPORT allowed about 1,200 seniors in our region to remain at home for a fraction of the cost of a nursing home placement," said Rick Hindman, AAA8 Director. "This in-home program serves as a substantial cost-saving measure for the state, as well being the much preferred choice for seniors. Albert's PASSPORT care plan will cost $9,322 this year as compared to the average annual nursing home costs of $60,000."
According to AARP, nine out of 10 people surveyed would prefer to receive long-term care services in their own home or community.
Anyone interested in learning more should request a free in-home consultation and details on PASSPORT or Housing options by calling AAA8 at 1-800-331-2644 or by visiting www.areaagency8.org. You can also find us on Facebook. AAA8 serves Athens, Hocking, Meigs, Monroe, Morgan, Noble, Perry and Washington Counties.
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