To: Daniel Parker, MSP Assistant Division Director, Division of Environmental Health From: Julianne Price, Environmental Specialist Through: Cheryl L. Dunn, RS, Environmental Manager Subject: August 2006 Wabasso PACE EH Grant Update
August 2006 included two very noteworthy events to report. The first was the conclusion of the first post Pace assessment that we have been conducting for the past two months. Many individuals volunteered to collect the surveys and we ended the survey collection process with a community celebration which was a great success. We collected a total of 267 surveys and have entered the results in an Access database for the state to review. All hard copies were also sent to Tallahassee to compile more elaborate deductions from the results. The community was very receptive to the process and the community celebration was attended by over 250 people including the County Commissioner Chairman, the Sheriff, and the County Administrator. Not only was the event a prime opportunity to eat, be merry, and collect surveys, but it truly was a celebration of the progress we all have made by working together using the PACE EH process over the past two and a half years.
The other major event that the entire county is awestruck over is the building of a house in one day for a Wabasso lady we call ?Big Mama.? Lack of affordable housing was an identified issue in our survey results when we first began the PACE EH project in West Wabasso. Our action plan has involved demolishing abandoned houses and enrolling residents who qualify in the county?s SHIP program that provides houses to low-income residents as no interest loans that are forgiven in ten years. We also included the World Changers group who has visited Wabasso twice in the past two years to fix up 29 houses that needed minor rehabilitation. Through forming a network of friends by executing our action plan, we were able to help Big Mama by alerting the World Changers organizer, Joel Dramis, and his friend and Vice President of Regatta Construction, Joe Telese to the dire situation of possible homelessness that Big Mama was facing. Regatta Construction took over and decided that not would they build Big Mama a house for free, but they would do it one day. And on August 26, 2006, that is exactly what they did! It was an amazing event that many private, public, and individual entities took part in and should serve as an excellent example of how PACE EH can bring together the public and private sectors, along with government agencies to accomplish spectacular and productive results.
Outline some of the challenges you face in implementing PACE EH in your selected community. Express any difficulties, challenges or opportunities you may have encountered with other Government Agencies, business entities and/or Community organizations, during this reporting period. Elaborate on how you plan to address these emerging issues. ?If you don?t make a total commitment to what you?re doing, then you start looking to bail out the first time the boat starts leaking. It?s tough enough getting that boat to shore with everybody rowing, let alone when a guy stands up and starts putting his jacket on.? As one might imagine, helping to coordinate building a house in one day can be a challenge in itself. Luckily, no one stood up on the boat and everybody rowed and didn?t stop rowing until we reached the final goal of completing the house. It was a day that brought the community closer together. Individuals who have been critical in the past of community improvement efforts now are singing the praises of the good deeds done by all involved in the project. The combined events of a community celebration to end the post PACE survey and the one day build have unified and strengthened the community of Wabasso, giving them a tangible symbol (the house) of hope and another demonstration of the power of PACE EH.
The following files are provided in the Adobe Acrobat pdf format. Files over 100 kb in size that may take longer to download and view, have their file size listed. August 27, 2006 - Volunteers build home in a day for Wabasso's 'Big Mama' May 6, 2006 - County: West Wabasso Will Say Goodbye to 'Brown Water' April 13, 2006 - West Wabasso's long road to county water about to end February 18, 2006 - West Wabasso finds success in long quest for county water January 23, 2006 - Gospel Fest to raise money for hurricane repairs in Wabasso December, 2005 - In My Opinion: West Wabasso Assessment Project Update October 10, 2005 - West Wabasso residents rejoice over water project October 7, 2005 - West Wabasso to get county water September 20, 2005 - Indian River County replaces septic tanks for 10 families in west Wabasso July 8, 2005 - Indian River health officials receive national award June, 2005 - Spring 2005 PACE Progress Report for the Wabasso Environmental Assessment (380 kb) June 17, 2005 - World Changers group fixes homes in West Wabasso June 15, 2005 - Impoverished area to get waterlines June 12, 2005 - World Changers redo Wabasso May 1, 2005 - Water System on its way to Wabasso December 25, 2004 - Woman's work aids west Wabasso residents October 18, 2004 - Storms stall Wabasso help September, 2004 - PACE Progress Report for the Wabasso Environmental Assessment (620 kb) September 28, 2004 - Storms run Wabasso family out of own, borrowed homes August 28, 2004 - Families get new homes August 11, 2004 - Draft Brochure, Bringing Basic Needs to a Forgotten Community (1.4 meg file) July 30, 2004 - Kindness rules in Wabasso (109 kb) July 28, 2004 - Teens team up to build man's house June 2, 2004 - Indian River seeks aid for water May 26, 2004 - Groups enlist residents to help revive Wabasso May 11, 2004 - Wabasso may have to wait a year for street lights to come on May 9, 2004 - Town hall meeting to address Wabasso's needs
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