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Your kindness will last decade

In my 13 years as president and CEO of the Foundation for Appalachian Ohio, I have repeatedly witnessed the unyielding kindness of the people of Appalachian Ohio. We care deeply about others, and when asked to help, we step forward. Amid the challenges we face today, it is easy to feel powerless. However, there is one simple way we can all make a difference now and that’s by completing the 2020 Census. The census will determine federal funding, elected representation, and how resources are allocated to our communities for the next 10 years. And right now, all but four of Appalachian ...

Ohio gas, oil essential to economy

It may seem difficult to look beyond pandemic-related economic challenges to spot the opportunity for growth in the Valley. However, as our communities move forward toward recovery, and begin to move past a year of immense, unpredictable challenges, there is something that brings us hope: natural gas and its connection to Ohio manufacturing. It’s against the backdrop of this “new normal” that the Youngstown / Warren Regional Chamber last week focused our Salute To Business keynote address on the opportunity to leverage Ohio’s natural gas and oil production for a manufacturing ...

Denying drug-cost assistance hurts patients

In October 2018, I received a bill for $2,326.24 for an MRI. MRIs are a regular test for multiple sclerosis patients like me and my mother to help track the status and any progression of our disease. I thought the bill must have been a mistake. I had a statement from my health insurer showing I had already met my deductible for the year. I could not understand why I was being billed this large amount when I always meet my deductible with the cost of my monthly prescription medications. My insurance company informed me that the financial assistance I had received from my drug company ...

Liberty story needs nuance and empathy

Last week the Trumbull County Coroner released the autopsy finding that a Liberty Township firefighter and paramedic died of “acute fentynal toxicity.” And, again, the over-wrought story, high on spectacle and short on empathy, has been plastered across Mahoning Valley news. The story starts with the death of my brother, John Beard. My family has been rocked by John’s death, and we have been caught in the upheaval at the fire department. It’s time that readers hear a more nuanced narrative that approaches what happened to John and his colleagues from a human and public health ...

Second Harvest receives national recognition

Many people across the Mahoning Valley understand the wonderful work being done by Second Harvest Food Bank. Second Harvest’s staff and 153 member agencies and programs work tirelessly every day in an effort to make food accessible to all people in Mahoning, Trumbull and Columbiana counties. It’s nice when our neighbors recognize the good work being done by local people for local people. But it’s even nicer when someone outside our community takes notice. That’s exactly what happened recently when Second Harvest Food Bank was honored as one of the top charities nationwide by ...

Saving family dairy farms benefits all of us

My day-to-day work with family dairy farmers keeps me in touch with some of the finest people you can imagine. They produce wholesome food and provide social benefits we all enjoy. Family dairy farms are good for rural economies, good for food security and good for the environment. But all of this is in danger of being lost forever. Family farmers have been enduring an economic pandemic for decades. Poor prices and lack of markets have had us measuring dairy losses in farms per day long before COVID-19 was in the news. The get-big-or-get-out perspective is ushering in a system in which ...