The new executive director of Gilmer County’s Family Connection office is happy to begin her work, despite some of the program’s events and meetings being sidelined by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Tiffany Watson officially became the county’s new Family Connection director Aug. 1 following the retirement of Merle Howell Naylor, who led the program since 2006.
“With everything changing and the world just being different with the pandemic, a lot of the bigger events we do in schools can’t happen right now with volunteers not being allowed to come into the schools. Naturally, I’m having to shift a little bit and I’m still in the planning stages,” said Watson.
Teen Maze, an interactive event in which Gilmer High School students learn about the potential rewards of making good decisions and consequences of bad decisions, was canceled last year as Naylor was recovering from surgery. Another of Family Connection’s annual events at GHS, Reality Day, did not take place this year due to the pandemic and early school closings.
Watson said, when able, she definitely wants to continue those two events that were introduced locally by Naylor.
“One thing I can continue this year and push forward on is the Christmas Campaign program that Merle has set up,” said Watson about the annual outreach effort that provides Christmas gifts for families.
Gilmer is among the 159 Georgia counties that are part of the state’s Family Connection collaborative network. Gov. Zell Miller established the program in 1991 as a pilot initiative to coordinate services for the educational, economic and physical well-being of Georgia’s children. Gilmer’s chapter was established in 1999.
The community-based collaborative approach used by individual Family Connection chapters was designed to target and reduce such youth risk factors as teen pregnancy, substance abuse and juvenile delinquency.
Focus topics that were discussed at last year’s local collaborative meetings included the lack of both affordable housing and mental health treatment resources in the county. Watson said those are two areas of focus she wants the group to continue exploring.
“We have a focus group at the beginning of the year to see what the pressing needs of the community are. Child abuse and neglect is a big focus for us this year and is typically at the top (of the list) every year,” she added. “Other things that we’ve talked about are homelessness and housing. Something we’ve been passionate about in the collaborative is how can we get more mental health resources here in the north Georgia area, so that’s another initiative that’s high up, too.”
Watson, a graduate of Gilmer High School and Reinhardt College who’s also an ambassador for the Gilmer Chamber and owner of the small business Endless Ink, said she also looks forward to getting more local people and businesses involved in the collaborative meeting and discussion process.
“I envision nonprofits and businesses being able to collaborate together. I would like to merge more of the community into Family Connection (by) getting more people from the community who may not typically be involved, or don’t know how to get involved, with a nonprofit. That’s one of my goals right off the bat. Maybe they could bring some new, fresh ideas to the table and it would connect (us) to another part of the community,” she said.
The group normally holds one collaborative meeting a month to discuss topics and projects related to Family Connection’s purpose of improving the health and well-being of families and communities. Those meetings are being held virtually via the Zoom app for the time being.
Watson said an area she intends to learn more about is applying for grants, which could provide additional funding for Family Connection projects.
“I think that’s another reason it’s important for people to do the Census because that’s where a lot of these numbers come from. It only comes down every 10 years and it helps us get funding and be eligible for grants. We want to make sure everybody is filling that out,” she said.
‘We are a 411 center’
When interviewed about her retirement in March, Naylor said one of the most frequent duties for her as Family Connection director was being a go-between for people in the county who need specialized services, outreach or other forms of assistance.
“On my annual plan, I put that we are a 411 center, which is the truth,” she said then. “People do call weekly, if not daily, asking for help and I’m there to give them resources. We have a two-page benevolence list that shows the local agencies, what type of services they provide, their hours of operation and telephone numbers.”
Watson said she’s fielding those types of requests, as well.
“So far, I’ve gotten a few calls about mental health and a few about Alcoholics Anonymous,” she noted.
Gilmer Family Connection’s office is now housed inside the Larry Walker Education Center. The former home to Gilmer Middle School, where the local campus of Mountain Education Charter High School is also located, is currently limited in regard to outside visits, Watson noted.
The best way to reach the Family Connection office is to call ahead between 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday, she added. The number is 706-276-2319.