No matter how many screens of text or pieces of paper he sifts through, Leonard Fears always reminds himself of the people behind the information.

“No one is a number,” Fears, a service coordinator at the Franklin County Board of Developmental Disabilities, said with a smile.

State Rep. Ismail Mohamed of northeastern Franklin County recently sponsored a special recognition of Fears in the Ohio House of Representatives for his dedicated service and contributions to the community. Fears has been with FCBDD for 20 years.

“He’s my boots-on-the-ground type service coordinator, sort of an old-school social worker,” said Scott Smith, Fears’ supervisor at FCBDD. “He gets out there, and that is his strength. He talks to people. Leonard picks up the contextual things you can’t get in an email or even a phone call.”

Brian Hill, a service coordination supervisor who nominated Fears for their department’s You’ve Been Caught (Doing Something Nice) award, said his colleague is appreciated for all “the heart work” he does on behalf of many. Fears said he simply asks himself, “What if that was me?”

You say you discovered your love for social work in Youngstown, where you grew up.

Yes – I worked in group homes, and that was my passion. When I first went to college, I was an art major. That didn’t pan out.

Do you work with a certain population?

I have 55 families; my caseload is traditional kids – those that are non-waiver. It’s very important to connect people with needed resources. A lot of people don’t even know what guardianship means.

Obviously, making contact in-person is a priority for you.

If I haven’t heard from you, I’m going to stop by. When you go into someone’s house, you’re not there to judge. You’re there to see what they need. Sometimes families just need some encouragement or direction.

Being a service coordinator can be a demanding job, right? What keeps you motivated?

If you work on the grassroots part, you learn a lot. A big part of the reason I’m doing this work is because God has blessed me.