Vials of Life

Erin and I recently made a trip to Highland District Hospital in Hillsboro. Not only was this a new county for us, but the hospital was a brand new Benefit Bank site. We were happy to welcome the hospital into the OBB fold!

They were having a huge health fair offering discounted fees for blood work and other tests. Basically a health sale. And with almost a thousand people showing up, we needed to be there to spread the word about the OBB. That's a lot of word spreading.

But I ended up spending a lot of time talking about something other than the Ohio Benefit Bank. We were next to a Red Cross table and they were handing out vials of life. These vials are a good idea! Basically, you write down all of your allergies, medications, and health risks on a piece of paper, roll it into a vial, and put the vial in the fridge (presumably next to the baking soda). Then put a Vial of Life sticker on the fridge and paramedics won't give you medicine that will, uh, kill you.

that's a big cross to bear

So, great idea, right? But when I say "they were handing out" vials of life, please don't take me literally. No one was at the table. There were just hundreds of tubes on a table without explanation. So when someone in the know explained the program to me, I took to explaining it to the hospital's patients.

So now can I legitimately refer to myself as a volunteer for the Red Cross? Because that's a good way to introduce myself to people.

And, the Survey Says.......!

Navigating online systems can be like a maze at times. OASHF has been asked to survey individuals who are trying to navigate ODJFS' request pin/status change system in order to give feedback to the folks at ODJFS.

We are in search of people who:

1. Receive benefits AND,

2. Want to have easier access to ODJFS through their online reporting change system AND,

3. Have a change to report--things like: address change, income change, household size change etc.

If you know of someone in this situation or have an event where people on public benefits gather, your mobile express team would like to attend. We are also able to assist people who want to sign up and begin the process.

This online resource has great potential. It helps eliminate the need for clients to go down to the county to make these changes in person. ODJFS is interested in hearing how people experience the system and genuinely wants to make it an easy process.

We Need Second Seats to Take Pictures of the Sky

Back in the day, Erin had her passenger take a picture of sunbeams shooting through the clouds in Wilmington, OH.

Well yesterday I took the Mobile Express to Ravenna, OH without Erin and I'd be darned if I wasn't going to make our second seat take a picture of the sky on our trip home to Columbus.

I often get asked by people what it's like driving the Mobile Express. Is it scary? How does it handle in bad weather? I even had a client ask me if it's ever tipped over. (A: No. Not yet.)

The weather on the drive home was one of the few times it was no fun driving the Mobile. I promise you I have enough good sense to pull over if necessary, but driving the van in heavy winds is the only time I ever wish I was in a sleek little sports car. But at least we had that rainbow waiting for us when we drove through the storm.

Alright, Erin. Your turn for pictures of natural phenomena from the passenger seat. Maybe you'll get lucky and get a shot of a tornado!