KATHLEEN OVERHOLT

Kathleen Overholt has been an important part of getting the Elkhart County Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) up and running. She found out about the MRC back in 2003 at a Homeland Security Conference in Michigan. She then brought the idea back to Elkhart County and pursued the idea until it became a reality in March 2004. She helped to recruit an advisory board and promote the idea in the community to get support.

She has helped to coordinate the pilot school physical program for the Elkhart County MRC and assisted in one of the clinics doing immunizations provided by the Elkhart County Health Department. She doesn’t receive any extra pay for her volunteering. She also is working at coordinating volunteers to go to different health fairs to promote the Elkhart County MRC and the different programs that they will be offering.

She serves on the local EMA for the county as well as TRIAD/SALT committee as the liaison to Citizen Corps for the Medical Reserve Corps. She also serves on the AED committee that is working on getting AED units into more public places with in Elkhart County. She is also quite active in 4-H in the county as well as in her church functions as well.

For the EMA she serves as a liaison for the Elkhart County Health Department to help address issues that would come up in times of disaters as well as in developing the Health Department’s Emergency Response plan. She helps with getting supplies that would be needed for emergency responses as well.

She is certified CPR/First Aid instructor. She participated in health fairs that help prepare adults to respond to infants that are choking or need CPR. She does this at no charge. She has trained the staff at the health department for their certifications.

Overholt is also active in her church. She teaches junior church every other month. She also teaches a Sunday evening children’s program so that there is something that children can do during every service. She assists in the nursery occasionally. She has also served as the camp cook for a week at the district church camp in Hastings, MI. She serves as the project chairman for the Women’s Missionary Fellowship in her church.

She is the co-organizational leader for the Cheyenne’s 4-H club. She helps to plan activities and crafts for the children to do during meetings. She also assists the children with their projects. She volunteers to help unload geraniums to be picked up at the fairgrounds for the big annual fundraiser for the county program.