Ann Thompkins

Ann Thompkins, 72, has a special gift for making people feel valued. As the Job Developer at the Lake County Council on Aging, Ann exhibits a keen sense of expertly matching the right person to the appropriate employer, while all the time listening with her heart. No one is just a number to Ann. Her persistent, positive, up-beat attitude helps her clients rebuild their self-esteem when they need it most. Ann joined the agency in 1987, and since turning age 60 in 1991, she has interviewed 5, 400 people, averaging about 450 people per year. Local networking groups value Ann’s expertise and find her to be a good resource in the community. In addition to the free job referral service for those 40 and over, Ann writes a bi-monthly column in LCCoA Bridge newspaper, letting readers know of available jobs. In 1987, Ann began the monthly Job Club Meetings, recruiting speakers and audiences as she provides a comfortable setting for men and women to gain knowledge about the current job market. Job seekers are able to network and also have the opportunity to talk with Ann about their employment search. The LCCoA Job Club Meetings are the longest running Job Clubs in northeast Ohio. Ann also created the Annual Mature Workers’ Job Fair in 1995, and she continues to organize this Fair, drawing up to 60 employers in one location and averaging an attendance of 300 job seekers. Ann is a 37-year member of St. Mary of the Assumption Church in Mentor and member of St. Vincent de Paul Society. She is one of the founders of the Friends of Mentor Public Library and assisted the Wrinkled Writers of Northeast Ohio (a creative writing club for seniors) when they began in 2000.