‘Strong connections’

'Everybody can't be a coach'
6/24/11
Thumbs up as Santa look-alike loses his locks
6/24/11
Charles Krauthammer: U.S. needs a new way to decide when we’re at war
6/24/11
Treasurer: ‘County finances can be rather complex’
6/24/11
> More opinion headlines

8:07 AM Tuesday, November 24, 2009

As we approach Thanksgiving and the annual celebration of National Family Week, Nov. 23-28, it is crucial that we ask ourselves, “What have we done to help struggling families become self sufficient and build strong communities?” In this season of giving thanks, I feel we should celebrate some of the strong connections we have in Butler County:

• Butler County should take pride in the fact that, through the elderly services program, more than 3,200 older adults are receiving high-quality home-care services, such as Meals On Wheels, homemaking and emergency response systems, which allow them to remain safe in their own homes.

• We should acknowledge the work of the dozens of volunteers and collaborative efforts of local agencies to meet the increased demands for food and shelter during these difficult economic times.

• We should be grateful for the cooperative credit counseling ventures that have allowed families to avoid foreclosure, stay in their homes, and modify their mortgages.

• We should thank our school-based support workers and all the other employees and volunteers who work tirelessly to assist children in overcoming obstacles to their success.

During National Family Week, we should all take time to thank those whose efforts help to strengthen families. We should also thank them daily for their commitments of time and effort. LifeSpan embraces the well-known principle that children live better lives when their families are strong. Families are able to become stronger when they live in communities that connect them to economic opportunities, social networks and basic necessary services.

Thank you for your contributions.

W. Joseph Scholler

Board chairman

LifeSpan Inc.

Hamilton

Share this article