ASHLAND – Hundreds of community members came together Thursday to help Ashland residents for the 23rd United Way of Ashland County Kay Conrad Day of Caring.“I think it’s important to show that there are people in this community that are here for others, just to show that we support those who need a little more assistance,” Washock said. “There’s a lot of great things going on in Ashland.”
A team from Ashland, Inc., was raking leaves, cleaning windows and moving some outdoor furniture on Smith Road. Colin Myers, who was helping for the second year, said he appreciated that his company gave him and his co-workers the chance to give back to the community through the Day of Caring.
Twenty-seven teams made up of 234 volunteers from a variety of Ashland businesses and organizations fanned out across Ashland County to perform a variety of tasks for 78 elderly and disabled residents who needed help with raking, washing windows, trimming bushes and other assorted chores to prepare for winter.
Before starting their work, the volunteers gathered at Jack’s Place at Trinity Lutheran Church for lunch and to gather their supplies.
The day is named in honor of the late Kay Conrad who passed away in 2010 and founded the day of service in 1994 when she was the head of the Ashland United Way.
“Kay valued volunteering and built that into everything she did with the United Way of Ashland County. She wanted to build a day that was just about volunteering and making our community better,” said Michelle Vanderzyden, president of the United Way board.
Kay’s husband, Gordon, thanked those in attendance Thursday for carrying on the tradition his wife started for the community she came to call home. “Kay was not a native Ashlander but she poured her heart and soul into this community,” Gordon said. Although dark clouds filled the skies, Gordon told the volunteers to not be worried about the weather. “I think she (Kay) said once, ‘Don’t worry about the weather. When you’re helping people, it never rains,” he told the gathered volunteers.
Besides a number of homes in Ashland, volunteers also pitched in at residences in Savannah, Loudonville, Perysville, Jeromesville, Nova, Sullivan and Greenwich.
On West Walnut Street, a team from the Kiwanis helped clean up three homes. Among those on the Kiwanis team was Jennifer Washock who said this was her first year taking part in the Day of Caring.
“I think it’s important to show that there are people in this community that are here for others, just to show that we support those who need a little more assistance,” Washock said. “There’s a lot of great things going on in Ashland.”
A team from Ashland, Inc., was raking leaves, cleaning windows and moving some outdoor furniture on Smith Road. Colin Myers, who was helping for the second year, said he appreciated that his company gave him and his co-workers the chance to give back to the community through the Day of Caring.
“It’s a chance to do something nice for people who can’t do it all on their own,” Myers said.
Fellow Ashland, Inc., employee Amanda Lipscomb was also thankful for the chance to take part Thursday.
“It’s just good to help the community,” she said.
Ashland firefighters and other volunteers also installed smoke detectors at 50 of the residences that requested them.
Article: Tim Busbey – Ashland/Richland Source
