News
| 
Letter to the Editor:
What is a disability? Who are the disabled? These are questions that we here at Synergy In Action deal with on a daily basis. There are many answers to those questions; there are technical and medical answers, theoretical answers, theological answers and the answers that lie in the deep-seated beliefs of all of us. For the staff and families served by Synergy In Action, Inc., a disability is an opportunity to help, and a disabled person is someone who needs a little extra help. If you apply that definition in everyday life, then aren’t we all disabled sometimes?
Synergy In Action, Inc. has provided extra help to the disabled in Polk and Rutherford counties for ten years. We provide housing for those that need it, as well as in-home assistance for people living alone or with family. In that respect, Synergy In Action, Inc. may be helping in your neighborhood right now.
The purpose of our services and group homes is to allow individuals with disabilities to maintain housing that is safe, clean and healthy while they get the help they need. There is no citizen in Polk County that deserves less than these standards. The residents of Synergy In Action, Inc. go through a screening process to ensure that they are a good fit for the home as well as for the county. There are policies in place to ensure that no person with a criminal or violent history will be accepted into our programs. The residents and family members of those in our group homes have had no corresponding legal issues and no disturbances of the peace for these years.
In fact, Synergy In Action, Inc. is not standing against Columbus enacting the allowable zoning restrictions if the council sees fit. It has never been the intention of Synergy In Action to do anything unlawful, unethical or against the public good. There have been no laws or ordinances broken by the opening of any of the group homes in this area, and Synergy will continue to abide by the relevant laws if any changes are made. Although the council is within its legal rights to enact this zoning restriction, Synergy In Action, Inc. would like for all people involved in this decision to consider the discriminatory tone of the act. People with disabilities have the same need as any other human being. They are your neighbors already. They are your church members and in your family or your friends’ families. There are disabled adults in every walk of life and they are a daily blessing to those around them.
Synergy In Action, Inc. is a group home provider. We are also a consumer of goods and services and an employer in Polk County. We hope to continue to be a vital contributor to the successful life of Polk County and all its citizens.
Submitted by
Kathy W. Romich
Executive Administrator
Synergy In Action, Inc.
11/27/2012