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Hamilton Spectator
06-05-2025
- General
- Hamilton Spectator
Cooking with heart: Fort Erie students help honour Community Living volunteers
Community Living Fort Erie celebrated its volunteers recently with a special dinner cooked up by the students at Pomegranate Restaurant located inside Greater Fort Erie Secondary School (GFESS). Held April 30 as part of Community Living Month, the volunteer appreciation night honoured volunteers for their time, commitment and impact on local programs that support individuals with developmental disabilities. The three-course dinner was prepared and served by students under the guidance of culinary teacher, Afshin Keyvani. Community Living board of directors chair Betty Talbot, kicked off the event by thanking the many volunteers who fill roles ranging from e-gaming and administrative work, to leisure buddy programs and fundraising. 'What you do matters more than you know,' she said. 'You may not always see the full ripple effect of your efforts, but let me assure you, you make a big difference.' Margaret Fidler, manager of community development, also took time to honour the short-term and long-term volunteers at the event. 'This kind of teamwork is rare, and it's something I'll always treasure,' Fidler said. 'Your efforts have brought joy to countless families and made a lasting impact on this community, and on me personally.' The evening was planned to celebrate the work of Community Living's volunteers, but also marked the end of an era as the organization bid farewell to Fidler, who is retiring. To close the evening, office administrator Tiyanna Schooley, gave a heartfelt speech to honour Fidler's impact. 'I've been here five months, and what I learned is that this woman seriously, loves, cares and appreciates you guys all so much,' she said. 'She genuinely cares, and I've never seen someone who embodies their career and cares so much about the people she serves.' The dinner, sponsored by Bill Marr of Garrison Automotive Service, was one of many events planned for Community Living Month. On Tuesday, the organization raised its Community Living flag at Fort Erie Town Hall, with Mayor Wayne Redekop in attendance. 'They had a lot of people turn out, it was great,' said Talbot. As plates were cleared and dessert was served, applause filled the room not only for the volunteers, but also for the students that made the dinner possible. Student Harper James said the experience of being part of the culinary program has opened up opportunities she never imagined. 'There's (a lot) of different experiences that I would have never even thought of or known of until I took culinary arts and met a teacher like (Keyvani),' said James, who has participated in the program for three years. James is also involved in Skills Ontario competitions and has been a part of relaunching the school's in-house restaurant, the Pomegranate, which had been dormant since the COVID-19 pandemic. 'We started (the Pomegranate) again last year after getting back into everything after COVID,' she said. 'Last year was the first year bringing it back to GFESS.' Keyvani, who teaches culinary arts at the school, said the culinary students are often involved in events that serve the broader community, including local fundraisers, school functions, and special dinners like the Community Living dinner. For students like James and her peers, this event was more than just an after school project, it was a chance to contribute to the community and learn by doing. 'It's kind of cool knowing that there are so many different things I get to experience just because I have a teacher that is so involved,' she said.
Yahoo
10-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Washington's supported living caregivers desperately need raises from the legislature
Since 1969, Community Living has been supporting individuals with developmental disabilities to live in their own homes within their own communities across Washington. We provide supported living services, including individualized support and training in all aspects of daily living for our clients. At its most basic level, our job is to be consistent in our caregiving. For the 99.9% of our clients who can only access our services through state-funded Medicaid, Washington's investment is what allows them to receive the support they need to bathe, dress, shop, cook, eat, socialize, work and take part in the community. As the state legislature enters its budget negotiation process, I urge them to protect resources for supported living services and include a 3% Medicaid provider rate increase in their final budget as proposed by House lawmakers. While the House budget proposal did include this essential rate increase, the Senate's proposal fell short of providing the most basic of maintenance investments for one of our state's most vulnerable populations. Fortunately, both proposals had the foresight to invest in housing for those with intellectual and developmental disabilities by including a minimum of $50 million for the Housing Trust Fund. Now, in addition to providing housing, we must also provide the services that would allow people with disabilities to live independently in those homes. The legislature has already seen the benefits that come from investing in supported living. In 2021, there was a 74% turnover rate among the staff who provide direct caregiving to clients, also known as direct support professionals. That meant that about three out of every four people hired into the job would leave it within the year. But, after the legislature committed to a provider rate increase in 2022, we saw turnover slashed in half to 37% in 2023. Without an investment in this year's budget, we will only prolong the wage stagnation of the direct support professionals who care for the 4,600 individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities who receive services. In our work, consistency is everything. Community Living has been continuously providing supported living services in southern King County since 1981, and we currently support 25 clients who live independently in the community. Every single person we serve has a different set of support needs, a different way of communicating and a different range of preferences. They are as unique as anyone, which means that the quality of their care is often dependent on the quality of their ongoing relationships with caregivers. Lower turnover simply means better care. When we have more consistent staff, it also means that clients and service providers are not constantly on the precipice of crisis. We are the proud employer of 129 direct support professionals across our homes in Auburn, Issaquah and Kent. As any manager knows, turnover is costly to both the budget and the culture. When staff are paid a livable wage and feel like they can invest in a career, we are also able to provide more services to more clients. After the 2022 rate increase went into effect, the state was able to serve 130 more clients over a period of 18 months. Fewer clients waiting for care means more people receiving the consistency that supported living services can provide. There is a growing need for community-based models of care for our neighbors with developmental disabilities. Our state is working to transition away from state-run institutions, and supported living is one of the ways we can do that while centering the individual choice and dignity of our clients. I urge the legislature to retain the 3% Medicaid provider rate increase for supported living and the Housing Trust Fund investment in their final budget in order to stay aligned with our state's goals. During this challenging budget and political climate, the state has a fundamental moral obligation to protect essential services for our most vulnerable community members. People with developmental and intellectual disabilities deserve the support they need to live a whole and happy life. If we do nothing else, we can at least be consistent in that. Randy Hauck is the executive director of Community Living, a non-profit that supports individuals with developmental disabilities to live in their own homes and in their own communities of Auburn, Bellevue, Clarkston, Grandview, Issaquah, Kent, Kirkland, Redmond, Selah, Sunnyside and Yakima
