STONELICK TOWNSHIP, Oh. — GOT Respite stands for "Gift of Time." For years, parents in Clermont County have brought their children with developmental disabilities to the program, but a failed levy is now threatening its future.
Each weekday, Miami Township resident Lori Chowning follows a morning routine — it's all about getting her son Ryan ready for the day.
"It’s pretty low-key until he gets up to get in the shower and then we have a whole routine once he gets in the shower," Chowning said.
Ryan turns 36 next month, and his mom told me he needs a lot of attention.
"He has pervasive developmental delay; he has a lot of autistic tendencies with that," Chowning said.
I spent a morning with Chowning as she had her coffee and then got her son out of bed.
Watch to see what the GOT Respite program means to families across Clermont County:
"Can you get up? Can you get out of bed?” she asked her son.
Chowning then helped Ryan into the shower, where she cleaned and shaved him. She helped him get dressed, clipped his fingernails and made sure he had a new pair of sunglasses on.
Just before 7:30 a.m., the morning routine concluded when a bus arrived to take Ryan to his weekday program.
Besides his weekday program, Ryan is only in someone else's care every other Saturday
at the Clermont County Board of Developmental Disabilities facility, located on US Highway 50 in Stonelick Township.
The program is called GOT Respite, which stands for Gift of Time.
The program runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Ryan spends much of his time watching his favorite shows and movies like Star Wars and Star Trek, while other kids enjoy board games and sports.
It also allows parents to take a break on the weekend or take care of other responsibilities.
“It’s not only respite for the parent, it’s an activity that Ryan gets to go do or their kids get to go do that they don’t have those opportunities," Chowning said.
There are individuals as young as 9 or as old as Ryan at GOT Respite.
“It gives me a break and it gives them the consistency they need," Jessica Redmon, another mom who has two kids who attend GOT Respite, said.
But that consistency may no longer be an option. Clermont DD had a levy on the ballot in May that voters did not approve. In the aftermath of the levy failing, funding for GOT Respite is being cut, with the cuts taking effect in 2027.
GOT Respite costs about $50,000 a year, which equates to approximately $2,000 for every Saturday, according to Clermont DD Superintendent Dan Ottke.
“To lose this program, I’m going to be extremely saddened and don’t know what I’m going to do," Chowning said.
Chowning and other moms have come together to create a board called Clermont DD Empowers Me, which is now working to raise money to keep GOT Respite going.
“We’re sending out a mailer campaign; it will include a letter, it will include the sponsorship levels and what each level means to the business that would potentially support us," board president Rachel Burkhart said.
“It’s a priceless program," Chowning said.
Anyone interested in helping them fundraise can find ways to donate at this link.
Superintendent Ottke provided me with this statement about the levy failing and the future of GOT Respite.
Following the levy failure in May and the decision not to return to the ballot this November, the Board and leadership team at the Clermont County Board of Developmental Disabilities (Clermont DD) were faced with making difficult decisions to slow down the agency's growing budget deficit. One of those difficult decisions was announcing the discontinuation of financial support for the Gift of Time Respite Program starting in 2027.
While communicating this news to the affected families was incredibly tough, the agency has been inspired by the families' subsequent response.
After communicating that difficult news to the families receiving services from that program, it has been inspiring to see them put a grassroots effort together to find a different path to maintain that program through private donations and fundraising efforts. We here at Clermont DD applaud their efforts and want to support them in any way we can to see the program sustained in the new year.
Clermont DD fully backs these families as they work to transition the program into an independently funded model and encourages local businesses, community members, and philanthropic organizations to rally behind their fundraising efforts.
