Coshocton woman posthumously honored for her work with Job and Family Services
COSHOCTON − A late employee of Coshocton County Job and Family Services was recently honored posthumously for her work in the children services field.
Jenn Selders was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in January and died in June. The Coshocton native and graduate of Ridgewood High School was 48. She worked for JFS from April 1999 to her death, last serving as an ongoing caseworker and supervisor. In the past she was an intake investigator, family meeting facilitator, intake screener/IV-E caseworker and intensive home based caseworker.
She was recently named the Supervisor of the Year by the Public Children Services Association of Ohio at its annual conference. Selders' family accepted the award on her behalf.
Kathy Art, administrator for the local children services division, said Selders used to joke that she was asked for a two-year commitment during her initial interview. She agreed, but didn't intend to stay that long. However, it turned into her life's work.
"She had a special way of engaging with people and developing relationships with clients, staff members and other professionals in the community," said Art, who had been friends with Selders since the seventh grade. "We’ve laughed many times over the past 23 years about how surprised our teachers would be that we were administrators and working to make children’s lives better daily."
Art said it was not uncommon for previous clients to reach out to Selders for guidance and advice several months after their cases was closed.
"Families knew she cared about them and she would try to point them in the right direction even if she wasn’t currently involved," Art said. "She would do home visits at 6 a.m. or work until 12 a.m. if the job called for the extra hours. Jenn would do what needed to be done to ensure the best interests of children were met."
A nomination form for the award featured quotes from many community professionals and JFS staff members regarding what Selders meant to them.
One read, “Jenn was always there to help, listen, teach and provide guidance. The impact Jenn had was huge and has changed not only hundreds of children’s lives but co-workers' lives as well.”
Another testimonial was, "She is absolutely irreplaceable. She was so good at her job ... Jenn put in the work like no other."
The most telling statement was probably from a mother of five children who was inspired by Selders to return to college and become a caseworker, even though she knew how hard that would be.
"Jenn was a great listener, flexible, committed and very honest. After Jenn was diagnosed, she was still coming to work. To me that showed me commitment, strength and the love she had for these families and our unit," said the woman in the nomination. "Seeing Jenn’s strength made me realize I was capable of taking the next step to become a caseworker. I am thankful for the time and memories made with Jenn while she was our supervisor and will always carry those memories in my heart.”
Leonard Hayhurst is a community content coordinator and general news reporter for the Coshocton Tribune with close to 15 years of local journalism experience and multiple awards from the Ohio Associated Press. He can be reached at 740-295-3417 or llhayhur@coshoctontribune.com. Follow him on Twitter at @llhayhurst.
This article originally appeared on Coshocton Tribune: Coshocton woman posthumously honored for her work
