Good Works Columbus: January 13, 2025
Community Conversations, Medicaid feedback, Transit Columbus, Beers and Board Games
Intro
Hi everyone, welcome to Good Works Columbus, a newsletter highlighting actions you can take at the local level to help improve our community.
If you have an upcoming event or a link you’d like to share for the newsletter, feel free to send suggestions. And if you know someone who might enjoy Good Works Columbus, forward it to them and tell them to subscribe here.
Things you can do in person
Matter News Community Conversations: The Prison Abolition Movement
Thursday, January 16th 8:00PM
Two Dollar Radio Headquarters, 1124 Parsons Ave
Join representatives from the Returning Artists Guild and In the Belly – a publication produced for and by the incarcerated – to talk about the work of prison abolition, the harms enacted by the prison industrial complex, and the challenges of maintaining a sense of humanity while living within a system that treats people as anything but.Transit Columbus January Meeting 🚍
Date: Tuesday, January 14, 2025
Time: 7:00 PM
Link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/89360279150?pwd=kY3kYJCXAO2JxCNJQI3bAWigDVND7G.1
Passcode: 597341
Want better public transit options and safer streets? Come join Transit Columbus at their monthly meeting.Rally against Trump’s Far-Right Billionaire Agenda 🗣️
Honor MLK - Fight Back against the ultra-right and billionaire agenda January 20th! Over 70 cities across the U.S. will be in the streets to fight back against the billionaire agenda. The Trump administration is promising tax cuts for the rich, mass deportations of immigrants, higher costs for housing and basic necessities, and the erasure of LGBTQ+ rights, which threatens the entire working class. This is why thousands of people are preparing to fight back to defend our peoples rights, advance a working class agenda that puts people before profit, and demand an end to U.S. wars of aggression in Latin America, the Middle East, Africa, and in Asia and that our government use society’s enormous wealth to improve lives, not to destroy them. Join the protest, join the movement!
Monday, January 20 (MLK Day & Inauguration Day)12PM NOON
Ohio Statehouse, 1 Capitol Sq (Facing High St!)
Bring your family, friends, and neighbors!
FLOW: Ohio School for the Deaf Conservation Easement Work Day 💧
Saturday, January 25th
10:00AM-12:00PM
Ohio School for the Deaf, 500 Morse Rd.
We will be working on continuing the restoration of the conservation easement behind the Ohio School for the Deaf. All supplies and snacks will be provided, just come dressed for the weather and ready to work outside. To enter the Ohio School for the Deaf property, drive up to the security gate off Morse Rd, and let them know you are here for a FLOW event. Drive straight back from the gate towards the water towers, and look for FLOW event signs.Beers and Board Games benefiting Transit Columbus 🍻
Join Beers and Boards Games Club this month to benefit Transit Columbus.
We play every week at rotating breweries around central Ohio and usually have between 20-40 attendees at each of our events. We always have new folks joining us, so whether you’re an experienced gamer or new to the hobby, we’d love to play with you — join our Facebook group or Discord server for the latest events and member discussions, follow us on Instagram, and subscribe to our quarterly-or-less email newsletter.Wednesday, January 15, 5:30-9:00pm
Olentangy River Brewing @ 303 Green Meadows DrThursday, January 16, 5:30-9:00pm
Nocterra Audubon @ 516 Maier PlWednesday, January 22, 5:30-9:00pm
Olentangy River Brewing @ 303 Green Meadows DrThursday, January 23, 5:30-9:00pm
Nocterra Audubon @ 516 Maier PlWednesday, January 29, 5:30-9:00pm
Olentangy River Brewing @ 303 Green Meadows DrThursday, January 30, 5:30-9:00pm
Nocterra Audubon @ 516 Maier Pl
E Broad Bike Lane Survey 🚲
If you’ve traveled along E Broad St recently in the Near East you may have noticed the newly installed protected bike lanes. I’ve used them a few times and it’s certainly an improvement over the paint only lanes around the city. If you get the chance, try it out for yourself and be on the lookout for yard signs along the route with links to a survey for feedback.
Things you can do online
Medicaid public comment opportunity
Ohio is preparing to strip Medicaid from more than 60,000 people. Here’s what you should know.
"The state of Ohio recently submitted a proposal to require people between the ages of 19 and 55 to prove they are employed in order to be eligible for Medicaid coverage. They call the proposal a “work requirement,” but that’s just another name for Medicaid cuts. It will kick an estimated 61,826 Ohioans off health insurance and add significant paperwork and other hurdles to a program that is already difficult to navigate.”
The Department of Medicaid is hearing public comments on the new requirements until January 16th at 5pm. Email comments to GroupVIII@medicaid.ohio.gov. For a sample email check out the link from Policy Matters Ohio.Leaders Listen Economic Development survey
This survey is part of the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission (MORPC) and The Columbus Dispatch’s Leaders Listen Series, a set of short public opinion polls that invite Central Ohio community members to provide their input on important community development topics. Please complete this survey to share your insights on housing (and transportation) issues and opportunities impacting the region.(~6 minutes) Bronzeville Food Co-op 🛒
Help bring a local, community-owned grocery store to the Near East. Take an online survey sharing your grocery needs and wants and enter for a chance to win a gift card.
In Case You Missed It
LinkUS Engagement Survey (2 minutes)
Mark up the Vision Zero Columbus map. Have a close call walking, biking, or getting around town? Do you know a dangerous intersection that can be improved? Help identify these spots on the Vision Zero map.
Have a great day everyone!