Human Services Inc. will be celebrating its 60th anniversary with an upcoming open house.
The open house will be 3 to 6 p.m. Oct. 20 at the facility at 4355 E. County Road 600N, and is free and open to the public. A presentation is planned at 4 p.m.
The organization started in 1965 as a community action program that provided services to the lower income population in Bartholomew, Brown, and Jackson counties. Some of the earliest programs they had were the Head Start Summer program, Food Buyers program, the Feeder Pig Project, the Cabin Craftsman’s Center and Sewing Cooperative.
Now, Human Services has 16 programs aimed at helping those in need with any barriers that they may have in their lives and have expanded to serve five counties, Bartholomew, Decatur, Jackson, Johnson, and Shelby counties.
For the staff and board members, this anniversary is a time to reflect on the past 60 years of work the organization has done for the five counties they serve, stated Nathan Haza, vice president of Human Services, Inc.’s board of directors.
“We’re going to be celebrating and honoring our past,” said Donna Taylor, Human Services, Inc.’s executive director. “We are going to be sharing about the present and hopefully everyone will learn how we can help strengthen tomorrow.”
Human Services Inc. has a mission and vision of bridging the gaps to stability through coaching, education and partnerships, she said.
Last year, Human Services served 7,518 households and 17,128 individuals through their programs and services. Many of these individuals and households needed financial help, were going back to school, needed child care and more. They serve people from all different ages and backgrounds.
This event is to not only acknowledge the work that Human Services Inc. is doing, but to also recognize the work that is still needing to be done, Taylor stated.
“The work has shifted and grown in order to meet the needs of our community members through early childhood education, energy assistance, food insecurities, housing assistance, and support for our homeless families,” Haza said.
While there is work that is still needed to be done, this event is also a way to celebrate the fact that Human Services Inc. is still here and continuing the work they do until there is no longer a need for the organization, Taylor added.
“In a perfect world, we would have put ourselves out of business a long time ago,” Taylor said. “At the end of the day, poverty is tough. It’s tougher than the average person thinks it is… We’re doing what we can to alleviate the stress, even if we can’t eliminate it, so that a house hold or an individual has the ability to pick themselves up by their bootstraps or move forward.”
