Beacons to bring hope

The task force asked the state attorney general's office for up to 1,000 of the porch beacons.
By ROGER G. SMITH
CITY HALL REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Many more porches in the city are about to get a flash of light to cut through the night.
The Mayor's Task Force on Crime and Violence Prevention is expecting to soon receive hundreds of emergency porch light bulbs. Elderly city residents will get the beacons.
The bulbs can be set to flash if there is an emergency. Such lights alert neighbors to problems and help police, fire and rescue crews locate the house.
The Rev. Alfred Coward, task force chairman, told the group Friday that the Ohio Attorney General's Office will pay for the beacons. He is not sure how many the state will buy, but he asked for up to 1,000.
The 60-watt bulbs act normal when you flip the switch once. Flick the switch a couple times, however, and the bulbs blink.
The bulbs are supposed to last 2,000 hours and can be seen 125 feet away even in daylight. Each beacon costs between $8 and $12.
The money will come from the state's tobacco settlement lawsuit. Some of the tobacco money is earmarked for senior citizens.
Distribution decisions
Task force members are deciding how to distribute the beacons it receives. The Rev. Mr. Coward expects to find out later this month how many bulbs are coming. Even more bulbs could be coming, too.
Humility of Mary Health Partners is seeking a grant to provide the task force with more flashing bulbs, Mr. Coward said. He expects to hear soon about that effort.
Weed and Seed -- a South Side crime prevention and neighborhood restoration group -- bought 200 of the bulbs this summer. Block-watch groups in the area have distributed most of them to older residents. Emergency beacons are one of two elements to the task force's Save Our Seniors program. The other is collecting unwanted cellular telephones and chargers.
Alltel reprograms the phones for free to call only 911. The task force redistributes the phones to older people.
Collection and redistribution continues. Donations of old cell phones can be made by calling Mr. Coward's office at (330) 747-4445 or dropping the phone off at his church, Mount Calvary Pentecostal Church on Oak Hill Avenue.
rgsmith@vindy.com