ONTARIO — Miss Ohio Caroline Williams sang and danced with members of the Element of Art. Doc Stumbo danced the twist. Aurelio Diaz tried his best with a hula hoop.
It was all part Saturday of the 10th annual Catholic Charities Consumer Resource Fair at the Richland Mall.
Catholic Charities in Richland County again organized the event, done each year as part of National Consumer Protection Week through the state Attorney General’s office.
With 18 participating businesses and agencies, the three-hour event had a beach theme, including music from local DJ Tony Mitchell and his Hitman Entertainment.
“We want to provide information on how to be a smart consumer, how to avoid scams, how to understand your credit report and how to make good financial decisions because ultimately that affects everything in their lives,” said Rebecca Owens, regional director for Catholic Charities.
“No one is here to sell products. They are here to help people understand what to look for. It’s all about education,” Owens said. “This being our 10th year, we decided to have a little fun, have a beach party theme and just kick it up a bit.”
There was a wide variety of participants in the event, including financial institutions, the consumer protection bureau, First Call 211 through the Mansfield/Richland County Public Library, Richland Public Health and the Richland County Sheriff’s Office.
Though scams are often aimed at more vulnerable senior citizens, Owens said anyone can become a financial victim, including identity theft.
“It really (can be) anybody these days,” she said. “It can affect anyone at any time if you don’t really pay attention to what’s going on.”
The local Catholic Charities office is part of the Diocese of Toledo, which also has offices in Norwalk and Sandusky. Owens said each office is a little different.
“We want to make sure we are not duplicating services (already in) in the communities where we are,” she said. “We want to fill a gap.”
In Richland County, Catholic Charities serves about 20,000 annually — 15,000 of which are assisted through its Project HOPE food bank.
She said the food bank had a record month in January, serving 812 households and between 2,000 and 2,500 individuals. “We have never seen that many,” she said.
Clients can visit the pantry every 30 days and obtain a three-day supply for food for each household member.
She said the pantry is seeing an increase in the number of households served, as well as the size of the households.
“We have a lot of families living together now just because that’s the only way they can, due to finances,” Owens said.
