On Sept. 5, Dave McCormick of Marion County Health Department and Tom Neltner of IKE provided one-hour of training to the Porter Paint contractor sales representatives in Central Indiana. Porter Paints wanted to ensure its salespeople were familiar with the issue and the regulations affecting their customers.

Based on the success of that session, on Jan. 18, Neltner and McCormick trained the Porter Paint store clerks. And on Nov. 29, Kevin O’Malley of Porter Paints arranged for them to give a presentation to the local chapter of the Painting and Decorators Contractors Association.

All three sessions went well with strong interest and support from participants. Based on this effort, the regional Sherwin Williams manager is considering offering a similar program.

Beyond the need for a business to provide sound advice to its customers, IKE congratulates Porter Paints for helping make central Indiana safer for children. Based on their advice, we already know of one family that would have sanded down their lead-based paint when renovating an old-home had they not been helped by a trained sales clerk.