Turning Point seeks help to win fruit orchard
By
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By LuAnn Winkle
Executive Director
Turning Point Applied Learning Center
Turning Point Applied Learning Center has been providing employment training and supportive services to residents of the Highland County region for 13 years.
Today, we must turn to you, the community, not for financial resources, but for your assistance in making another of our initiatives a reality. We need you to vote for Turning Point in the “Communities Take Root Program.”
We are competing with 119 other communities across the country to earn a free orchard to be planted on our property to complement our existing community garden. Vegetables and fruit from our garden provide employment training opportunities as well as fresh produce for area food banks and homeless shelters. Voting is easy. Just go online to http://www.communitiestakeroot.com and register to vote.
After you register, you can vote once a day, every day, until the end of May. Our small rural community is competing with places like Chicago. They have numbers, but we have HEART!
Help us earn that orchard for our community. Make your vote count for our community. Thank you for your support and may you always remember the neediest of our neighbors who are helped through programs like Turning Point. “There, but for the Grace of God, go I.”
Many dedicated professionals have served on our board guiding and directing this organization to its present status. Our professional staff, along with a core group of community partners, strives to help our participants overcome barriers including GED education, substance abuse and mental health issues, court obligations, transportation, child care, housing, emergency food and medical care. Without a doubt we have the most supportive, enthusiastic, candid group of partners any non-profit could hope for.
The courts, law enforcement, the media, criminal justice, elected officials at all levels, local business and industry, education, social services, the faith community and private citizens all play an incredibly important role in our ability to serve the this population. Without their support there would be no Turning Point. We sincerely appreciate their efforts.
Turning Point has positioned itself as a leader in Ohio in providing employment training and reentry services to public assistance recipients, at-risk youth and ex-offenders. Our model program has been visited and studied by representatives from agencies all over the state. Their initial reaction is always one of awe and respect for what we are doing in our community. Everyone who visits us wants a Turning Point in their community.
However, we warn all of our guests that their ability to duplicate our program successfully is predicated on one very key component: Support from the local community and a desire to give back to the community.
In recent years, Turning Point has brought more than $1.2 million in grant funds to our community, creating jobs and creating opportunity. We have generated over $2.8 million in earned revenue that has resulted in over $4 million in educational stipends paid out to participants. Our participants spend their earnings in our community in the form of housing, child care, food, gasoline, clothing, automobiles and household expenses.
Since 2007, our participants have paid more than $55,000 in child support and court fines and fees, not counting community services hours worked. Nearly 100 people have earned their GED at Turning Point. Last year alone, we provided 98,869 hours of training and assistance to over 500 unduplicated persons and many of our graduates obtained jobs despite the local economy.
It is time for Turning Point to move from being the best kept secret in the area to a highly visible community asset. Your assistance in earning a fruit orchard from Edy’s Fruit Bars and the Fruit Tree Foundation will help put us on the map!
Remember, Register, Vote, Vote Every Day, Get the Word out to Family and Friends, then watch our numbers rise in the vote count. We sincerely hope you will help us to earn that orchard for our community.[[In-content Ad]]
Executive Director
Turning Point Applied Learning Center
Turning Point Applied Learning Center has been providing employment training and supportive services to residents of the Highland County region for 13 years.
Today, we must turn to you, the community, not for financial resources, but for your assistance in making another of our initiatives a reality. We need you to vote for Turning Point in the “Communities Take Root Program.”
We are competing with 119 other communities across the country to earn a free orchard to be planted on our property to complement our existing community garden. Vegetables and fruit from our garden provide employment training opportunities as well as fresh produce for area food banks and homeless shelters. Voting is easy. Just go online to http://www.communitiestakeroot.com and register to vote.
After you register, you can vote once a day, every day, until the end of May. Our small rural community is competing with places like Chicago. They have numbers, but we have HEART!
Help us earn that orchard for our community. Make your vote count for our community. Thank you for your support and may you always remember the neediest of our neighbors who are helped through programs like Turning Point. “There, but for the Grace of God, go I.”
Many dedicated professionals have served on our board guiding and directing this organization to its present status. Our professional staff, along with a core group of community partners, strives to help our participants overcome barriers including GED education, substance abuse and mental health issues, court obligations, transportation, child care, housing, emergency food and medical care. Without a doubt we have the most supportive, enthusiastic, candid group of partners any non-profit could hope for.
The courts, law enforcement, the media, criminal justice, elected officials at all levels, local business and industry, education, social services, the faith community and private citizens all play an incredibly important role in our ability to serve the this population. Without their support there would be no Turning Point. We sincerely appreciate their efforts.
Turning Point has positioned itself as a leader in Ohio in providing employment training and reentry services to public assistance recipients, at-risk youth and ex-offenders. Our model program has been visited and studied by representatives from agencies all over the state. Their initial reaction is always one of awe and respect for what we are doing in our community. Everyone who visits us wants a Turning Point in their community.
However, we warn all of our guests that their ability to duplicate our program successfully is predicated on one very key component: Support from the local community and a desire to give back to the community.
In recent years, Turning Point has brought more than $1.2 million in grant funds to our community, creating jobs and creating opportunity. We have generated over $2.8 million in earned revenue that has resulted in over $4 million in educational stipends paid out to participants. Our participants spend their earnings in our community in the form of housing, child care, food, gasoline, clothing, automobiles and household expenses.
Since 2007, our participants have paid more than $55,000 in child support and court fines and fees, not counting community services hours worked. Nearly 100 people have earned their GED at Turning Point. Last year alone, we provided 98,869 hours of training and assistance to over 500 unduplicated persons and many of our graduates obtained jobs despite the local economy.
It is time for Turning Point to move from being the best kept secret in the area to a highly visible community asset. Your assistance in earning a fruit orchard from Edy’s Fruit Bars and the Fruit Tree Foundation will help put us on the map!
Remember, Register, Vote, Vote Every Day, Get the Word out to Family and Friends, then watch our numbers rise in the vote count. We sincerely hope you will help us to earn that orchard for our community.[[In-content Ad]]