Rough Notes Company presents 11th annual Community Service Award

Recipient Craig Moon is working to improve the quality of life for autistic adults

By Bob Bloss

Ever heard a whisper of criticism, or better yet a loud shout about the insurance industry and its people? Yes? Imagine that!

You can be certain that some research statistician could accurately point out that the barbs aimed at our industry would outscore “hoorays” by probably hundreds-fold. And when a rare kudo is uncovered, it’s likely to appear in a hidden paragraph toward the end of a news story.

Recognizing that reality, The Rough Notes Company annually is proud to spotlight and headline an insurance “hooray” by saluting an agent or agency that personifies noble charitable and philanthropic impulses.

This year’s winner of the 11th annual Rough Notes Community Service Award is Craig T. Moon, CIC, CPIA, president of the Moon & Adrion Insurance Agency, Inc., of Middletown, Ohio. At a recognition ceremony in Indianapolis in March, Craig received a specially designed Eagle sculpture; and his charity—Safe Haven Farms—received a $5,000 donation from The Rough Notes Company.

Safe Haven Farms is a Southwest Ohio community of choice for adults with autism and is dedicated to “...creating a quality of life that our sons and daughters would thank us for if they could speak.”

Craig was nominated for his lengthy devotion—along with his wife Melanie—of time, energy and financial support in creating and continuing development of Safe Haven Farms.

Very often the impetus for a particular philanthropic activity relates directly to issues affecting close relatives and friends—matters of the home and heart. Such is the case with Craig and Melanie. Their 26-year-old daughter, Adria, affectionately known as Addie, is autistic.

As is typical of most patients afflicted with autism, Addie is thought to have been born with the malady. “Autism,” says Craig, “is a neurologic disorder that has no known cause. It has reached virtually epidemic proportions here in the early 21st century.

“One child in every 100 is born with autism,” he continues. “Many theories exist regarding reasons for the recent increase. Some suggest a relationship with various medications and updated technical equipment, but nobody really knows for certain. Medical researchers are tracking a possible connection between autism and Alzheimer’s, but it’s far too early to cite conclusions yet.”

Craig explains, “Our daughter is living with us for a purpose. Truly, it has affected us in a positive way. Addie is a happy, 26-year-old young lady. Every day she wakes with a smile and bounces out of bed. But she cannot communicate verbally. Her vocabulary is that of about a 22-month old toddler. We help her get dressed, deliver her breakfast to her, and gladly give her a hand with getting the day started.”

In demographic terms, Addie Moon is a young adult. While public and private elementary and high school special training facilities and curricula are available to America’s school age children with autism, there are few options for autistic adults. Safe Haven Farms is to be a permanent facility, with residential and day care options for autistic adults beyond traditional high school age. When Craig Moon learned about this mission, he stepped in immediately during the planning stages.

Safe Haven Farms, Inc., is expected to begin serving adults with autism late this spring or early summer. It will be situated in a neighboring Butler County, Ohio, location near Middletown. Focal points are the six separate four-person houses for permanent residents. Several other buildings on the 60-acre site—a former horse farm—will also serve the needs of autistic adults who commute on a daily basis.

Safe Haven Farms is designed to provide a variety of meaningful living, working, learning, and leisure activities in a safe and accepting environment. Each individual is respected as a valued and contributing community member. Daily activities include biking, hiking, gardening, crafts, horticulture, and regularly scheduled recreational programs.

Craig Moon emphasizes that Safe Haven is a “gentlemen’s farm.”

“We have chickens, sheep, goats—the smaller farm animals. And we offer therapeutic horseback riding at both indoor and outdoor riding arenas. Soon a swimming pool will be operative. The farm lends itself to a quiet, peaceful environment where our autistic guests can relax away from the noises and congestion which typically interfere with their sensory issues.”

Serving as models for Safe Haven are six similar communities of choice for adults with autism. Those are located in Whitehouse, Ohio; in Pittsboro and Albemarle, North Carolina; in Runnels, Iowa; in Hillsborough, New Hampshire; and at Cornville, Arizona. Their common features include a rural setting near small towns, on-site vocational opportunities, well-trained supervisory and teaching staffs, and community integration and support. All are located near medical centers.

Dennis Rogers, recently retired General Electric Company aeronautics engineer, is president of Safe Haven Farms. He and his wife are also parents of an adult child with autism. A few years ago Dennis served on the board of his county’s Office of Developmental Disabilities. A staff member suggested that Dennis should meet with Craig and Melanie Moon, who were also interested in learning about a farm for autistic adults.

“We hit it off right from the beginning,” Dennis recalls. “First off, our daughters live near each other. Craig and Melanie had lots of good ideas and are so enthusiastic. They were truly instrumental in starting our project and then keeping it rolling. I was just beginning to learn about the community here, but Craig’s been here his whole life and knows it well. And he knows the well entrenched people, too—builders, bankers, attorneys, trustees, and so forth.

“Craig had just completed a term on a board that oversees people with various types of disabilities in Butler County, so it was simply an extension of his community service to become involved with the Safe Haven project,” Dennis continues. “Active in their church for many years, he and his wife have extensive experience with various fundraisers. We would not be where we are with Safe Haven Farms had it not been for all their hard work and their many contacts.”

Special events, many of which the Moons helped to organize, have raised money for the farms, supplementing significant revenues donated by commercial enterprises and private contributors.

These donations augment important revenues received from federal, state, and local Medicaid and Social Security disability benefits for which Safe Haven enrollees’ families are eligible. A vital requirement for participants and their families is this one: “Must have sufficient funds to pay living expenses.”

Other prerequisites for Safe Haven admission consideration include: being at least age 18 and out of school; must have an autism spectrum diagnosis; have physical ability to contribute to farm activities; must have a Medicaid Individual Options waiver with funding sufficient to cover staffing needs, or the ability to pay privately. Residents of the farm are served by a staff extensively trained in autism. Safe Haven’s service provider is RMS, a privately owned human services organization licensed and funded by the state of Ohio. All persons employed at Safe Haven Farms receive specific instructions for each individual who is a resident or a day program attendee. This helps to ensure that all participants receive the love and care they need and deserve.

Robert N. Kretzmer, executive director of The Rough Notes Company’s Community Service Award program, has studied and analyzed hundreds of worthy nominations over the past 11 years and offers this observation concerning the 2010 winner:

“Craig Moon is an extraordinary example of the kind of sincere, philanthropic citizen in whom the entire independent insurance industry can take great pride. Too often—not only at our industry but others too—actual and perceived failings and negatives are broadly accentuated. Good deeds are frequently overlooked. As a result, the public—and men and women within our own industry—seldom are made aware of the successful humanitarian exploits of people like Craig Moon whose efforts and concerns for their communities reflect brightly on America’s insurance practitioners.”

Craig has served his company’s insurance customers for more than 33 years. A 1976 graduate of Ohio’s Otterbein College, he became the third generation to work in the family’s business that was founded in 1921.

Looking to the future and continuing a long-standing family tradition, Melanie and Craig’s son, Talbott C. Moon (Tal, age 28), has joined the Moon & Adrion Insurance Agency. He represents the family’s fourth generation with the company. “Tal cares as much as his mother and I do about the value and importance of taking that extra step to help serve the needs of our community,” says Craig. “And, at the office, he’ll do even better with our insurance business than the three generations that preceded him.”

The Rough Notes Company is proud to add the name of Craig T. Moon to our growing cast of Community Service Award recipients.

Every year Rough Notes magazine readers are encouraged to nominate independent insurance agents who might qualify for the annual Community Service Award. A nomination form and criteria information will appear in a Rough Notes issue later this year.

For more information:
Safe Haven Farms
Web site: www.safehavenfarms.org