October Newsletter
OCTOBER WAYFINDER
October is when many businesses begin planning holiday parties, employee appreciation events, and year-end celebrations. As you choose a venue, plan the menu, and organize activities, make reviewing your Drug-Free Workplace policy part of the preparation.
Holiday gatherings are an opportunity to thank employees and celebrate your organization’s accomplishments. Planning ahead helps keep those celebrations safe, welcoming, and consistent with the expectations you set throughout the year.
C.A.R.E.: A Simple Framework for Suicide Prevention & Awareness
When someone is struggling with their mental health or experiencing thoughts of suicide, knowing what to say or do can feel overwhelming. You may worry about saying the wrong thing or wonder whether it is your place to step in.
GAP Con 2026: Momentum
Save the Date
Working Partners® is excited to invite our clients and friends to GAP Con 2026: Momentum, presented by our partner, EQUES Law Group!
BUILD ON WHAT YOU’VE EARNED.
GAP Con is a one-day practical summit for Ohio business owners and leaders focused on clear ideas, useful tools, and relationships that can help move your organization forward.
For more than 13 years, GAP Con has brought together business owners, operators, and community leaders for a focused day of practical insight and meaningful connection.
This year’s theme—Momentum—is about more than simply staying busy. It’s about protecting the skills, trust, people, and systems you’ve worked hard to build and intentionally directing them toward what comes next.
WHAT CAN YOU EXPECT?
✓ Six grounded, 40-minute sessions ✓ Practical tools you can put to work the next day ✓ Conversations around leadership, strategy, execution, and compliance ✓ Opportunities to connect with other local business owners and leaders ✓ Lunch included
The day will explore three key areas:
GROW Clarity, strategy, and capability building.
ACCELERATE Processes, tools, and tempo that compound.
PROPEL Culture, leadership, and community impact.
📍 CHOOSE YOUR GAP CON
HOLMES COUNTY
📅 October 15, 2026
⏰ 8:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
📍 Holmes Center for the Arts
5200 OH-39, Millersburg, Ohio
🍽️ Lunch included
GUERNSEY COUNTY
📅 November 19, 2026
⏰ 8:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
📍 Pritchard Laughlin Civic Center
7033 Glenn Highway, Cambridge, Ohio
🍽️ Lunch included
🎟️ GRAB YOUR TICKETS TODAY!
Whether you’re a business owner, executive, manager, HR professional, or emerging leader, GAP Con is an opportunity to step away from the day-to-day, connect with other Ohio leaders, and walk away with ideas you can actually put into action.
Working Partners® would love to see our clients and friends there
👉 Learn more and grab your tickets before they sell out: https://www.gapconohio.com
We hope to see you at GAP Con 2026: Momentum!
The Working Partners® Team
Put Your Drug-Free Workplace Program Into Practice During National Drug-Free Work
A drug-free workplace policy should be something employees understand and supervisors know how to use. National Drug-Free Work Week, October 12–16, 2026, gives employers an opportunity to bring their programs into focus. The observance promotes safe, healthy workplaces and encourages people experiencing substance use problems to seek help.
Mocktail Recipes
🍂 This crisp and refreshing mocktail is perfect for employee appreciation events, wellness activities, safety meetings, and fall celebrations.
How does this support your Drug-Free Workplace Program? Providing alcohol-free mocktails at workplace events reinforces your organization's commitment to a safe, healthy, and inclusive environment. It encourages positive social interactions without alcohol, supports employees in recovery or those who choose not to drink, and demonstrates that celebrations can be both enjoyable and aligned with your workplace wellness and drug-free initiatives.
✨ Healthy choices can still be festive! Celebrate the season while strengthening a workplace culture focused on wellness, safety, respect, and being drug-free.
CALENDAR REMINDER
9/30/26: Ohio BWC SUPR Program PUBLIC SECTOR annual reports were due; reach out to your Ohio BWC representative if you missed this deadline
10/12-10/16/26: National Drug-Free Workplace Week
11/25-11/27: Beginning at noon on November 25 Working Partners® will be closed for the Thanksgiving Holiday
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