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A Veteran’s Reflection
Join us as we celebrate Veterans Day with our guest blogger and U.S. Navy veteran Keith Kassidy. He reflects on his service and homecoming.
You Have Possibilities
Forward Wayne County’s Employability Coalition kicked off their Possibilities career awareness campaign last week. It’s been a labor of love and hard work. Lots of hard work. It has been a sold 18 months of ups and downs, but many things have remained the same...
The Arts And Youth
To continue our focus on Arts and Culture, we invited Monica Koechlein, Executive Director of the Richmond Symphony Orchestra, to share her thoughts on arts and youth. Here is her take on the subject: It happens all the time. I'm asked what makes Wayne County so...
Why Art Matters
Shaun Dingwerth, Executive Director of the Richmond Art Museum recently spoke at the Chamber’s State of the Community event on the arts. It was so good, we asked to reprint his thoughts as we discuss another of our focus areas (Arts and Culture) this month. He shares:...
What’s going on Wayne County?
Occasionally someone will say something that stops you in your tracks. Sometimes it’s profound and sometimes it’s not. But it will get you thinking. And then you start talking about it with others. Eventually, you will get to “what’s going on?” I’ll tell you what...
More Than Words: United Way Of Whitewater Valley
As we focus on employability this month, Forward Wayne County is excited to learn more about the More Than Words program from our guest blogger the United Way of Whitewater Valley: Have you ever heard someone complain about "kids these days?" How about people being...
If You Want It, Build It
I am exhausted. Since high school I have heard, “there’s nothing to do here,” about one gajillion times regarding Wayne County. And if I am honest, my younger self probably said it every single weekend, but that was back in the day. photo supplied: Roxie Deer Now, I’m...
Small Town, Big Hearts, Just Because
Former Wayne County Commissioner Mary Heyob kicks off our month of “Our Community” and provides some fun insights into our small towns- just because. Did you know there are 22 small towns in Wayne County? You know some of them: Cambridge City, Centerville,...
What Can You Do to Support Early Childhood Development?
Pat Heiny and Nancy Green share insights and tips on working with birth to five populations, and their work with The Early Childhood Coalition: The Early Childhood Coalition for Wayne County Kids brings together any organization or person who works with, supports,...
Environment and Forward Wayne County
Why is the environment one of Forward Wayne County’s focus areas? The short answer is because it’s important. The long answer is that good environmental practices in a community makes it stand out. It is important to attracting and retaining residents. It’s also a key...
Tips for Getting Back on Track
Health and wellness is always a topic, no matter what time of year. Forward Wayne County welcomes Jackie Gettinger, with HYPE Wayne County, who shares some tips for getting yourself back on track. In my experience, health and wellness varies so vastly that people...
Breastfeeding mom decided to be vaccinated for COVID-19
For most of her life, Emily Kraft, M.D., has tried not to be the first – or the last – to do things, but there she was on the opening day of Reid Health’s COVID-19 vaccination clinic, rolling up her sleeve to get the shot. Her position as the health system’s EMS...
Working With Government
Working with government can be tricky, but it doesn’t have to be. It all depends on if you have done your homework and are working with the right group. Wayne County residents play a key role in successful partnerships. Over the course of this month, we have...
Practicing Collaboration
As we focus on working with government this month, our guest blogger Jeff Plasterer, gives the following advice on practicing collaboration. Whether it is working together in small groups; between groups in a community; between communities, or on a regional scale,...
Enabling Change
We have been supporting the Wayne County black community all month. I hope you have had the chance to visit our social media and read our blogs. They have reminded us of our past. But more importantly, they have given us a vision of what our future can be if we are...
Wayne County Connection to Negro Leagues
Our guest blogger, Alex Painter, is helping Forward Wayne County celebrate Wayne County's connections to the Negro Leagues. Here is his article: In early 2019, I embarked on what I thought was going to be a little research project. My goal was to discover and document...