I’ve seen so many changes and we’ve grown so much, it’s just been an adventure,””

Leanne Wash

HONESDALE, PA — At the Wayne County Commissioners meeting, two individuals were recognized for their positive contributions to the county.

The first to be recognized was Monique Orr of the Area Agency on Aging, accompanied by her supervisor, Leigh Washington, as well as Mary Ursich, aging administrator.

Orr began her career as a service coordinator, working her way up to her current position as Area Agency on Aging’s Primary Accessor. Orr’s career involves visiting different settings like homes, hospitals, correctional institutions and nursing facilities to determine the type and level of care that potential clients would need. Her professionalism, ability to go above and beyond and her commitment to the older adults that she had served were highlighted by Washington and Ursich.

The next to be honored was Leann Wash for her 15 years of service with the Wayne County Office of Behavioral and Developmental Programs/Early Intervention.

Wash is the supervisor of the office’s early intervention unit, serving children with developmental delays for children up to age 3.

Wash also volunteers with a parent support group and helps run the Wayne County Safety Fair for kids.

“It is a very, very important position for our community. The people that you serve have some really specific needs, and you deal with difficult situations [in] your entire department all the time. We recognize that and we greatly appreciate it,” said commissioner Joseph Adams.

Whether it was 15 years or five years, both touched upon how fast the time passed. “I can’t believe it’s been 15 years, it flew... Being there from the beginning, I’ve seen so many changes and we’ve grown so much, it’s just been an adventure,” said Wash.

“When you love your job, things tend to go quickly,” remarked Orr.

Good work underway

New projects are underway within the region, and thanks to motions made by the commissioners, they are one step closer to being realized.

The committee made a motion to accept a candidate to oversee the request for proposals study for the new Ag Innovation Center.

Out of a pool of four candidates, ACDS, LLC of Columbia, MD was selected. (See story on page 1.)

The center is intended to act as a hub for area agriculture, including a food pharmacy, a farmers’ market, educational spaces and more.

Work will also soon be underway at the Earl J. Simons Senior Center in Honesdale.

The contract for the proposed renovations for the basement of the center was awarded to Grimm Construction, based in Waymart, for an amount of $198,981. According to chief clerk Andrew Seder, the project is primarily funded through senior citizens grants.

Rolling out

The county is looking to purchase two new vehicles to use for the food pantry. The commissioners made a motion to execute proposals for Community Development Block Grants (CDBG-CV) to cover the cost. These grants are given to states and local governments to help prevent, prepare for and respond to the threats presented by COVID-19.

The vehicles that the county plans to purchase through the grants are a 2022 Ford F600 4X2 Chasis with a refrigerator tailgate uplift for $94,867 and a 2022 Ford F600 4X4 Chasis with an uplift for dry freight for $58,795. The trucks will be purchased from Gibbons Ford, a COSTARS vendor.