Scholars Help Nonprofit Tell Its Stories Of Caring As Court-Appointed ‘Family’

Guardian Mitzi Kennard and Thor visit James at a Clermont County nursing home. Mitzi says she loves visiting James because he loves hunting, fishing and camping, as do her husband and sons. Thor and three other four-legged “team members” (Haylee, Mocha and Sadie) are frequent companions on visits, bringing smiles along with the guardians’ important work in decisions about finances, health care and living arrangements.

– Photo by Charitable Words Scholar Rachel Kellerman.

Charitable Words Scholars have been assigned summer internships to help a Greater Cincinnati nonprofit tell its story – a story of being there with caring and compassion for those who may have no where else, no one else to turn to for guidance on important life decisions.

Personal Guardianship Services provides court-appointed guardians to those who need help with decisions about finances, medical treatment or the right place to call home.

Wanda Bevington founded PGS in 2003, and currently provides five staff guardians to help 270 clients make financial, medical decisions and living arrangement decisions.

“We’re court-appointed decision-makers. But we’re also that family member they don’t have,” Bevington told Charitable Words project manager Brittany York for story in Soapboxmedia.com. (Brittany edits the For Good section of Soapbox, an online publication about “the people and places moving Cincinnati forward).

The Scholars will work on “good stories, told well” with photos and video, web site design and content, social media and other ways to raise awareness of the nonprofit’s mission, community impact and needs for board development, volunteers and funding support.

The Charitable Words team includes Brittany and:

Tyler Mechlem is a graduate of Cincinnati State, with a major in graphic design. While there he worked with a team to create a design campaign for the One Show, and won a merit award. He enjoys designing to elevate brands and increase brand identity. He also has a strong interest in 3D and Web as well. Tyler currently works at Charger Press as their graphic designer, as well as works in the print production side. He works in freelance design as well. In his free time he enjoys playing music and exploring Cincinnati.

Rachel Kellerman is a photojournalist, specializing in people and food photography with a style consisting of honest imagery that portrays the reality of important social issues in the context of hope and solutions. Based in Cincinnati, Ohio Rachel has assisted various commercial photographers including Chris Smith, Brian Ambs, and Gary Kessler. She earned a Bachelor’s degree in journalism with a minor in photography from Northern Kentucky University.

Chelsie Bryant recently graduated with her MA from the University of Cincinnati and is currently obtaining her MFA at The Ohio State University. She is an Ohio native who, in her spare time, enjoys photographing her cat, har. She teaches composition, and works as a reader for The Journal. Her work is featured in Passages North, Word Riot, and Movement and a section of her story collection Fatherlessland was named honorable mention for The Helen Earnhart Harley Creative Writing Award in Fiction.

Please, consider being a ‘catalyst for community impact’ or engaged friend and supporter

Volunteer professional advisors for this project also will be needed to enrichen student experiences and outcomes for our partner nonprofits. Let us know if you’d wish to help with student guidance or connections to pro bono resources. Charitable Words is not a consulting business – it’s a network of “catalysts for collective action and community impact.” Scholars are compensated for their work and we do offer modest honorariums to professional advisors for business expenses related to volunteer and pro bono contributions.

Contributions to support scholars and partner nonprofits also welcome, needed and deeply appreciated. Engagement by the Charitable Words Scholars and advisors leverages your charitable giving. helps students offset the costs of education and student debt and returns on your investments in positive social impact.