Valley Valentines Winners!
Congratulations to the 14 winners in our Valley Valentines promotion. They were the first to submit their Valley Valentines, and their special messages are being displayed for the rest of this month on the video screen above Federal Station in downtown Youngstown.
Ohio Loves Transit, and we love our WRTA riders!
To see your Valley Valentine, just click on it below.
Take a Survey to Help Determine WRTA’s Trumbull County Service Plan
Trumbull County residents, businesspeople and agencies are being asked to take a survey to help determine a potential new high-level, five-year WRTA Service Plan for the county.
We’re hoping to get as much input as possible from residents, businesses and agencies about transportation needs in Trumbull County.
Comments from anyone living, working or doing business in Trumbull County are welcome. We would particularly like to hear from agencies that represent underserved populations such as senior citizens, persons with disabilities, low income, veterans, minorities, and those who are limited English-proficient.
The survey can be viewed and filled out online using a computer or smartphone. Both English and Spanish-language versions are available.
Those who participate in the survey and provide their contact information will be entered into a drawing for one of four $50 Visa gift cards.
To take the online survey, please go to https://wrta-survey.civicmapper.com and follow the on-screen instructions.
Free Fares on All Buses Extended Through June 2021
WRTA has announced that, due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, it will continue to offer free fares on its buses through June 30, 2021.
The free fare policy applies to all WRTA bus services in Mahoning and Trumbull County, including:
- Fixed Route
- ADA All-Access
- Countywide
- Late Night Service
WRTA Executive Director Dean Harris said “During the pandemic, we want to make it as easy as possible for Valley residents to use the bus to get to their jobs, essential grocery shopping and medical appointments.”
Passengers on all WRTA buses must wear face coverings, and Fixed Route buses must be boarded from the rear door (except for riders using wheelchairs or those with strollers).
Martin Luther King Jr. Day – Monday, January 18th
WRTA would like to wish you and your family a very safe and happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day! Please remember that WRTA will be open and will operate a regular Monday schedule on the holiday.
Organizations Chosen for This Year’s Holiday Lights Campaign
Here is information about each of the 18 non-profits that have been chosen for the WRTA Holiday Lights campaign. We urge you to support these organizations and the good work they do in the Valley.
Animal Charity
Animal Charity is Mahoning County’s humane society, providing a humane agent to protect animals from abuse neglect and abandonment. After providing medical care to the animals we rescue they are placed up for adoption in to loving homes. We also provide affordable veterinary services to the public through the Jean Kelty Vet Clinic.
Buster’s Brigade
Buster’s Brigade is a 501(c)3 organization committed to providing financial and material assistance for the basic and emergency needs of dogs and cats in Mahoning County and surrounding areas. Our goal is to work with our community to help families keep their pets healthy and at home.
- Our Pet Food Pantry focuses on making sure families who need temporary pet food receive help, through the local approved food pantries.
- Buster’s Brigade works with families who can no longer keep their pets due to illness, age or financial constraints.
- We work in conjunction with the YSU Pre Veterinary Society to provide a low-cost vaccine clinic twice a year. These clinics includes free wellness exams, plus low- cost tests and vaccines to the community. Our 2019 clinics serviced 235 pets.
- Buster’s Brigade continues to help pay vetting bills for pets whose owners cannot afford the treatments necessary to bring their pets back to health. In 2020 we have provided over $12,000 in vetting to area pets.
Cadence Care Network
Cadence Care Network is a non-profit agency focusing on the emotional well-being of children, teenagers and adults, as well as the treatment and placement of youth in compassionate, qualified foster homes in the Mahoning Valley. Cadence Care Network serves 1,400 children and their families annually in their own home, community, or through office-based treatment.
Compass Family and Community Services
COMPASS helps individuals and families build better lives and a stronger community. Our core values are to:
- Treat everyone with Dignity and Respect
- Be Ethical, Honest and have Integrity
- Be Team-Oriented with a Commitment to Excellence
- Be Engaged, Supportive, and Resilient
- Be Accountable and Responsible to persons served, COMPASS and Community
COMPASS’ core services consist of a variety of programs with established purposes and goals that tie directly back to the Agency’s mission statement and values. These core services include Behavioral Health Services, Social Services and Workforce Development.
The Down Syndrome Association of the Valley
The Down Syndrome Association of the Valley, a local 501(c)3, nonprofit organization serving eastern Ohio and western Pennsylvania, is committed to providing individuals with Down syndrome and their families the resources needed to lead successful, productive lives. DSAV provides enriching experiences, programs and grants to members, which foster that personal growth and pride in accomplishment. Membership is free.
Emmanuel Community Care Center
Emmanuel Community Care Center (ECCC), a program of Humility of Mary Housing, provides three programs to assist persons in need:
- Outreach Services: ECCC provides food, clothing and holiday assistance to individuals/families in need residing in Girard, Liberty, Mineral Ridge and McDonald.
- Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-housing Assistance: ECCC provides assistance to qualified individuals/families residing in Trumbull County who are homeless or at immanent risk of homelessness to help them obtain or maintain housing.
- Permanent Supportive Housing: ECCC, in collaboration with Coleman Professional Services, provides permanent supportive housing to homeless individuals/families with a disability in need of supportive housing.
Mercy Health Resource Mothers Program
Resource Mothers program website
The Mercy Health Resource Mothers Program plays a critical role in helping underserved, high-risk pregnant and new mothers to access health care, resources, information and social support needed to have a healthy pregnancy, birth and lifestyle.
Meridian HealthCare
Meridian HealthCare is a non-profit 501(c)(3), CARF accredited, integrated behavioral and primary healthcare organization with over 45 years of high-quality service delivery in the Mahoning Valley.
Since 1974, Meridian’s mission has been to eliminate addiction by working with individuals and their families through recognition, prevention, consultation, healthcare, communication, support, and treatment in a manner that is person-centered and respects the dignity of every person.
Meridian offers a comprehensive approach to addiction that includes prevention, treatment, recovery support, housing, primary care, mental health, criminal justice services and much more.
Potential Development
Potential Development is a pre-K through grade 12 school for students with autism. Our mission is to provide children with autism a safe, structured education that empowers them with the skills to reach their fullest potential in life. Our comprehensive program provides individualized instruction by a team of experts to ensure all students have a safe and educational environment to thrive in. We focus on structured teaching, highly visual planning and organization strategies, and predictable environments to help learners on the autism spectrum to become more independent.
At the same time, our school exposes the student to the Common Core Academic Standards for language arts, math, science and social studies. Report cards are issued quarterly to reflect student progress in each subject area. In addition to academic instruction, we help students develop social, communication, adaptive and life skills, and we offer physical, occupational and speech therapy for students who qualify.
The Public Library of Youngstown & Mahoning County
The Public Library of Youngstown & Mahoning County, incorporated as the Reuben McMillan Free Library Association, serves all citizens of Mahoning County, Ohio. We connect people and communities to reliable resources that inspire learning and foster enrichment.
We operate 15 branches in Mahoning County as well as Special Delivery for homebound residents.
The Library’s Vision
- Provide excellence in customer service
- Be the best source for knowledge, exploration of ideas, and leisure learning in Mahoning County
- Provide reliable information and answers for those that seek them
- Be adaptable, dynamic, and innovative by being responsive to both the community and the changing library industry
- Assure equitable access to library services and materials throughout Mahoning County
- Create welcoming environments and spaces that enrich the communities they service
- Connect people to the community and world they live in
Rich Center for Autism
The Rich Center for Autism was established in 1995 through the collaborative efforts of the Kosar, Rich (Ricchiuti), and Rubino families who have a shared interest in autism. In collaboration with Youngstown State University, The Rich Center for Autism’s mission is to improve education experiences and outcomes for individuals with autism and their families through teaching, research and community engagement.
SCOPE Senior Services
SCOPE stands for “Senior Citizens Opportunity for Personal Endeavors.” We’re a private not-for-profit organization whose main goal and objective is to assist older persons (50+) in maintaining their independence and being part of the community.
SCOPE Senior Services serves 3,800 citizens per year with over 800 members, making it the largest senior citizen organization in Trumbull County.
We operate eight centers in Warren, Howland, Niles, Champion, Cortland, Lordstown, Ravenna and Hartville serving adults with recreational, fitness, educational, and socialization programming.
SCOPE also has a Supportive Services division, whose focus is to support the individual with information and referral, Medicare/Medicaid assistance, protective services, prescription assistance, financial, housing assistance. SCOPE also serves as a Representative Payee for 20 clients.
In 2015, SCOPE began delivering free groceries to homebound seniors and disabled residents. Starting in 2018, SCOPE began its SOS (Support Our Seniors) project where SCOPE staff visit seniors in the homes or apartments to check up on them.
Second Harvest Food Bank
www.mahoningvalleysecondharvest.org
Second Harvest Food Bank of the Mahoning Valley, a member of Feeding America, provides food to those in need in the tri-county area through 160 programs provided by hunger-relief organizations, which include church pantries, homeless shelters, soup kitchens, shelters for battered women, and after-school programs.
In 2019, the Food Bank distributed more than 11.5 million pounds of food, including 3.4 million pounds of produce.
Sight for All United
Sight for All United (SFAU) was established in August 2016 as a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization that is driven to help all people achieve their best vision. Founded by two caring and concerned citizens, Karen Segesto and Sergul Erzurum, Sight for All United seeks to increase access by decreasing financial barriers and helping individuals navigate through the complex medical system.
The SFAU mission statement is to HEAL: Help every person reach his/her visual potential; Educate the community on impact of poor eyesight; Awareness of eye health and vision issues; and Lift barriers for access to care.
SFAU is also active in patient and community outreach through Sight for All United’s Doctors for Sight, a network of over 43 local ophthalmologists and optometrists; Women for Sight, our community fundraising group; and two partner student organizations at the Northeast Ohio Medical University and at the Youngstown State University.
Sight for All United to date has had 222 patients who completed applications that were assisted in receiving vision/surgical services.
Someplace Safe
Someplace Safe is Trumbull County’s only domestic violence service provider. We have been offering services to our community for over 41 years, and over those years we have expanded the services we have available in order to best meet the needs of those we serve.
Someplace Safe offers emergency shelter, case management, educational/support groups, housing advocacy, outreach, legal advocacy, youth services, community education, an intimate partner violence support group (in-house and within the community), a transitional housing program, and a 24-hour support and information crisis line or web-based chat.
The comprehensive intervention program includes a shelter with around-the-clock intake and crisis intervention, outreach and advocacy services for victims and children, aftercare services, housing assistance, ongoing support, education and follow-up. As specialists in the area of Intimate Partner and Family Violence, Someplace Safe’s staff educates the community with the overall goal of preventing and ending violence within families.
Ursuline Sisters HIV/AIDS Ministry
The Ursuline Sisters HIV/AIDS Ministry has been serving men, women, and children in the Mahoning Valley living with and affected by HIV/AIDS for nearly 30 years. Our services for those living with HIV/AIDS include medical care, housing, food, children’s programming, and a monthly support group.
The HIV/AIDS Ministry is a program of the Ursuline Sisters of Youngstown, which has been meeting the spiritual, emotional, educational, and health needs of the community since 1874.
Western Reserve Independent Living Center
Western Reserve Independent Living Center gives people with disabilities the option to live in and choose their own level of community inclusion. We are a comprehensive disabilities information and resource center for the Mahoning Valley, serving Ashtabula, Columbiana, Mahoning, and Trumbull Counties with five core services:
- Information and referral networking
- Peer support
- Advocacy, both individual and systemic
- Independent living skills training
- Transitioning of youth from school to the community (Pre-Ets) and nursing home transition back into the community
We also provide emergency preparedness and fair housing education, as well as computer classes and awareness of available resources in the community.
Youngstown Community Food Center/Gleaners Food Bank
www.youngstowncommunityfoodcenter.org
Youngstown Community Food Center and Gleaners Food Bank, located near downtown Youngstown, feeds families each Tuesday morning, 52 weeks a year. We are a non-profit, no-fee organization that has been in existence since 1986 — supplying food and non-food items to the less fortunate at no cost to them.
We distribute goods weekly to individual families and currently on a monthly basis supply 110+ church food pantries, women’s crisis shelters, veterans centers, schools, minority organizations, elderly housing complexes, those on a fixed income — in short, the less-fortunate families here in our several-county sphere of operation. We are currently providing for over 7,590 families a month with food and non-food items, and that number continues to grow. We provide all of our goods without any fees or cost.
Watch for Holiday Lights Signs on WRTA Buses!
WRTA is celebrating the spirit of the season with a new initiative this year — the Holiday Lights campaign, which officially began November 30.
“All year long, WRTA Gives The Valley a Lift,” said Executive Director Dean Harris. “But there are many other organizations in Trumbull and Mahoning Counties who ‘Light Up The Valley’ 365 days a year by helping those in need. With the Holiday coming up, we really want to shine the light on these hard-working non-profits. The Holiday Lights campaign is our way of honoring them and encouraging everyone to support their efforts.”
Over the past couple of months, Valley residents were encouraged to nominate organizations to be honored as part of the Holiday Lights campaign. From the nominations, 18 were selected (see separate story for their names and more information).
All through December, signs highlighting these organizations will appear on the sides and back of selected WRTA buses serving Trumbull and Mahoning Counties. Information about the featured organizations will also be on the WRTA website and on social media, with links to the organizations’ websites. Organizations will also be receiving a framed photograph of their bus sign.
Holiday Lights honorees represent a wide variety of entities who serve the greater Mahoning Valley. WRTA encourages all Valley residents to support them at this time of year, when the greatest gift can be one given to help others.
WRTA, Second Harvest Food Bank Join to Address Food Deserts
WRTA and Second Harvest Food Bank are teaming up to provide Mahoning and Trumbull County residents who live in “food deserts” an easy way to address the problem of limited access to quality food.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture defines a food desert as an urban area in which at least 500 people (or 33% of the population) live more than one mile from the nearest large grocery store — or a rural area with at least 500 people (or 33% of the population) living more than 10 miles from the nearest large grocery store.
The consequences for those living within food deserts are significant. Since they are unable to easily get to a store that sells fresh meats and produce, the diets of families in these areas are adversely affected because they must rely on convenience stores and fast food for much of what they eat.
According to Mike Iberis, Executive Director of Second Harvest Food Bank, there are many urban and rural areas in Mahoning and Trumbull County that can be identified as food deserts. “But we’re fortunate in our area to have WRTA, a service that covers so much ground and offers so many options to those looking for quality food to feed their families,” said Iberis.
WRTA has several ways to transport those living in food deserts to grocery stores that offer the kind of quality food they can’t otherwise get. “No matter where you live in Mahoning or Trumbull County,” says WRTA Executive Director Dean Harris, “there’s a WRTA bus that can get you to the store.”
Harris outlined several WRTA options:
- In the greater Youngstown area and the City of Warren, many supermarkets are located along routes served by WRTA Fixed Route buses. If the bus that passes through a food desert doesn’t lead directly to a supermarket, riders have the option of taking that bus to either Federal Station in downtown Youngstown or the junction point at High Street and North Park Avenue in downtown Warren and transferring to another bus that does travel to a supermarket.
- Residents who live within the area covered by WRTA’s Fixed Route bus service but are unable to ride a Fixed Route bus due to age or disability can take advantage of WRTA’s ADA All-Access service. These small buses will pick qualifying residents up at their homes and transport them to any location served by WRTA Fixed Route buses. Eligibility requirements apply, and rides both to and from a destination must be scheduled in advance.
- Those who live elsewhere in Mahoning or Trumbull County, beyond areas served by WRTA Fixed Route buses, can use another scheduled service, Countywide. This door-to-door service will also pick up residents at their homes and transport them anywhere within their respective counties. Again, riders must register for this service and schedule trips in advance.
Harris emphasized that rides on all WRTA buses are free through December 31, 2020.
Maps and schedules are available on the WRTA website along with additional information about all WRTA services. The website also offers an Online Trip Planner for those who would like to take a Fixed Route bus to and from a specific destination. Online Trip Planning is also available on the myStop Mobile smartphone app, which is available for iPhone and Android.
More information about all WRTA services is available by calling (330) 744-8431.
“We are working with Second Harvest Food Bank’s 140 partner agencies in Mahoning and Trumbull counties to inform residents about the services offered by WRTA to access full-line grocery stores,” said Iberis.
“While many of our riders are already using WRTA to get to the store and back,” Harris added, “we’re grateful to Second Harvest for helping to get the word out to those who aren’t aware of how WRTA can help them and their families.”
New Year’s Day
Please be advised that WRTA will be closed and there will be no bus service on Friday, January 1st in celebration of the holiday.
We here at WRTA sincerely hope that you and your family will have a very happy and safe New Year!
Regular bus service will resume on Saturday, January 2nd.
New Year’s Eve Service
All Fixed Routes will run their regular schedules. However, there will be no Late Night Service on New Year’s Eve.
Christmas Day
Please be advised that WRTA will be closed and there will be no bus service on Friday, December 25th in celebration of the holiday.
We here at WRTA sincerely hope that you and your family will have a very happy and safe Christmas!
Regular bus service will resume on Saturday, December 26th.
