By Bob Strohm
bstrohm@wbcowqel.com
While Monday may have been a dreary rainy day, the Delectables concession stand is paving the way to a bright and sunny future for its workers.
In its third year under control of the Crawford County Board of Developmental Disabilities, Delectables is the concession stand at Aumiller Park and has served as the training grounds for individuals with developmental disabilities. The goal is to transition those who work and train there into the workforce.
Manager and job coach Katie Martin explained what an average day at Delectables entails.
“We always start out we have to stock the shelves, they pretty much clean to get ready for customers, we start the ice cream machine while they count the inventory and the money to make sure we start off with $50 each day,” Martin said. “Then when the pool opens and it’s a nice day we usually have a ton of customers so they help get the food and they take orders. We also help get the change so we are teaching them how to add money and then give change back.”
Martin, who has been with Delectables for three years, explained what she enjoys most about her job.
“I like being able to help coach them into learning how to do different tasks and then watching them grow and see them develop the skills to be able to do their jobs.”
To change things up this year Delectables will be holding weekly promotions to entice more people to the stand. From July 1 through July 3 Delectables will be holding a good grades promotion. Students who bring in their grade card with A’s and B’s get a free snow cone. On July 4 the concession stand will be doing an Independence Day celebration.
On July 7 Delectables will celebrate “Keep it Cool at the Pool, and offer ice cream at a discounted price. On July 15, taking a note from the Cleveland Indians, Delectables will have a Dollar Dog Day. The stand is currently trying to get sunflower seeds and peanuts to make it like a day at the baseball park.
July 22 will be a carnival day with a photo booth, face painting, and popcorn and drink for $1.50. On July 29 Delectables will have a Hawaiian atmosphere complete with luau with Hawaiian outfits, a hula hoop competition, and snow cones for $.50. Rounding out the year of events on Aug. 5 Delectables will have a Disney theme.
Another new feature for Delectables this year is their foray into social media and following them on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter could result in a cool treat according to Martin.
“So far since we have been telling people about it, we have been offering people a free snow cone to those who show us that they have followed us on one of the sites,” Martin said.
Delectables is open every afternoon of the week from noon until 6. They can be found on Instagram at Delectables_Aumiller Park, on Twitter at Delectables_, and on Facebook @Delectables.