Opportunities, Inc. provides great service

During the time I was growing up, the education process of the handicapped was limited to homebound schooling. I was seven years old before this method of teaching was made available to me. Albert Gounch (not sure about the spelling) was my first teacher. He came three days a week. One of the books I was introduced to that year was ?Mac and Muff,? about a dog and cat.

The next year Mrs. Marcelle Stubblefield was my teacher. She taught me five or six years. Mrs. Adina Rowland, my aunt, taught me a couple of years.

During those years I had no idea of ever attending school ? certainly not a regular school. But sometime in the middle 1950 a group of parents of handicapped individuals got together and came up with the idea of starting a school for the handicapped. Rummage sales were held on the courthouse yard, booths were manned at the fair where tickets were sold for a free Magnavox television set. The only reason I remember the brand name is that that was the first time to hear of that name, and I thought it was an off brand. But I think now it is one of the leading brands.

In the process of time, enough money was raised to buy a house and lot on North Spring Street. The house was cleaned and fixed up, and after intelligence testing, classes began at the new Maple Grove School, as it was called in the beginning.

I don?t know how long it was after that that Martin Gribble, a raiser of horses, was in conversation with Rayford Davis, who was editor of Southern Standard and president of Parents Council for Exceptional Children. Mr. Gribble told Mr. Davis that his horses had better facilities than those children. Mr. Gribble?s desire was to build a facility especially for handicapped students, and that is exactly what he did. I was told that he even went so far to check with authorities to make sure everything was built to specifications.

One strange thing about all of this is, I never went a day to Gribble Memorial, I ended up at the old Central High school.

Somewhere in the mid to late 1960s Mr. Davis was in conversation with Mr. Herb Klasek who was then one of the top men at Century Electric. Mr. Davis asked him might there be any jobs at the plant that they could bring over to Gribble Memorial School, for those who were no longer in school to do. Mr. Klasek said he didn?t know but he would look around and see what he could find.

Several days later Mr. Klasek phoned Mr. Davis and tells him that he thought he had found something. Guys from Century brought it over and the job was a huge success. Other jobs were found and brought to us. We needed more space and the school needed our space. In about thirty years we moved four times. When we left Gribble Memorial, our name was changed to Opportunities, Inc. Not only did we do work for Century, but for DeZurik, Oster, Carrier, Cooper Manufacturing, B and P Lamp and possibly others.

For about two years we have only opened a half day on Thursday to enjoy each other?s company and to go bowling in the afternoon. From the time I am writing this we will be opened two more times. There is real sadness as I see the end of an era and to especially see the end of the plants in Warren County that supported and gave us work. Who would have thought Opportunities, Inc. would have lasted as long as it has?