2002 Lead-Safe Indiana Award Recipient

The following individuals and organizations received a 2002 Lead Safe Indiana Award from the Task Force at its 2002 Lead-Safe Indiana Conference on November 7, 2002.  State Senator Beverly Gard and Kim Wize, Executive Director of the Indiana Housing Finance Authority presented the awards.  For more information on the awards process. For information on 2001 award recipients.

Certificate of Recognition:

• Monroe County Lead-Safe Coalition

• Steve Nall and the Indiana Community Action Association

• State Representative Jeff Thompson at the Indiana General Assembly

• Connie Rudd at the Porter County Health Department

• Dr. Janice Carson at the St. Joseph County Health Department

Lead-Safe Indiana Awards

• State Representative Dennis Avery, Indiana General Assembly, Evansville

Representative Avery authored and promoted legislation in the 2002 session of the Indiana General Assembly to enhance Indiana’s efforts to prevent lead poisoning in children.  The bill built on similar legislation introduced in 2001 session by Senator Gard.  Rep. Avery’s bill – House Enrolled Act 1171 – was unanimously adopted by the Indiana General Assembly and went into effect on July 1, 2003.

• Kathleen Kraner, Get the Lead Out Task Force of St. Joseph County

Receives the award for her leadership, energy and creativity in protecting children in St. Joseph County from lead poisoning.  Ms. Kraner provides staff support for the Get the Lead Out Task Force of St. Joseph County.  Dr. Janice Carson is chair of the Task Force. 

• Lynnette Brown, Wayne County Health Department, Richmond

Selected because of her persistent and sustained leadership in preventing lead poisoning in the children of Wayne County.  She is a trained risk assessor who has aggressively investigated lead poisoned child cases brought to her attention.  She has educated many in the community and when she found circumstances where a landlord repeatedly violated the federal lead hazard disclosure law, she has worked with EPA to help them investigate the problem. 

• Greentree Environmental Service, Portage

Selected because of its sustained support for lead poisoning prevention efforts across Indiana.  These efforts include:

•      Providing training to contractors in South Bend on lead-safe work practices at no cost;

•       Conducting environmental investigations of lead poisoned children across Indiana where the local health department is unwilling or unable to perform the work at a deeply discounted rate; and

•       Active participation on state task forces and advisory groups.

• Fort Wayne – Allen County Health Department

  Selected for the quality and depth of their efforts to prevent childhood lead poisoning in Allen County.  In particular,

•       Dr. McMahan has made lead poisoning prevention a top priority.  Her staff has worked diligently to bring her vision to fruition.

•       The department has been creative in finding new sources of funding.  Earlier this week, EPA announced that Steel Dynamics has agreed to give the health department $100,000 to make windows safe from lead as part of a settlement for Clean Air Act violations. 

•       Found funding to hire a case manager to help children who are lead poisoned.

•       In cooperation with the local task force, the department educated the public and the medical community to recognize the problem and to check the blood of children who are at risk. 

• Family and Social Services Administration’s Housing and Community Services, Indianapolis

Selected because they:

•       Required local Weatherization programs to integrate lead-safe work practices into their normal weatherization work. 

•       Pooled the resources of their various housing programs including its Section 8 Program to buy the 24 Community Action Agencies sophisticated equipment to quickly determine whether lead-based paint and lead hazards are present.  This investment of $500,000 will reduce costs for Section 8 and Weatherization programs over the next five years.

•       Arranged for training to Weatherization staff and their contractors to ensure they were able to meet the mandates and arranged for a contractor to monitor the work to help the staff do the job correctly.

•       In association with FSSA’s Children’s Health Insurance Program developed a proposal for $78 million to replace windows in more than 10,000 low-income homes.  The federal government dragged the approval process out so long that the funds were not available.

• City of Bloomington’s Housing and Neighborhood Development Program (HAND)

Selected because of the comprehensive and aggressive manner in which HAND has integrated lead poisoning prevention into its decision-making process.  It was one of the first cities in Indiana to arrange for advanced training for individuals and organizations to evaluate and safely manage lead-based paint.  Rather than avoiding rehabilitating old homes that have lead-based paint, HAND has worked to find ways to make these homes safe and healthy.