Members of the Department of Human Services (DHS) Independence County staff took part in the recent Batesville Business Expo.

  
Arkansas Department of Career Education sponsored the event. During the expo vendors – based in the Batesville area – gave visitors the 4-1-1 on how they can help them gain employment or other vital services.

                            
Staff from the Division of County Operations (DCO) and Division of Services for the Blind (DSB) represented DHS at the expo. Angela Clark – county administrator of the Independence office – worked alongside Michelle Lively, providing info about several of DCO’s services.  Meanwhile, Connie Crawford and Darline Tucker provided folks with DSB-related material. DSB focuses on helping Arkansans who are blind or visually impaired, gain independence in every facet of their life.

       
Clark and Crawford answered three questions about the Independence County office participating in the expo.

DHS Matters: What did you all hope to accomplish by being part of the Batesville Business Expo?
Clark: DCO wanted to be there to make a positive appearance for DHS and offer employment opportunities to our community. We also wanted to promote our Access Arkansas Online application process.               
Crawford: We at DSB hoped to reach more people in the community to ensure awareness of our services for transitional youth as well as adults.

DHS Matters: Was there a specific situation in which it was obvious that a person received the helped they needed?    
Clark: One gentleman asked us how to find a Primary Care Physician who would be willing to see him with his current medical problems. We referred him to ConnectCare, a program that assists Medicaid and ARKids First families, for that service.      
Crawford:  Several of the people we talked to were not aware of all the services we have available to someone who qualifies for our services. We expect to hear from some of these people who were either in need themselves, or knew someone who was in need.

 
DHS Matters: Why should county offices participate in similar events in their areas?
Clark: It brings a positive awareness of DHS to the people who live in our areas and gets the word out about our services. There are a lot of Arkansans not aware of all the great things that DHS does for people.       
Crawford: It’s a great way to meet local businesses, network, and speak with the general public. This allowed us to inform people of services we offer. So we at DSB would definitely recommend this event.