Valpo Parks welcomes new staff
Valpo Parks has announced the addition of two new staff members, and the promotion of a third. Tarrance Price will join the Parks staff as its Recreation Superintendent on Jan. 3. With a Masters Degree in Sports Administration from Valparaiso University, Price returns to Valparaiso after serving in the Kentwood, Mich., school system, and for the last five years in the Kentwood Parks Department as Coordinator for Youth and Adult Sports and Adult Enrichment. Lisa Baisden recently joined Valpo Parks as the Youth Program Director. Baisden has a Bachelor of Physical Education Sciences degree with an emphasis in Sports Management from Valparaiso University. A Valparaiso High School Varsity Softball Assistant for three years, Baisden interned with the Valpo Parks and Recreation Department in 2004 and 2005, and has always been an active participant in the park district programs. Helene Pierce recently was promoted to Executive Assistant for Valpo Parks. Pierce has been with the City of Valparaiso for 19 years, where she got her start as a member of the Customer Service staff prior to serving as Customer Service Administrator. More information is at 219-462-5144.
2017 picnic shelter reservations
Valpo Parks will begin accepting shelter reservations for the 2017 picnic season on Jan. 3. The open-air shelters can be reserved for family gatherings, birthday parties and company picnics. Reservations will be accepted from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday at the Valpo Parks Administrative Office, 3210 N. Campbell St., or at 219-462-5144. More information is at valpoparks.org.
Area residents named Master Recyclers
Thirteen residents became Porter County Master Recycler interns at a recognition event hosted by Porter County Recycling and Waste Reduction. Residents who completed the six-week class include: Werner Bauer, James Beversdorf, Linda Cronk, Carolyn Gring, Zoraida Johnson, Kathryn Thomas, and Chriselle and Daniel Waters, all from Valparaiso; Joanne Keilman and Adele Szymanski, both from Portage; Ewa Shannon of Crown Point; Susan Adams from Ogden Dunes; and Henry Streiffer from Beverly Shores. The new interns will complete 30 volunteer hours to help increase waste reduction awareness in Porter County and earn their Master Recycler Certifications. Angela Goodson from Lake County Solid Waste Management District and Carol Sibbrell from Valparaiso recently became Certified Master Recyclers. The goal of the Master Recycler program is to create a pool of knowledgeable residents to educate the community about waste reduction in the home and workplace. Porter County residents interested in the spring 2017 class can register on the district’s website, www.PorterCountyRecycling.org. More information is at 219-465-3819.
Hospitals combine for Workforce Health
La Porte Hospital and Porter Regional Hospital have combined their occupational medicine service lines to create a new comprehensive program called Workforce Health. The new service combines both occupational health and wellness initiatives under one umbrella to serve Northwest Indiana and Southwest Michigan. The goal of Workforce Health is to offer regional businesses a higher quality and more value-driven occupational medicine and wellness service, with clinics in Valparaiso, Portage, La Porte and South Bend. More information is at 844-424-0200 or MyWorkforceHealth.com.
— Staff report
