He's lovin' it

Not-for-profit agencies help resident return to work

11/26/07 Melissa Mayer, Boone County Daily Sun

EDITOR'S NOTE: Following is one in a series of stories profiling the work of United Way agencies in Boone County. The United Way of Central Indiana is currently in the midst of its annual capital campaign - one in which the majority of money raised returns to Boone County agencies, such as Arc Rehab Services. For more information or to donate, contact the United Way locally at (765) 483-0165 or visit www.uwci.org.

BOONE COUNTY - Having a job, reliable transportation, a place to call home; these are all things that many people take for granted. For Kenny French, they are things to be grateful for this year.

The hard work and cooperation of half-dozen different Boone County organizations and businesses have made these things possible for the local resident.

"Kenny is a glowing success story of how the system works, and that different agencies can work together to accomplish something like this," said Ken Graham, an employment consultant with Arc Rehab Services who worked with French to find him a job. "It took an effort of everyone together to make this work."

After losing his job in the Lebanon Business Park, French was evicted from his apartment. He bounced from place to place, occasionally staying with friends and at the Maple View Rest Home until eventually he ended up in a homeless shelter. His life had spiraled out of control and he searched for a job, but his lack of transportation made the task almost impossible.

Faced with the seemingly insurmountable challenge, French found help at his Thorntown church, G.A.P. Ministry Center. The church's minister, Royce Ford, gave him a Baja sc50 scooter so he would be able to travel to and from work.

"He was walking a long ways, and it just seemed like the appropriate thing to do," Ford explained. "We've helped people before when we could."

French found additional help from Arc Rehab Services in Lebanon, a local agency supported largely by the United Way of Central Indiana.

"Ken (Graham) started helping me find work," French said. "They find out what you're capable of doing.

"They're great people; if you do what they tell you, they help you out."

Graham was able to find French a position at the Lebanon McDonald's, where he has worked for nine months. Six months later, he found him another position at the Circle City Veterinary Specialty and Emergency Clinic.

"A job is like a thumb - you need one, but you need fingers to hang on to your job," Graham explained. "Transportation, good housing - each one of those items is a finger. When you have all of those, you have a great grip and can hang on to that job."

The clinic is located just over the county line on 96th Street, which made transportation difficult once again.

Boone County Senior Services had been taking French to work at McDonald's, but because this new position was outside of the county it went against organization's policy to transport him to this new job. After a visit from one of the employees of the clinic, who asked for an exception on French's behalf, the staff at Boone County Senior Services decided to work French's new job into their weekly transportation schedule.

"He wanted to get out on his own, and this was one way he could do that," explained Cindy Elliott, Director of Transportation at Boone County Senior Services. "It's right over the county line, so we decided to go ahead and do it."

French now lives in Memory Hall Apartments and is self-sufficient.

"They finally got me living by myself," French said. "It's just great; I feel a lot better."

French's story is just one of many that good people and United Way agencies in Boone County have made possible. Their continued work and effort give the people like Graham hope in a time of need.

"Everything just dovetailed together," Graham said. "I was happy and excited for Kenny. People just want an opportunity, and Boone County is lucky to have a lot of different businesses that will give people that chance."