Director's Message

Feb. 3, 2006

To: DHS employees

From: Dr. Bruce Goldberg, DHS Director

Recently I have been writing a lot about our budget and some of the many large policy issues we face: the new Medicare drug bill, access to health care, and others.  Fortunately, as those discussions continue, DHS staff around the state are doing great work every day for the people we serve.   So today, I’d like to shift focus to a couple of the people and programs that truly make a difference in our local communities -- an individual who went beyond the call of duty and a community offering a unique way to reach out to people in need. 

In keeping with change, the now traditional weekly quote concludes this message.  So please read on and then remember to take a moment to smile, chuckle, and share a laugh with someone.  

SOS for families

One of my goals is to better organize services around the people who need them rather than the programs that deliver them.  There is a good example of that in Baker County.

Help for families who are unsure of where to turn in troubled times can be found as close as their neighborhood schools. It's the friendly and comfortable atmosphere of schools that encourages families to accept the help offered through the School Site One Stop (SOS) program, which began as a pilot project in Baker County in 2000. The program brings together social service agencies, the juvenile department, school teachers and counselors to help families at one central location, usually at the school where the children attend classes.

A core group of agency representatives meets regularly with school staff at each building in the district. When school's out for the summer, the positive contact with families continues through the Summer Fun program. The summertime extension funds activities that children in the SOS program might not otherwise have the opportunity to attend, such as YMCA summer camps, swimming and horseback riding. During 2004-05, the programs served 232 children. Baker School District's total enrollment is 1,946.  The self-described "home-grown program" grew out of a need and the passion of a lot of different organizations to serve these families and these children.

Beyond the call of duty

Regardless of how we organize things, in the end it's the efforts of individuals that make things work and bring value to our communities.  Our individual and collective "character" and how we carry ourselves through life are what really makes a difference.

Ryan Davidson is a social service specialist for DHS in Lakeview. His supervisor wanted to share with all of you a recent story involving him that recognizes how people who work for DHS -- who work every day to help families -- don't stop caring once they are off the job.

Last Saturday, Ryan came upon an accident about 15 miles north of Lakeview in which a car had gone off the road and ended upside down in flooded Crooked Creek. He and three other bystanders used a jack to lift the back of the car so there would be air in it for the people inside and then proceeded to use a crow bar, hack saw and shovels to get the jammed door open to get the people out. Ryan was in the icy water up to his chest for 15-20 minutes.

Fortunately, they were able to get the people out of the car and carried up out of the creek. When the ambulance arrived, medical attention was given immediately. Ryan and the other three have been lauded as helping save these people's lives.  The local newspaper will be featuring this rescue soon.

Food for thought

"Humor is the great thing, the saving thing. The minute it crops up, all our irritations and resentments slip away and a sunny spirit takes their place."  Mark Twain

This message is intended for all department employees. Please read it electronically, if possible. Managers and supervisors are asked to share the message each week with employees who do not have email access.

If you have a disability and need this message to be provided to you in another format, please send an email to dhs.forms@state.or.us, or call (503) 947-5107. You can also fax your request to (503) 373-7690, or call (503) 947-5080 for TTY service. If you know of others who need this accommodation, please let them know it is available.