Program helps older adults find work

Rick Morrison's idea of retirement means taking classes and eventually starting a new career.




It's a path many people older than 50 are taking. Either by choice or by force, they've ended one professional chapter in their lives, but they're either unable or unwilling to just kick back on a Florida beach.

For many such as Morrison, the first step in starting a new life after retirement means going back to school.

Ohio campuses report that the older than-50 student population has increased, so colleges have had to adapt to the changing demographics.

On Thursday, Morrison sat on a bench outside Zane State College in Zanesville, enjoying the warm weather. Morrison, 58, of New Concord, retired from the banking industry several years ago, but not working isn't an option.

Read more in the Chillicothe Gazette.

Working to enrich Pike County

Dec. 11, 2011, Chillicothe Gazette

By Jessica Alaimo

CentralOhio.com

PIKETON — When Andrea McDaniel gets home after a long day at the Pike County Career Technology Center, she sends her four kids to their rooms and enjoys 15 minutes of quiet as she switches roles from student to single mom.

There’s not a lot of quiet in her life.

McDaniel, 29, is ambitious, and doesn’t want her kids to grow up on public assistance the same way she did. These ambitions were delayed by a rough marriage, but now being on welfare allows her to go to school.

“I definitely want to at least go for my LPN, but I don’t know if I’m going to be satisfied with that,” she said.

But the Piketon woman also is hesitant. “Sometimes I think, gosh, even if I do have a GED, there’s no jobs here, so does it matter?”

Pike County has the highest unemployment rate in Ohio, now at 15 percent. It’s a Catch-22 for the career center, which trains people for jobs that might not come.

At Chillicothe food bank, demand keeps increasing

Dec. 4, 2011, Chillicothe Gazette

By Jessica Alaimo

CentralOhio.com

CHILLICOTHE — Space is cramped at the Seventh-day Adventist Church. There are two adjoining rooms, both about the size of a doctor’s office examination room, that hold the church’s clothing and food bank. There’s no waiting room.

Clients line the perimeter of the clothing room, some standing, some sitting cross-legged on the floor, waiting for their turn to go into the food bank.

When their names were called, the clients would go into the other small room with two volunteers.

Together they would pick food off the shelves — seldom more than an arm’s length away, and place it in a box sitting on a table in the middle of the room.

School an oasis for kids who are poor

Dec. 4, 2011, Chillicothe Gazette

By Jessica Alaimo

CentralOhio.com

CHILLICOTHE — There’s not much in the Huntington Local School District except farm land and residential area, so the district’s three buildings are more than just educational centers. They’re the hub of the community.

As the economy deteriorated, the schools have taken on a new role: social service agency.

When some students attend school, Superintendent Jerry Mowery said, it might be the only good part of their day. It might be the only place they feel safe. It might be the only time during the day they eat a balanced meal.

Food for hungry, help for jobless

Dec. 4, 2011, Chillicothe Gazette

By Jessica Alaimo

CentralOhio.com

CHILLICOTHE — There wasn’t a long wait to get a free lunch at the Carver Community Center, but after one long folding table was vacated, another group or family was ready to sit down.

On a sweltering summer day, a steady stream of people came through for a smoked sausage sandwich, a vegetable medley and peaches from a can. As the kitchen opened, head cook Cheryl Hitchens just had finished preparing 300 meals to send out to area summer youth programs.

As she showed off the kitchen, a volunteer interrupted. One of the schools needed five more.

The demand just grows, Hitchens said. On average, the center will serve about 3,000 meals each month to low-income people.

In western Pike County, people do what it takes

Dec. 4, 2011, Chillicothe Gazette

Story by Jessica Alaimo and photos by Heather Cory and Frank Robertson

CentralOhio.com

Brock Brewster’s truck dominated the single-lane road in western Pike County and rumbled over an extension cord.

This extension cord has been strung across this Latham road for two years. It powers the lights of a white-and-brown trailer, using the electricity from a home across the road. It’s the only source of electricity for the trailer’s owner, who said she uses it to power her lights. She uses a wood stove to stay warm.

Her property and her sister’s across the road are cluttered with stuff, but it is packed up and placed under blue tarps. There’s an order to the chaos, with items appearing sorted and walkways clear. Four big dogs and a puppy run around loose outside. “I have severe arthritis, which is why this place is such a mess,” said the owner, who wouldn’t give her name.

“I’ve driven over that extension cord a hundred times,” said Brewster, the principal at Western Local High School. “Those people probably don’t think a thing about running their home with an extension cord. ... They’re survivors. They get up every day and do what they’ve got to do.”

Surviving is tough in Pike County. The county has the state’s highest unemployment and poverty rates. Earlier this year, cabinet-maker Masco closed, putting 1,200 people out of work. The uranium enrichment plant that once held hope for 2,000 new jobs instead issued a notice that 450 pink slips might be coming.

Although the going is tough, nobody seems to be going anywhere.

“I was born here, my dad lived here, and I guess this is where I’ll die,” said the trailer owner. “I try to stay here in my own place, and let other people stay in theirs.”

Hey kids: Want a shorter school year?

Apr. 28, 2011, Chillicothe Gazette

By Jessica Alaimo

CentralOhio.com

One lawmaker wants to change Ohio’s school year so the state’s amusement parks, resorts and tourist attractions can flourish from Memorial Day to Labor Day.

Rep. Bill Hayes, a Licking County Republican, is sponsoring a bill that would force Ohio’s schools to only operate after Labor Day and before Memorial Day.

Students would spend the same amount of time in the classroom, but Hayes wants to change how it is measured. Instead of requiring students to be in school for 182 days, he wants to require elementary students to be in school for at least 960 hours, and middle and high school students to be in school for 1,050 or more hours.

To meet the hours requirement, schools could schedule their days however they see fit — with shorter days and shorter breaks, or longer days with traditional breaks.

Gannett honors work of Ohio media group, Gazette

Apr. 17, 2011, Chillicothe Gazette

The Media Network of Central Ohio and the Chillicothe Gazette won three Best of Gannett honors for 2010, including national first-place honors in two of eight categories, the Gannett Co. announced this week.

MNCO, which includes nine other daily newspapers and websites, won first-place honors in digital journalism for its continuing online and mobile coverage of breaking weather stories and high school sports scores using live feeds of updated information at ChillicotheGazette.com/storms and Chillicothe Gazette.com/hss.

“These approaches clearly have helped Central Ohio residents stay informed about severe weather and get the latest on high schools sports,” judges wrote.

Enterprise and Data Reporter Russ Zimmer also won the top honor for beat reporting for database reporting on topics such as an analysis of anticipated tax increases, progress on bridge inspections in the state and ticketing trends on speeders driving 100 mph or more.

“It is clear that Russ Zimmer knows how to use database work to bring readers and online users extensive information on various topics,” judges wrote. “His stories were clearly written, understandable, interesting and informative.”

MNCO placed second in the Public Service and Watchdog Journalism category for articles examining the pension systems in local governments and school districts in Ohio. The systems’ policies result in some public employers paying all or most of their employees’ retirement contributions, a practice that pads employees’ pensions at taxpayers’ expense. Reporters from all 10 MNCO sites, including the Gazette, contributed to the project researched by Enterprise and Data Reporter Jessica Alaimo.

“The Central Ohio newspapers did a terrific job of taking a complex pension issue and showing how taxpayers were footing extra dollars, in many cases resulting in no retirement contribution payments by employers,” the judges wrote. “The articles were strengthened by helpful graphics and excellent localization and online supplements.”

MNCO’s honors were in Division III for Gannett’s smaller community sites. The contest is judged by non-Gannett editors and journalists.

Separately, MNCO Online and Audience Development Editor Len LaCara, who played a key role in all of the Best of Gannett honors, was recognized recently as a Gannett News MVP for his work in 2010, including assisting in the development of new websites. LaCara supervises Zimmer’s and Alaimo’s work, along with content on MNCO’s Web sites.

Experts: Union law fight will influence ’11, ’12 races

Apr. 3, 2011, Chillicothe Gazette

BY JESSICA ALAIMO

CentralOhio.com

Senate Bill 5 could be more than a powerful piece of policy. It could turn into a jackhammer that might shake up Ohio’s entire political landscape come the 2012 presidential election, experts said.

Gov. John Kasich signed legislation on Thursday that dramatically curtails collective bargaining rights for public employees.

The bill passed the Legislature amid a crowd of jeering union supporters, and the political battle that already had heated up reached a boiling point. Opponents vowed to take their protests to a referendum campaign. Supporters vowed to fight them.

Most services face trims in attempt to curtail $8 billion deficit

Mar. 16, 2011, Chillicothe Gazette

BY JESSICA ALAIMO

CentralOhio.com

In some cases, Gov. John Kasich used a steak knife, in others, a battle ax, but most state services face at least a twinge of pain under the administration’s proposed 2012 budget.

Many of these are small cuts to services and reimbursement programs.

These cuts are part of an effort to mend an $8 billion budget gap. Kasich unveiled his budget Tuesday, which included a host of cuts and structural changes. These cuts are all included in an 80-page segment of the budget titled “The Savings Book.”

In Ohio, Dems were doomed

Nov. 7, 2010, Chillicothe Gazette

BY JESSICA ALAIMO

CentralOhio.com

On one of the first chilly nights of fall, about 100 people filled a Coshocton auditorium for three hours of candidate speeches.

They might have had different priorities, but they all were fed up with the same two things: politics and politicians.

One of the targets that October night was U.S. Rep. Zack Space, D-Dover, even though he’s never quite fit the bill of the typical polished politician.

He wore jeans with his sports coat, never quite mastered the art of the 30-second sound bite and when he disagreed with his party leaders, he always was unabashed about it.

The two-term incumbent was asked repeatedly that night about policies passed during the Obama administration’s infancy. Some he agreed with. Some he didn’t. Look, he said, shaking his head,

“I have made just about everybody mad in the past two years. It’s unfortunate, but that’s what happens to moderates in Congress.”

On Election Day, the conservative-leaning district voted Space out of office despite his votes against the final health care bill and Obama’s budget and Space’s coveted National Rifle Association endorsement. He lost to state Sen. Bob Gibbs, R-Lakeville, by 14 points.

The same wrath was felt by Democrats on all levels.

Space wants national referendum on trade deals

Sept. 30, 2010, Chillicothe Gazette

BY JESSICA ALAIMO

CentralOhio.com

U.S. Rep. Zack Space, D-Dover, has waged a war against free-trade deals, blaming them for the mass exodus of Ohio jobs in recent years.

On Wednesday, Space took his campaign to the next level, submitting legislation that even he acknowledged as extreme. Before any new trade deal passes, Space said, there should be a national, up-or-down referendum.

Daniel Chow, a law professor at Ohio State University, laughed when he heard Space’s proposal.