Another Bountiful Year in 2016
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HELPING PEOPLE HELP THEMSELVES SPRING 2017 FROM A NEW BATTERY TO A NEW HOME …THROUGH A RANDOM ACT OF KINDNESS uring the first week of January, With the truck being their only DMedford experienced the worst source of warmth and snowstorm and hard freezing transportation, his girlfriend temperatures since 1919. Disabled suggested he contact the ACCESS assistance. Although Dave was veteran Derell and his girlfriend, Support Services for Veterans unable to instantly house the couple, Jen, had been living in and out of Families (SSVF) Program. This is as a veteran himself, he felt it was motel rooms for over nine months. where they connected with ACCESS imperative he pursue all possible When the coldest months of the Community Support Specialist Dave resources to help them. year hit, they found themselves Fulton. Derell had already been in “It is truly important to me that the living out of his truck. To make touch with St. Vincent de Paul and community is able to see how easy it matters worse, the battery went out Rogue Valley Veterans & is to help a veteran or anyone in in his truck, and Derell could not Community Outreach (RVVCO) for need,” says Dave. afford a new one. housing, but he needed immediate Continues on page 5 HIGHLIGHTS Another Bountiful THIS ISSUE • Notes from Executive Year in 2016 Director he Food Share Gardens continue to • New Coordinator for Rogue Texemplify the extraordinary bounty Valley Food System Network that can grow out of many individual seeds • Medical Equipment Helps of kindness. In 2016, garden managers, Live with Dignity supervisors, and helpers maintained four • Save the Date: Stamp Out beautiful gardens, contributing over 2,300 Hunger Food Drive hours of their labor and love to grow 29,511 • ACCESS Down Payment pounds of organic produce for our Food Share Pantries. Assistance Programs We benefited from an additional 396 hours of help from the Mormon • Senior Shoebox Wrap Up Elders, AT&T/Direct TV employees, Amy’s Kitchen employees, Rogue Adventist Academy students, UTurn4Christ participants, Marriott Towne • Food Share Coordinator Place Suite employees, North Medford Campus Life youth, Regence Passes Pitchfork employees, Rogue Credit Union employees, and St. Mary’s School • ACCESS Seeking New students. We are inspired by the enthusiasm of our volunteers and are Garden Sites deeply grateful to everyone willing to get their hands dirty this past year! • Thanks to our Community The gardens also flourished thanks to generous donations of materials and • Donor List supplies from Brad Youngs Construction, Nan King, Mr. and Mrs. Ed • Calendar Demmer, Rogue Compost, WalMart, and Chris Cline. Thank you, all. STAFF Executive Director Pamela Norr Development Director Notes from the Pam Slater (541) 690-3974 Housing Director Executive Director Joe Vollmar erving as ACCESS’s new gratitude and awe at being working collaboratively with (541) 618-4017 Sleader has been both an part of this wonderful cause. our community partners, Nutrition Programs Director honor and opportunity. It I also see an opportunity to engaging in dialogue on how Philip Yates is an honor to be able to make ACCESS an employer of to best offer services, and (541) 774-4320 thank our donors, who have choice for our team members advocating at the state and Operations/HR Director continually shown support federal levels to ensure we Carlea Langston by ensuring our culture is the for the community we serve. I have the necessary funding to (541) 618-4010 best it can be. We strive to am moved by their expression offer the best possible care to of kindness through such efficiently offer services within Support Services Director this region. David Mulig strong financial support of our mission, helping as many (541) 774-4313 the organization. We could people in our community I look forward to partnering not do what we do without as possible. I welcome this with YOU to make all of this that generosity and ongoing opportunity to make a happen. Please call me at BOARD of commitment to people in need. difference going forward and (541) 779-6691 if you want to DIRECTORS to help run this organization It has also been an honor help make a difference in the effectively. Together, we aim Tim Alford, Chair to collaborate with and lives of those we serve. I look to be the best stewards of our Julie Brown, Chair Elect get to know the amazing forward to talking with you! grants and donors’ generous ACCESS team and engaged J.R. Wheeler, Vice Chair gifts. board members, all of whom Cathie Davis, Past Chair work together to help those As we envision the future of Eric Foster, we serve. I am filled with ACCESS, we look forward to ACCESS Executive Director Secretary/Treasurer Jonathan Bilden Daniel Bunn Isis Contreras-Harrison FOOD SYSTEM Tim Johnson PARTNERSHIP APPOINTS Dennis Richardson Grady Singletary NEW COORDINATOR Kathy Sperle he Rogue Valley Food System Josephine County John Watt TNetwork (RVFSN) has appointed food pantries. Hank Williams Regan Emmons as its new coordinator. Prior to making This group comprises local individuals, the Rogue Valley her new home, Regan organizations, and businesses in Jackson SPECIAL spent seven years performing food ADVISORY BOARD and Josephine Counties who collaborate to strengthen our regional food system. system work in Flagstaff, Arizona. She Kathy Beckett ACCESS has been the fiscal sponsor and obtained a master’s degree at Northern Les Cracraft a major partner in the network since its Arizona University, where she explored Sam Davis formation in 2013. the economics of affordable backyard David Dotterrer gardening. Regan also managed a Lyn Hennion Regan’s responsibilities include connecting with partners and community Community Supported Agriculture Craig Morris members throughout the Rogue Valley. project; conducted research on farmers Sherm Olsrud She is also involved in ACCESS Nutrition and ranches; implemented school garden Wanda Olsrud programs such as the Cooking Skills education and planning; and worked for Mary Smart program and Mobile Healthy Food a variety of other volunteer organizations Rep. Greg Walden Pantry. Regan is already working with the interested in making sure healthy food Senator Ron Wyden Josephine County Food Bank to establish was available to the whole community. a new Cooking Skills program for the Welcome, Regan! 2 MEDICAL EQUIPMENT HELPS WOMAN LIVE LIFE WITH DIGNITY few years ago, local resident Margaret Dials ACCESS was able to loan Edna a wheelchair, Arealized her mother-in-Law, Edna Hauser, shower chair, and commode. Edna was thankful was beginning to experience physical problems. In to learn she could use the equipment as long as her mid-eighties at the time, Edna suffered from necessary—for FREE! A complicated situation rheumatoid arthritis, which rapidly worsened turned into a positive experience. and made daily activities difficult. She “It made the end of her life easier for the was highly independent and did not entire family. We returned the equipment want help, nor could she afford to ACCESS, plus donated more after she medical equipment. Unfortunately, eventually had to go through hospice,” Edna started falling regularly, and Margaret notes. she would have to wait until her family could drive from Gold Hill If you or a loved one is in need of to her Medford home to help her. medical equipment or would like to donate durable medical equipment (see An optimistic woman, Edna was our website for current list), please call not about to give up! Margaret knew (541) 779-6691, ext. 305. Cash donations Edna needed medical equipment but are also extremely helpful for supplementing faced the challenge of convincing Edna needs and maintaining the equipment. to accept it. Margaret explains, “Hospice would normally order the items my mother-in-law needed, but she wasn’t ready for hospice yet.” As a member of Soroptimist International of North Valley, Margaret has been attending meetings at the Olsrud Family Nutrition Building at ACCESS for over eleven years. She recalled hearing about our free Medical Equipment Program, which got her thinking about another way to help her mother-in-law. “When I called ACCESS’s Medical Equipment office, the process was very simple,” Margaret says. “I explained the situation and provided my contact information. The employee was very friendly and knowledgeable. He knew what we needed before we did!” THE MEDICAL EQUIPMENT PROGRAM is open Monday through Friday from noon to 4 pm. ACCESS is located at 3630 Aviation Way in Medford (behind Costco). 3 ACCESS Down Payment Assistance Helps New Homeowners ast year, ACCESS administered funding to thirty-six first-time L homebuyers to be used toward the purchase of their homes—at a total of over $260,000 in funding! This could not have occurred without our generous donors and their programs, which include: Wells Fargo: Welcome Home Down Payment Assistance Program “Supporting the Welcome Home Down Payment Assistance Program Oregon Association of Realtors/Rogue Valley allows Wells Fargo to support and Association of Realtors: HOME Foundation First-Time Homebuyers Assistance Program give back to our community, the community that my team members Oregon Housing and Community Services live and work in. This assistance Homeownership Down Payment Assistance Program program allows people to purchase All grants are used toward down payment and closing costs. One a home when they might otherwise grateful recipient shares, “Buying this home ranks as one of my life’s biggest be unable to do so. I treasure the challenges, and I could not have done it without ACCESS. I would not be awesome relationship that we have where I am today—in this warm and comfortable home—were it not for the support and hard work of many individuals who helped me along my built with ACCESS and the impact path to homeownership.