Greeting voters
WASCO clients trained as Election Day volunteers
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Waiting until Election Day to place your votes?
Those headed to a Marietta poll place may be greeted with more than just the routine check-in verifying your address and picking up a ballot.
Voters are instead likely to meet the duo Jacob Haines and Preston Hoff, or a couple of their friends greeting at the door, handing out stickers or helping around the polls Nov. 6.
“I like to help and support,” said Haines, 33, of Lowell, on Monday.
Haines is one of six WASCO, Inc. and Ewing School clients planning to volunteer with the Washington County Board of Elections for the election.
“We got the idea when we went to our summer conference and learned that another county with a similar set-up to WASCO and Ewing were having them volunteer,” explained Washington County Board of Elections Director Mandy Amos. “We thought maybe we could have them as volunteers too and they could greet people and show them around from when you check in to where you pick up your ballot, or they could hand out stickers, too.”
The organizations serve adults with disabilities through employment opportunities, training, counseling and activities in the area, including managing the Marietta Harbor, cleaning the Armory and working in the Marietta College dining hall.
Haines and his best friend Preston Hoff, 39, of Oak Grove, are already great partners in crime and on Monday they were working on an assembly line at WASCO, Inc. stuffing bags for Thermo Fisher Scientific and sealing them with detailed stickers.
“Jacob is like a brother,” said Hoff. “I know a lot of his family and I can pick on him, too.”
The two laughed as they worked.
“Here I help put things together,” added Haines, before adding another sticker to seal a bag.
The pair is excited to hand out stickers, a job they’re already well-versed in.
“But also make new friends,” said Haines, grinning from ear to ear. “I like (meeting) new people.”
Rachelle Flesher, a direct support professional at WASCO, Inc., said being included in Election Day will do more than just place smiles on the faces of voters.
“It’s good to get out into the community and interact with people,” she said of her clients. “It’s great to be integrated with the community.”
And with additional registered voters headed to the Washington County Fairgrounds this year, the more smiles and direction, the better, said Amos.
“Those are fairly big locations,” she said, noting the First Church of the Nazarene, which previously only had three Marietta precincts 1A, 1B and 3A, will also welcome Fearing Township residents to vote this year. “We’ve never had an election where we’ve added precincts before so we’re going off of 2010’s gubernatorial voter turnout to make sure we’re prepared.”
Amos said the 51.29 percent of registered voters in Washington County showed up at the polls or voted by absentee ballot in the 2010 November election.
That would mean at the First Church of the Nazarene could see around 1,810 voters on Nov. 6, of the 3,600 registered.
The Knights of Columbus hall may expect approximately 1,408 voters from Harmar, Harmar Hill and Oak Grove, of the 2,800 registered.
And the Washington County Fairgrounds, with the addition of Devola residents to Marietta’s remaining precincts, may see around 3,268 voters of the 6,500 registered.
But Haines said he isn’t worried about the extra people.
“I like to help and make people happy,” he said before getting back to work with his friend Hoff.