Olin, IA

For many senior citizens, a hot meal and interaction with their peers can mean the difference in living longer in their home and community.   So an Olin Horizons participant who is a member with the Area Agency on Aging investigated the possibility of providing a meals program in Olin.  They are starting with monthly meals and had 50 at their meal in May.  Personal phone calls were made to potential participants and the attendance increased to 60 in June.  The plan is to continue the meals two times each month and provide occasional programs for participants.  

When flood waters rushed into Olin in June, the community knew they would need help. Over 100 homes were affected with either flood water, water in their basement or sewer back up.  Twenty-one homes had water on their first floor and will not be occupied going forward.  One home’s foundation gave way.  The flood has temporarily displaced approximately 59 people.  As sewage flowed into the streets, the city needed assistance to pump out the sewer lines and save homes and businesses in the community from major damage.  The city owns only one pump so they quickly contacted the Jones County Emergency Management Coordinator and Borst Brothers Construction for additional pumps which arrived within 2-3 days.  These pumps brought needed relief to the overflowing sewers.  Because of the health risks from contaminated water, Olin asked Community Health of Jones County to provide tetanus shots in the community.  Free shots were provided to many residents.  Neighboring communities reached out to Olin and donated much needed cleaning supplies.  Many joined in the sandbagging efforts, clean-up, and even directed traffic when roads were closed.  A group of 26 students and leaders from Ohio are spending a week assisting with clean up which has been a great help to residents impacted by the flooding.  Another group of 15 will be coming from the city of Maquoketa in a neighboring county to provide more assistance.  A group of community members, mostly from the churches in town, have been providing supper meals for 12 days and will continue to do so for many more days.  This has been a great partnership between churches and provided much needed sustenance for the volunteers. 

Horizons is partnering with the Olin School and Community Foundation to receive Northwest Area Foundation funding to address issues of poverty in the community.  With similar goals to meet the needs of the community, the partnership is a “good fit” for both organizations.  One of the Horizons action plans includes providing students from the school an opportunity to participate in career-focused, college credit courses with emphasis on academic and technical preparation to provide relevant skills for the workforce.   Representatives from both groups have met together and worked out a mutual agreement for management of the funds.  They look forward to working together to continue to make Olin a great place to live for all. 

There was a need recently in the Olin Community.  One member of the community had a medical problem requiring the amputation of part of her leg with the possibility of having her other foot removed at yet a later date.  The steps up to her home would require her to use crutches instead of her wheelchair to get in and out of the house.  That was the problem.  It was determined that a ramp would be very beneficial to her.  It was at this time that several members of the Olin Community, including Horizons participants, came together and decided to help out.  As a result of the assistance and connections through the Lions’ Club to volunteers from two neighboring communities, who knew the requirements needed in building a ramp and had the expertise to guide the construction, the effort was a success.  In addition, the local Lion’s Club donated $250 for materials.  The ramp was built and members of the Olin Community had a learning experience while lending a helping hand.  At a later date plans are being made to have a community benefit for this family.  

Olin was awarded $1,000 to be used to purchase flowers and perennials for the newly created Unity Park.  LeadershipPlenty® graduate, Cindy Borst, wrote an essay to the Iowa Today magazine with only three days notice before the end of the contest to apply for the funding.   In the essay she emphasized the involvement of many volunteers of all ages and income levels in creating the park for use by everyone in the community.  The newly purchased flowers were planted by the local Girl Scout troop who also earned their community service badges for their involvement.  Pre-K and kindergarten students planted the boxes they designed.  Adults and the community youth group planted the city boxes and helped with other park projects.  A ribbon cutting ceremony for the new park was held on May 26^th.   Source: Elsa Hirl

The recently dedicated unity park is reaching out to all residents of Olin in new and exciting ways.  Entertainment is being provided throughout the summer at no cost to the community.  Plans include free  entertainment on Sundays and free movies.  A communication area is being developed where our community can post job opportunities, items for sale, and a list of free help information in Jones County. The park will be a great place for fund raisers for people in need such as for medical bills and other hardships. The park funds will provide two $250.00 scholarships each year for our graduating students.  Scholarship awards will be based on volunteerism. This will encourage our young adults to help people in need. Also our youth groups will keep selling memory bricks as a continuous fundraiser. All these things help in their own way without causing any prejudice or pride issues.

During Leadership Plenty® training, a new partnership was formed with Community Partnerships for Protecting Children (CPPC). A presentation was given to the group explaining what CPPC does and their projected outcomes. The goal of CPPC is to create an awareness of child abuse, implement prevention and education for families, and provide access to support. Olin newly trained leaders were invited to create an Olin team of CPPC. Potential team members will also be represented on a county CPPC steering committee.

Another wonderful outcome was the distribution of a Human Services Directory from CPPC. The directory lists names and phone numbers for services including counseling, shelters, food banks, senior citizen services, and many other Human Services agencies for young parents to adolescents to Social Security Administration. Some Horizon members have taken copies of the directory to pass to many families who could benefit from this. The directory was recently reprinted and copies will be distributed to all households in Olin through the O-Town Times community newsletter. In some cases, a family in poverty needs a little information to assist them in getting out of their situation. Providing access to help from the privacy of their own homes can be very beneficial. Helping children and adults to help themselves can be educational as well as improve their self esteem.