Sacred Ground expanding its mission into Wayne County
Sacred Ground individuals Linsey, left, Ella, Grace, Brittany and Emily volunteer at MissionThrift Store. Volunteering in community organizations is something Sacred Ground promotes as part of venture, and now expanding its services to a second location in Wayne County will open up even more opportunities.
It hasn’t taken long for the staff at Sacred Ground in Berlin to make a large impact on residents of Holmes County who have family members with special needs.
Sacred Ground began in 2022, with five individuals with special needs coming twice a week.
Since then, the organization has grown exponentially and now embraces caring for 40 members five days a week.
The growth has been so fierce that administrator Griffin Long began exploring the possibility of expanding into Wayne County since they have five individuals utilizing their services from up north.
When the opportunity arose to do so, Long said they quickly embraced the idea, and in doing so, brought on board a long-time Holmes County resident who is well known for his work with individuals with special needs.
“We initially thought after two-plus years, if we were serving 12 people, we would be doing well,” Long said. “Now we have 38 enrolled with a couple more waiting. It’s been an incredible blessing to us as well as to our individuals and their families.”
Long said the goal of Sacred Ground isn’t to grow but rather to serve families in the community, and the one reason they have been able to do so is because they have found excellent staff.
He has expected growth for some time, and when Fairlawn Mennonite Church in Apple Creek agreed to serve as a host for the addition, things clicked into place and the new addition process began.
“We have been seeing a lot of demand in Wayne County, and we already have several individuals from there, so our board had a strategic planning meeting last February, and we agreed that with the demand, it would be the next venture to explore,” Long said. “We feel like we found the perfect partner in Fairlawn Mennonite Church, which has a wonderful facility with a lot of the same amenities we have here at Grace Church, including classrooms, a gym and a commercial kitchen, and we can keep vans there for our routes. Plus, they have wonderful people.”
Long said they are aiming for a January 2025 launch date, something he said is possible because Fairlawn Mennonite’s facilities are ready to operate immediately.
He went on to state that Sacred Ground has been transporting several Wayne County individuals to Berlin for some time, with one individual driving to Berlin from Sterling.
Now with a facility in Wayne County, it will become much easier to make connections and invite other individuals with special needs into the fold. In preparing for the big move north, Sacred Ground has brought on Ron Hay, who was involved with the Holmes County Board of Developmental Disabilities for more than two decades, to help seamlessly make the move possible.
“We are so excited to head up that way, and everyone we’ve talked to has received us well,” Long said. “We’re eager to provide Wayne County with another faith-based care facility with professionally trained staff who truly understand the needs of the people we serve.”
He said the programs will be identical to the facility in Berlin. Planning coordinator Sydney Halstead will develop both areas, with Hay planning outings and community activities.
Staff is already in place for the Wayne County facility, and they are training at the Berlin facility now so they will be ready to roll once the Wayne County facility begins.
Long said Hay will initially turn his focus to getting the Wayne County facility up and running. Once that is established, they will develop a program coordinator for the Wayne County facility and have Hay take over day operations at both facilities.
“Having Ron in place will free me up for another initiative we’ve identified in our strategic meeting to better explore residential and respite needs in our communities,” Long said.
While Sacred Ground provides classes, instruction and plenty of hands-on activities for its individuals, Long said it is also important to understand the importance of providing respite for family members who often provide around-the-clock care.
“My focus will shift more toward working in that area,” Long said, noting that included in those details will be developing the permanent housing placement program and overnight respite care for families with overnight engagements that would allow Sacred Ground to give family members a chance to have a night out, attend church or go to other activities.
Long said they have a residential respite housing facility plan nearly in place, and it will eventually create a space that will benefit caretakers immensely.
“It’s not quite to the point to where we are able to share it, but we’re getting there,” Long said, adding that is something he has had a heart for pursuing since Sacred Ground began. “But it is something we’ve wanted to pursue for some time, and bringing in Ron allows me to devote more time to instituting that step.”
It is an exciting addition to the Wayne County community, one that Long believes will be incredibly beneficial to many families, and the organization that continues to bring joy and life to so many people in the community will now have that opportunity in a new area.