Breaking News
Local News

Community Resource Fair will bring services together

By Brett Dunlap 3 min read

MARIETTA - People will be able to learn about services provided by a number of community organizations on Sunday during GoPacks’ annual Community Resource Fair.

The event is scheduled for 1-3 p.m. Sunday at the Lafayette Hotel in Marietta.

"We have 35 organizations who have registered to participate," GoPacks Executive Director Heather Warner said, adding a few more might sign up by the end of the week.

The majority of the event will be taking place in the Grand Ballroom with a few things just outside.

Organizations from across the Mid-Ohio Valley will be present to share information on the programs they offer. There will also be a free farmer's market, books, car seat checks, free bike helmets, student physicals and more.

"The Marietta-Belpre Health Department will be doing free physicals for students in sports, band or anything for school, the Health Department can do that," Warner said.

The physicals will take place in a separate room to give people privacy, she said.

There will be free books given out to both kids and adults.

"There will be so many different resources for things for families and individuals," Warner said.

Marietta City Schools will be doing Infinite Campus checks online to make sure parents can access the online system to monitor students’ progress.

"They will be there to make sure it is up and running," Warner said. "If you have had any trouble, been locked out, need a new password or whatever.”

Those who participate and those who stop by to confirm everything is working will be entered into a drawing to win a season pass to all Marietta City Schools athletics events, she said.

GoPacks is a nonprofit organization that deals with food insecurity by making sure students have access to nutritious food and works with students and their families to increase their resources through partnering with other organizations.

The Community Resource Fair is open to everyone, from both sides of the river, Warner said.

"There will be tables and tables full of good information with a lot of people there willing to help and point people in the right direction,” she said. "You don't have to have kids to come out to it. You can be any age. There is something for everyone."

Some of the groups signed up to participate in the event are Bridges to Wellness, Washington Morgan Community Action Head Start and Early Head Start, Long Term Care Ombudsman, Washington/Morgan Community Action WIC, Buckeye Hills Regional Council, Washington County Family & Children First, the Washington Morgan Community Action Program, Washington County Department of Job and Family Services Prevention, Southeastern Ohio Counseling Center, Community Resource Center, House of Hope of Washington County, UnPuzzled Parents Connect, COAD4Kids, CareSource, Washington County Health Department, House of Hope, Humana Healthy Horizons in Ohio, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, American Red Cross, Washington State College of Ohio, Building Bridges to Careers, Southeastern Ohio Center for Independent Living, Marietta College, Integrated Services/OhioRISE, Memorial Health System, Goodwill Inc. Workforce Training and Development, Suicide Awareness Alliance of Washington County, Southeast Ohio Youth Mentoring, Charlie Health, Marietta-Belpre Health Department, GoPacks, Marietta City Schools and Hopewell REACH.

"This is a great way to get people involved to see what the community has or offers,” Warner said. "You don't know what you can use if you don't know it even exists."

To learn more about GoPacks go to GoPacks.org.

The event is sponsored by The Marietta Times.

Starting at /week.