Above: (Back) Vickie Moreland – Executive Director, Terry Sampson, Susan Doan, Dean Demizio – Vice President, Kimberley Gray, Betty Talbot – President, Ray Rosettani.  (Front): Becky Parton, Pam Coulthurst – Treasurer, Sharon Schilz, and Robert Majkut – Past President.

WELCOME NEW BOARD MEMBERS

REBECCA PARTON joined the Community Living Fort Erie team in June 2018 when she was sworn in as a new Board member.  Rebecca has supported people with intellectual challenges for over thirty years as an Educational Assistant with the DSBN.  She is also a Health & Wellness Coach and has been a citizen of the Fort Erie community her entire life. Mrs. Parton hopes to utilize her years of experience, leadership skills and personal characteristics in the best interest of Community Living Fort Erie focusing on service excellence. She has been involved in many community volunteer projects, including being the organizer of the Terry Fox run for over 20 years. She has participated in the Stair Climb for Cancer, has been a Public Health Educator for local service clubs, developed and facilitated “Women In Motion” and “Home & Health” Programs in our community. Rebecca is also a Rick Hansen Medal Bearer.

Welcome to the team Rebecca!! We know that you will truly be an asset to our organization and make great contributions in your role as a Board Member!!

KIMBERLEY GRAY was sworn in as a new  board member at our 2018 Annual General Meeting.  She has been a licensed lawyer in Ontario since 2015 and worked at Martin Sheppard Fraser LLP and is recently with Hurren & Gibson Law Firm. Kimberley hopes to share her legal perspective with the Board in order to provide advocacy and assistance with our mission, and to ensure people with intellectual challenges are included in their community and have their rights and privileges upheld.

Kimberley has a great deal of experience with advocacy and support of people with disabilities and she brings a great deal of knowledge and experience to our Board.

When are you going to get yourself a job?

A typical question posed by most parents of adolescents and/or young adults.  The Transitional Age Youth (TAY) Summer Program at Community Living ~ Fort Erie offers a supported employment summer program, addressing pre-employment training and employment opportunities that meet the needs of youth between the ages of 14 and 24 with intellectual disabilities.

Those who show interest in the program and are committed to its objectives, receive pre-employment training so as to become job-ready applicants.  In conjunction, the program links TAY participants with inclusive volunteer experiences, work-training, and/or competitive wage employment positions within the local community with the primary aim of full integration with minimal support. Through the development of TAY Plans this aim is achieved, and each participant is matched to a placement opportunity based on their unique goals and interests.

This year the TAY Program numbers were impressive!  Overall, 21 TAY participants were involved in the program.   Seven TAY participants obtained paid employment, 12 TAY participants received volunteer or work-training positions, and 2 TAY participants solely dedicated their time to pre-employment training.  Thus, 90% of participants acquired work-related experience, and of this 90%, 30% of TAY participants successfully landed a job!  These opportunities would not have been available without our community partners and local employers and we thank you for being part of a TAY participants journey into adulthood!

– Marissa Peressotti, TAY Program Coordinator

From the Financial Post :

 “4 Reasons Volunteering May Help Your Career”

1. Networking:  According to the Financial Post, “Networking” is the term job hunters love to hear.
2. Increased Knowledge: A volunteer is exposed to a “plethora of new knowledge and experience as well it gives the individual opportunity to learn how other people and other areas of the community outside of their day-to-day activities operate”.
3. Give Your Résumé Some Leverage:  Volunteering shows an interest in doing new or different things and a willingness to learn.  You may gain experience in a field you are interested in before you make a career transition
4. Fulfillment: Volunteering can take your mind off your day job.  The reward is the sense of accomplishment plus the joy one gets just from helping someone else.

ACCREDITATION

WE DID IT!!

We are so pleased to announce that we have received our second four-year accreditation! 

As part of receiving this accreditation, we must now complete a Quality Improvement Plan (QIP).  This plan must be submitted to Focus Accreditation within 90 days following receipt of our accreditation report and reported on annually thereafter.  The purpose of this plan is to address areas of improvement that were identified during our On-Site Validation. 

Overall, we did very well and everyone should be very proud of the work we do here!

This article was posted in the Fort Erie Times this week…

https://www.forterietimes.ca/2016/02/10/volunteering-for-leisure-buddy-program-will-change-a-life

Our Membership Application form can also be found in our newsletters.  We hope you will consider becoming a member!

Immediately following the flag raising people walked down Garrison Road to heighten awareness of the importance of including people with intellectual challenges in all aspects of community life.
This is known as the “March for Inclusion”.
This annual event is organized by the Advocates in Motion. The group was formed by representatives and people who receive support from Community Living~Fort Erie in 2010.

Terry Sampson, President of the Advocates In Motion (AIM), helps to organize the event with other AIM Committee Members. “This March is to make the Community aware that people with intellectual challenges have the same rights as everyone else and have a voice they’d like to have heard”, stated Sampson.  The fifth annual March for Inclusion took place Friday May 1st, 2015

2015 Fall Newsletter

Summer Newsletter 2015