The City of Eastlake, Ohio

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The Tuesday Crew

The Tuesday Crew
Rental Management Magazine

Matt Forkapa, the manager of Aladdin Rents For Special Events in Eastlake, Ohio, is usually a bit more tired than usual when he goes home on Tuesdays. That’s because Tuesdays are the day that Aladdin Rents For Special Events brings in a group of special needs students from a local school for job training.

“It is tiring, but it’s also very rewarding. It’s a fun group and everybody should get involved in these sorts of programs. A lot of kids out there need somewhere to go and this type of job training can help,” Forkapa says.

Mike Miller, the owner of Aladdin Rents For Special Events and Handy Rents, says the company’s involvement with the program started about 15 years ago. Miller’s oldest son, Chris, was born with Down syndrome and Miller was first approached about helping with job training while Chris was in school.

“They have special classes for these kids and they approached us about doing job training, so that when the kids do get a real job, they’ve already had some practice and don’t get fired on the first day,” Miller says.

“This is what can happen in the real world. An employer will say, ‘I don’t know if I can handle it, but I’ll give it a try.’ Then the first day or first week, the kid does something inappropriate, he’s fired and the employer is now soured on the idea,” he says.

Aladdin Rents For Special Events has worked with the Willoughby Tech Center in Willoughby, Ohio, for the past 15 years and has since participated in other job-training programs in Lake County and the City of Mentor school system that brought in an autistic class on a trial last year. Forkapa says Willoughby brings in a teacher and one or two aides with 16 to 20 special needs students each Tuesday school is in session.

Miller says the kids are assigned a variety of jobs they can successfully handle, like cleaning chairs, sanding tables, stuffing envelopes, cleaning tents and more.

“They sweep, dust, mop, vacuum and put together our sales brochures,” Forkapa says. “Every time we come up with something we want to do, I try to think about if it is something we can have the kids get involved in. One of the jobs here is silverware. There is a lot of it. It all has to be sorted. You have four different forks and all different spoons. Once it gets washed, they come in, sort it piece by piece, lay it on forms in sets of 10, inspect it, bag it and seal it.”

Forkapa says the company’s involvement in the program takes minimal effort because the teacher and the aides can take care of what needs to be done, but adds that “when I’m here, we get a lot broader range of things done with them. We’re training and helping them at the same time they are helping us,” he says.

“For us, the kids coming here isn’t about learning how to clean a chair or a tent. They learn so much more about being a part of a business and working with a boss or manager to improve their social skills. They also learn to work in a warehouse where you have hazards around you constantly. They wear safety glasses when they do certain jobs. They are learning so much more than just a skill of something we’re trying to get done,” Forkapa says.

Miller says he and his wife, Terrie, have dreamed about being able to employ many of those with special needs. “The business community will need to step up in this area and find that these kids do have a real value for a business. We’re not there yet, but we would like to be financially set so that we could possibly have a business that employs a bunch of these kids year-round,” he says.

He also suggests that more party and event stores should seek out these sorts of programs. “There’s a big opportunity to do this throughout the country and possibly throughout the world and that would be a helpful thing,” Miller says.

Eastlake Memorial Committee Seeking Donations to Maintain Boulevard of Flags

By Brandon C. Baker of the News-Herald

The worries of fall and winter usually follow the mourning of Sept. 11 in Eastlake.

It’s been that way for years, as the final months on the calendar remain the most concerning for the Eastlake Memorial Committee.

After people travel from all over to the city’s Boulevard of 500 Flags to commemorate lives lost during the 2001 terrorist attacks, the committee is charged with a way to replace worn flags and make sure their poles hold up amid Northeast Ohio’s harsh wind, rain and snow. About 2,000 veterans’ names are listed on the plaques affixed to the flag poles, and the site is used to celebrate all major holidays involving veterans, including Veterans Day in November.