Hotel Centered Around Workers With Special Needs Set To Open

From day one, at least 20 percent of the Courtyard by Marriott hotel’s 129-person workforce will be people with developmental and other types of disabilities, according to Sally Morris with The Arc of Indiana, which spearheaded the project.

https://www.disabilityscoop.com/2015/12/18/hotel-special-needs-open/21708/

Teen with Down syndrome makes big impact at part-time job

Dallas News | myFOXdfw.com

by Melissa Cutler from FOX 4  News:

A Highland Park high school student is making an impact at his part-time job.

Nick Jones' task is to make sure every car on his dealership's lot is perfect, and his work is making a bigger impression than he may realize.

One thing that sets 18-year-old Nick apart from many is how happy he is to go to work.

Nick also has Down syndrome and sometimes struggles with words. Otherwise, he's just one of the guys at Park Cities Ford in Dallas.

“This is a big step for Nick to have this opportunity and experience being a contributing member in his community,” said his mom, Katie Jones.

For the past year, the Highland Park senior has worked Monday through Friday after school, checking for unlocked doors.

The best part is that it's his dream job, working near his dream car – the Ford Mustang.

He gets excited every time he sees one.

His mother says things haven't been easy for Nick.

“Back in the day, as they say and thinking he didn't have much of a future because that's what you're told,” said Katie. “That's what the doctors tell you. That's what everyone around you tells you.”

bakery seeks funds through crowsourcing, would provide jobs for those with developmental disabilities

by Larissa Mulkern from NewHampshire.com:
WOLFEBORO — Professionally trained pastry chef Katie Johnson intends to raise more than just bread dough when she opens her new bakery, From Scratch Baking Co., this spring at 45 North Main Street.

Johnson, 29, a 2004 graduate of Kingswood Regional High School, intends to raise awareness and understanding by staffing her new business with workers with developmental disabilities. One of those workers will be her older sister, Kristin, who has Down syndrome but inspires Katie every day.
“I founded the bakery on the principle that while people with disabilities may have a unique set of challenges, they also have incredible talents and skills to offer the workplace.
“Kristin proves this every single day. She has taught me a lot about life and people — she’s very joyful. She tells is like it is.”
And Kristin happens to be very precise, a skill useful when measuring out ingredients, for instance, Katie noted during a recent tour of the new bakery location. Renovations are under way at the former site of the Evergrain natural food store.
Johnson said she chose to open as a business, rather than a nonprofit, to prove that working with people with disabilities is a viable business decision and does not need to be seen as charity. Her employees will work in baking, customer service and landscaping, with each employee matched with a role that aligns with their individual skill sets and talents.

Suit: Papa John's illegally fired worker with Down syndrome

By Jesus Lopez Jr. from Standard-Examiner:

FARMINGTON — Back in September 2011, Scott Bonn started working for the pizza-delivery company Papa John’s folding boxes.

Bonn, who has Down syndrome, got help from the state to fulfill his duties with a job coach.

After a visit to the Farmington location by a Papa John’s operating partner in February 2012, the local franchise owners became aware of the situation and made a call to corporate human resources department.

As a result, Bonn was fired, an EEOC attorney says.

Now the U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment Commission has stepped in with a lawsuit against Papa John’s both at the franchise and corporate level.

Representatives for Papa John’s did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment.

According to the EEOC, Papa John's discriminated against Bonn by failing to reasonably accommodate his Down syndrome and by terminating him because of his disability. Before he was fired, Bonn worked successfully with the assistance of an independently employed and insured job coach.

Job Coach Not Required as Accommodation For Worker With Down Syndrome, Court Says

by Patrick Dorrian from Bloomberg BNA:
July 18 — A food store wasn't required to accommodate an intellectually disabled employee it fired for swearing in front of customers even though the worker's parents had unsuccessfully asked that he be given a job coach for a separate workplace problem, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit ruled July 17.
Affirming a ruling for Jewel Food Stores Inc., the court found the company had no duty under the Americans with Disabilities Act to accommodate Sean Reeves, who has Down syndrome, before firing him after he cursed at and insulted a cashier while a customer was standing nearby.

Company Provided Some Accommodations

Reeves worked for Jewel, a supermarket chain, as a bagger from June 1997 until he was fired in April 2005. According to the court, he received “an array of vocational tutoring early in his tenure with Jewel” to help him perform his essential job duties.
The tutoring included job coaching provided by a social service agency and individual training on daily tasks provided by Jewel's service manager. The service manager also helped Reeves calm down whenever he felt frustrated, the court said.
In addition, Reeves's supervisor completed a daily evaluation form, which was sent to Reeves's parents. Reeves also was exempted from the usual bagger duty of collecting shopping carts from the parking lot.
The cursing incident that resulted in his discharge wasn't the first time Reeves had used profane language in the workplace. Previously, he had cursed at a manager when the table at which Reeves usually ate lunch was used for a wine tasting, and he cursed within earshot of a customer about a woman who complained that Reeves ate her grapes while he was bagging them.
His workplace theft occurred a month before his discharge, when he took an American flag pin from a store shelf without paying for it. He apparently didn't know that the pins were for sale, the court said.
Under Jewel policy, Reeves could have been fired for theft of store merchandise, but the company instead decided to just write up the incident and to notify his parents. Reeves's parents responded by asking if Jewel could bring in a job coach, but Reeves's supervisor believed coaching was unnecessary.
Following Reeves's discharge, his parents sued on his behalf under the ADA. The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois ruled for Jewel.

Easter Seals, Colquitt Regional Medical Center unite to provide jobs

from The Moultrie Observer:
MOULTRIE — Joel Reeves has a job. For most people, that’s not unusual, but for the 23-year-old with Down syndrome it’s a very big deal indeed.

Reeves is one of two people recently hired by Colquitt Regional Medical Center with the assistance of Easter Seals job coaches. Three others are in the Community Work Adjustment program with the goal of being ready to hire by the end of August.

Reeves works in an office behind the emergency room, where he’s helping the hospital become paperless, according to a press release from Easter Seals Southern Georgia.

“When Joel graduated from high school his dream was to work in an office setting and to live in his own apartment,” the press release said. “Both of his dreams have become a reality.”

Down syndrome makes Reeves move slow, so there was some concern that he wouldn’t be able to complete enough work, Easter Seals said. So, after two weeks of training, the hospital and Easter Seals conducted a time study, which found that Reeves completed as much work — and sometimes more — than other workers in the office in the same amount of time.

Conquering the Hill

by Kendall Hatch from MetroWest Daily News:

If there were a list of the most dedicated people at the Massachusetts State House, chances are you'd find John Anton and Melissa Reilly on it.

Anton and Reilly, both adults with Down syndrome, are part-time aides in the offices of a pair of local legislators – Anton works in the office of state Rep. Tom Sannicandro, D-Ashland, and Reilly works for state Sen. Jamie Eldridge, D-Acton. During a joint interview this month in Boston, the pair was eager to talk about their work, both on and off Beacon Hill, and how they got involved in public service.

"I like the work that I'm doing," Anton, a 48-year-old Haverhill resident said. "I live and breathe work and I'm a workaholic when it comes to the work that I do."

Intellectually Disabled Struggling To Find Work

by Sam Hananel from the Huffington Post and AP:
WASHINGTON (AP) — Most Americans with intellectual or developmental disabilities remain shut out of the workforce, despite changing attitudes and billions spent on government programs to help them. Even when they find work, it's often part time, in a dead-end job or for pay well below the minimum wage.
Employment is seen as crucial for improving the quality of life for people with these disabilities and considered a benchmark for measuring the success of special education programs. Yet the jobs picture is as bleak now it was more than a decade ago.
Only 44 percent of intellectually disabled adults are currently in the labor force, either employed or looking for work, while just 34 percent are actually working, according to a survey by Special Olympics and conducted by Gallup and the University of Massachusetts at Boston. That compares with 83 percent of nondisabled, working-age adults who are in the workforce.
"The needle has not changed in more than four decades," said Gary Siperstein, professor at the University of Massachusetts and one of the authors of the study. "We just can't move the barometer. And we've invested a lot of resources with lots of good programs around the country."
Intellectual disability can include conditions such as autism or Down syndrome. But the vast majority of cases are those with limited intellectual capacity — generally an IQ of about 75 or less — and limitations in handling basic life skills, such as counting money or taking public transportation.
About 28 percent of working-age adults with intellectual disabilities have never held a job. Even those who do manage to find jobs often end up working only part time and get lower pay than workers without disabilities, the study found. On the positive side, 62 percent of disabled people who work in a competitive setting have been there three years or more, showing they can work and stay with it.
"A lot of the problem has to do with low expectations," said Lynnae Ruttledge, a member of the National Council on Disability, an independent federal agency that advises the government on disability policy. "Schoolteachers don't have high expectations, and parents tend to be very protective of their children."
But attitudes are changing, she said. There are now more programs to help disabled children to gain work experience while still in school, making it easier to find a job. Many intellectually disabled people work in fast food, and retail chains such as Walgreens, Best Buy and Safeway that have stepped up to hire them.

Walker focuses on hiring people with disabilities

by Scott Bauer from The Chippewa Herald:
Nobody can fold a box quite like Patrick Young.
Gov. Scott Walker learned that first hand as Young, who has Down syndrome, led a 2012 tour of Tailored Label Products in Menomonee Falls. Young challenged Walker to put together specialized packaging used by the company _ think of it as a complicated pizza box _ as quickly as he could. As Walker fumbled at the flaps, Young adroitly snapped everything into place in seconds.
Walker said meeting Young helped inspire an initiative he unveiled in his State of the State speech last week. The effort, called "A Better Bottom Line," is aimed at getting more Wisconsin companies to hire people with disabilities including autism, Down syndrome, cerebral palsy, traumatic brain injury and mental illness.
People with disabilities account for about 9 percent of the state's workforce, based on data provided by Disability Rights Wisconsin. But their employment rate is less than one-third that of workers without disabilities, and workers with disabilities on average earn 30 percent less.
Walker has proposed spending $800,000 by mid-2015 to expand an on-the-job training program for workers with disabilities. He hopes to expand the program from seven to 27 companies over the next three years.

Vatican Radio's newest intern

from Vatican Radio:
Vatican Radio’s English section is proud to introduce our newest intern, Michael Gannon. The Director of Vatican Radio’s English Section, Sean-Patrick Lovett, first met Michael at the “Think Different, Think Europe” event hosted by Vatican Radio last May. It is a project associated with the Europe for Citizenship programme for the EU, and brought together citizens from different EU countries who have Down Syndrome. It was there that Michael suggested an internship at the Radio. Michael is the first person with Down Syndrome to do an internship at any Vatican office.

We have asked him to tell us more about himself. Listen:


My aims for this week

Hey folks this is Michael Gannon here. Just to introduce myself to one and all: I am from Ireland, I have lived in Kildare all my life. I have one brother and one sister and myself and my parents. We are out-going, we do different things together like celebrating Christmas, New Year, we support Kilkenny in the hurling and follow Kildare in the football and I support Manchester United
The one thing that you need to know is that I am a very hard worker myself. And keep very busy in what I do.

Pizzeria gives student with Down syndrome first job

by Jessica Pace from Franklin Home Page:

On Monday evenings and Saturday afternoons, his family drops him off or stays for dinner while he works rolling silverware, wiping tables and opening the door to customers under the supervision of owner Marc Hanmer.
Hanmer has been in the restaurant business for 24 years and has hired employees with disabilities before in restaurants he previously owned.
“There are things we can do for them. There are menial tasks a lot of people don’t like to do, but task-oriented individuals don’t mind doing, like rolling silverware,” Hanmer said.
“We’re trying it out to see if it works.”
Schrupp started going to Brixx with his family in 2011 when the restaurant first opened because the menu offers gluten-free pizza. Schrupp has celiac disease, an autoimmune disorder irritated by gluten, so he pushes that particular menu item.
“We’ve got the best gluten-free pizza,” he said.
“Steven said he wanted to work there, and the owner said when he’s old enough, he can,” his mother, Susan Schrupp, said.
As an extrovert, Schrupp is getting along with both employees and customers.
“Customers like him, and we have a loyal base of customers here. A lot of people are starting to recognize him. He’s friendly,” Hanmer said.
The owner said Schrupp has to work on understanding when the tables are clean.
“It’s challenging, but he’s a good kid and deserves the opportunity to do something.”
Now that he has an income, Schrupp’s paychecks are going into the bank, and he said he does have a purchase in mind.
“I put it in my bank account. I want to buy a video game, and save it for college,” Schrupp said.
His mother added, “That’s what he wants to do. We’re looking at programs at Vanderbilt; they have a two-year program for people with disabilities. That’s his mission.”

LGH volunteer program a boon for hospital and volunteers alike

by Eileen O. Daday from the Daily Herald:
Tuesdays are special for Owen Laatsch, 22, of Arlington Heights. That's when he shows up to volunteer at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge in the kitchen prep area alongside his mentor, Joe Zajac.
Last week, when Laatsch set out on his shift, he gave Zajac a high-five and declared to his mother, "He's the man!"
Laatsch has Down syndrome and is a patient at the hospital's Adult Down Syndrome Center, where increasingly its staff is promoting volunteering as part of its holistic approach to treatment.
"When he gets up on Tuesdays, he's just giddy," says Laatsch's mother, Cathy Laatsch. "He loves coming here and the teamwork involved."
Over the last year, 12 adults with Down syndrome have begun volunteering at the hospital, in the food and nutrition area, pediatric therapy department and gift shop — even the childbirth education department and the Adult Down Syndrome Center itself, greeting and escorting patients.
The center has treated 5,500 patients with Down syndrome over the last 20 years. An expansion last year allowed it to bring more healthy lifestyle programs to its patients, enhancing its holistic approach.
"We meet the medical needs of our patients but we also want to meet their life needs," says Dr. Brian Chicoine, an Arlington Heights resident and center director. "We work with them, their families and social agencies to promote health."

Man With Down Syndrome Celebrates 25 Years on Job

by Jerry Askin from WTVC News Channel 9:

A Dalton man was honored Thursday for 25-years of service on his job.
 
The 44-year-old has Down syndrome and had no idea he would be surprised for this milestone.

We were there as friends, family, and co-workers honored Andy Jackson.

Andy is the head bagger at the Dalton Kroger on Cleveland Highway. People who know and work with Andy tell us he's truly an angel to his customers and everyone he encounters.

"He's very friendly with our customers, and if he can make it 25-years in this kind of business is amazing to all of us," says Andy's co-worker Tonya Moses.

"It makes him feel good when people appreciate him, and I think most of the people have done so," says Edmond Jackson, Andy's father.

We asked Andy what's been the highlight of his 25-years. He said, "Bagging and talking with customers."

Andy Jackson tells us he has no plans to retire and wants to work at his  Kroger store for at least 30-more years.

Crestview man: 'I used to have Down syndrome'

by Brian Hughes from the Crestview News Bulletin:

CRESTVIEW — Life for Danny Parker is much like that for anyone else. He gets up, sometimes takes a spin on his four-wheeler, reports to work and comes home to his family.
Having Down syndrome hasn't deterred him, Parker's family members say. To his customers in the Wal-Mart garden center, he's another helpful employee.
"I never thought about it much," Paige Parker, his older sister, said. "There's five kids in the family and we didn't treat him any different than anyone else. He was aggravating at times and loving at times, just like any other brother."
Danny Parker has worked at Wal-Mart for 20 years, and is well known to many shoppers. With a restricted driver’s license, he is often able to drive himself to and from work.
"The customers love Danny," Paige said. "He has regular customers who come in and ask for him. Wal-Mart's been very good to them.”

Jim Dial, who served as judicial center mail clerk for 11 years, died Friday morning at the age of 50

from the Covington News:
Beloved local Jim Dial, who served as judicial center mail clerk for 11 years, died Friday morning at the age of 50.
Dial, who had down syndrome, was known for his sunny personality and loving attitude. He inspired the same attitudes in others.
“For me, Jim was just an inspiration as to how we all should live life to its fullest, and with his challenges he did that. He was an inspiration on how we should all look at life, with or without challenges,” said Superior Court Judge Horace Johnson.
Dial was first appointed to deliver mail to the courts by former county chairman Davis Morgan; fellow employees often praised Dial’s dedication.
“Jim just came in and stole everyone's heart,’’ said Superior Court Clerk Linda Hays at a reception for Dial in 2009. "We look out for him - from the bottom of the building to the top. And I think that having him here has given us all an insight into down syndrome. We have all learned how intelligent he is and what a sense of humor he has. He has a heart bigger than the whole state, and he takes him job very seriously.’’

Hahnville grad with Down syndrome becomes advocate for those with disabilities

 by Kyle Barnett from the St. Charles Herald Guide:
Craig Blackburn has a motto by which he lives.
“Never give up. That’s my message. Never give up,” he said. “If you have fears don’t look back, look ahead.”
That is a message the 34-year-old Hahnville High School graduate has been carrying through his entire life, and Blackburn has had to overcome a lot. He was born with Down syndrome as well as a heart defect that had to be repaired through open heart surgery when he was an infant.
Now, Blackburn has been able to accomplish so much that he has become an advocate for others with disabilities.
He is on the board of the Down Syndrome Association of Greater New Orleans and regularly travels the region and country giving speeches to educators and those within the disabled community. In recent years, he spoke to a crowd of 1,300 at Tulane University and also traveled to Qatar to give a speech.
“It’s about educators and families and their child’s future to tell them they can do it and not to give up on their dreams. When I do my presentation it is like making them believe what they can do and don’t look back,” he said.

Meet a superhero with a soft touch

by Steve Hartman from CBS News:

(CBS News) WILMINGTON, Del. -- Jonathan Stoklosa is a young man who has incredible power -- the power to lift your spirits and just about anything else. We met him "on the road."

Unlike most super heroes, Jonathan, 31, still lives with his parents.


"Come on!" shouted his mother from upstairs in their home.

And unlike most super heroes, Jonathan doesn't wake up ready to save the world.

"Were you sleeping?" his mother asked him as he came down the stairs.

And unlike most super heroes, Jonathan was born with Down syndrome. Nevertheless, he's still one powerful crusader.

man with Down syndrome retires from company after 23 years

from the Wicked Local.com:
After 23 years of service, Randy Dottin is retiring from Houghton Chemical Corporation. Dottin is visually, verbally, mentally and physically challenged. As occurs with most people with Down syndrome, Dottin now suffers from Alzheimer’s, forcing his retirement.
Dottin was employed through the Walnut Street Center, a service for special needs people in Cambridge/Somerville. Over these past 23 years, he became an integral part of the corporation, greeting arriving visitors, emptying the trash, stuffing, stamping and sending mailings. Most importantly he provided a sense of joy and play to what would only have been a business atmosphere. Employees will never forget him leading the chicken dance, Macarena and electric slide in the middle of the office, his consistent marriage proposals to every woman in the office without prejudice of their religion, country of origin or marital status and the joy of playing Simon Says or hide and go seek.

Gretzky's least known achievement: Changing Joey Moss forever

by Tom Braid from the Edmonton Sun:
Sometimes the simplest question can receive the most powerful answer.
"Thank you very much ... (for) my life."
That's how 49-year-old Joey Moss -- who has Down Syndrome and who has been an Edmonton Oilers' dressing room attendant for 29 years -- responded when asked what he would say to Wayne Gretzky if he had the chance now.
Stephen Moss, Joey's 45-year-old brother and guardian, says Gretzky positively changed not only Joey's life but that of the Moss family.
It all began when Vickie Moss, Joey's sister, met Gretzky one night in 1981 when she was singing at a local bar.
"He comes into our lives, this is where Wayne's pixie dust sprinkles," says Stephen.
"Everything blossoms, we have a better life, way better, absolutely magical."
First thing, says Stephen, "He gives my mom a job, in charge of his fan mail."
In 1981, Gretzky had up to 20,000 pieces of mail come in garbage bags ever week.
Sophie Moss had been a widower since 1977; she was "scraping by" with three of her 13 kids still at home.
With the fan mail job, she made extra money to support the family.
Then, in 1984, Joey followed Stephen into the Oilers' locker room as a staff member.
Wayne had previously asked Joey if he was happy at his bottle depot job and Joey answered with his exuberant "YES!"

couple with Down syndrome land jobs, find love

by Sonya Padgett from The San Francisco Chronicle:

The way Michelle Desrochers looks at her boyfriend and then places her hand in his, you can tell she adores him.

He understands her, Desrochers, 24, says of Carlos Sierra. He treats her with respect and kindness, opens doors for her and even finishes her sentences.

They are wildly in love. They plan to marry. First, though, they must both complete couples counseling and life skills training, which will teach them how to be in a relationship and how to live independently.

Sierra, 29, and Desrochers have Down syndrome, a genetic disorder caused by the presence of an extra chromosome.

Those born with the syndrome experience mild to moderate intellectual disabilities and delayed physical development. Many suffer from heart problems and other health conditions that can shorten their life expectancy. According to the National Institutes of Health, about 6,000 babies in the U.S. are born every year with the condition.

March 21 was World Down Syndrome Day, observed to help raise awareness of people with Down syndrome and the challenges they face, including a society that may not realize they are people who have hopes, dreams and desires.

If there is one thing Desrochers' mother, Barbara, would want people to know, it's that those with Down syndrome are capable of many things. They can live full, happy lives and even have successful relationships.

Her daughter and Sierra are good examples of that.