RAVENNA, Ohio — Four Portage County agencies pooled their resources Friday to assist community members in need during the holiday season.
The Portage County Sheriff's Office, Portage County Health District, Mental Health & Recovery Board of Portage County and Townhall II Integrated Health Network hosted "Portage County Cares Christmas" at Townhall II's Ravenna office at 512 North Chestnut St.
As snow fell in Ravenna, the warmth of soup brought people inside for the community event designed to address mental health stigma and homelessness while providing essential resources.
"It was an idea that came out of our monthly QRT (quick response team) meeting," said Stephanie Perdue, director of quality Improvement at Townhall II. "People are afraid to say they need help. We're here to say it's okay to not be okay. We want people to reach out to us. Mental health, substance abuse, victims of crime, health needs, whatever it is."
The event served hot meals and distributed hats, gloves, scarves, hygiene items, Narcan kits, pantry items and information about additional resources to anyone who attended.
"Things that should be relatively available to you, we're giving that away," Det. Markus Owens at the Portage County Sheriff's Office said.
"It's a tough time of year for individuals - We want people to know they're not alone in this," Perdue said.
The collaborative effort aimed to break down barriers that prevent people from seeking help during the challenging holiday season.
"When you don't have a home or somewhere warm and to stress over the necessities, it's heartbreaking," Kendra Nidiffer with the Portage County Sheriff's Office said. "This is just a tiny bit we can do to give back and say we do care."
Sheriff Bruce Zuchowski emphasized the importance of helping people in recovery and those struggling with addiction.
"Unfortunately, in our line of work, a lot of times we are the last line between here and the graveyard," he said. This is something with recovery, trying to help people, realizing everybody has needs. Sometimes there's things just terrible in their life, and for whatever reason, they become addicted to substances and we want people to realize we're here to help and there's a recovery side to what we do too."
Among those who attended was Nancy Natcher, an Akron woman who lost her job earlier this week. Despite her struggles, she maintained an infectious joy, wearing bells on her shoes as part of her holiday tradition.
"I wear them every year," she smiled. "Every Christmas I wear my bells. It's like my festivities."
With a husband with congestive heart failure, Natcher is currently looking for a new job to help support both of them. In the meantime, she told News 5 this kind of event helps with her immediate needs.
"When you don't have a job, every little bit helps," Natcher said.
Organizers are already working on hosting more events like this in 2026 to continue providing support and breaking down stigma around mental health and homelessness.
Townhall II runs a 24-hour Crisis Helpline at 330-678-HELP (4357) and serves as the designated helpline for the 988 Suicide Crisis Lifeline in Portage County.
Clay LePard is the Ashtabula, Geauga and Portage counties reporter at News 5 Cleveland. Follow him on X @ClayLePard, on Facebook ClayLePardTV or email him at Clay.LePard@wews.com.
