October 2002
Glengarry
Association for Community Living
by Danielle Duranceau, Executive Director, G.A.C.L.
Glengarry
Association for Community Living is located in Eastern Ontario, north
of Cornwall & east of Ottawa. G.A.C.L. was founded in 1974 by a group
of parents who wanted to provide Day Program activities for several adults
in our community. Through the course of the years, the agency continued
to expand our services to a Workshop and Lifeskills programs.
In
the late seventies and early eighties, the agency then began to offer
Residential Services (group Homes) in the county of Glengarry. It is obvious
that these wide range of services did not focus on individual desires,
wishes and choices. This form of service delivery has presented challenges
to this Agency, transforming the way we support people, changing our infrastructure
and constantly revisiting our vision and mission statements. There has
been a great deal of progress and innovations over the years. However,
we continue to work toward offering individuals with intellectual disabilities
an opportunity to be actively involved within our community.
CHANGES!!!
CHANGES!!!
As always, change happens for a reason and are part of the cycle of life.
We at G.A.C.L. are once again experiencing a period of transformation.
I have just been appointed Executive Director on September 10, 2002 for
a 3 year term. We also have new appointments within our Management Team.
Managers are: Carol White, Laurie McKay Levac and Gisele Martin. The staff
continue to offer services and supports that are of quality to individuals.
Success
and accomplishment continue to happen on a regular basis. All here are
well intentioned and working toward the same vision. System and approaches
will have to be reviewed, but we all know that this is essential for the
growth of an agency. More time and effort will have to be invested in
long term planning. This will enable us to celebrate our SUCCESSES and
ACCOMPLISHMENTS as an Agency.
MORE
CHANGES!!!
In the near future, we will be changing our name to COMMUNITY LIVING GLENGARRY
INC. *** INTEGRATION COMMUNAUTAIRE GLENGARRY INC. The agency has been
proactive in moving forward and has adopted a Person Centred Approach
which has led to the creation of a Clients Rights Committee. We continue
to put individual supports in place, invest in staff and Board training
and are currently discussing a model of governance etc.
In
changing from programs to support for individuals, it is essential that
everyone respects that people have an opportunity to exercise their rights,
choices, preferences and that relationships be meaningful and reciprocal
for inclusion to happen in our community.
The
following G.A.C.L. article was prepared by: Julie Sauve, Judy Poulin,
Gisele Martin and Carol White.
Glengarry Association for Community Living offers a wide range
of services and supports for individuals who are developmentally challenged.
Many employment options are available such as supported employment, White
Swan Linen & a Worksite.
Supported
Employment
Supported employment is a program that allows individuals with a developmental
disability to seek employment in the community and benefit from the support
from a Job Coach.
White
Swan Linen
White Swan Linen is one of 2 businesses operated by G.A.C.L.. This is
a laundry program that allows us to offer Linen Rental & Cleaning services
to local businesses such as restaurants, catering services, reception
halls, nursing homes and airlines such as American Air, Delta Air and
Swiss Air.
Worksite
The second business operated by G.A.C.L. is a worksite in which contract
work is done for numerous companies in the community. Some of our contracts
include shrink wrapping, assembly, blister packing and many other contracts
all done by individuals with developmental disabilities. Many other programs
other than employment options are also offered to our clients such as
Foundations, Supported Independent Living and Community Participation.
Foundations
Foundations
is one of our newer programs that services individuals between the ages
of 21-28, with the objective of supporting them in all aspects of their
lives from the time they finish school to become as independent as possible.
Supported
Independent Living
Supported Independent
Living allows developmentally challenged individuals to live on their
own in the community while receiving a minimum of staff support.
Community
Participation
The Community
Participation program allows individuals with developmental and physical
disabilities to access their community with the support of a counsellor.
Through many of these programs, workshops of interest to our clients are
organized featuring guest speakers such as the Ontario Provincial Police,
the Fire Department and many more.
Computer
Literacy
The computer literacy room allows individuals to access computers and
improve their academic skills such as languages and mathematics.
Breakfast
Program
The breakfast program works in partnership with a local elementary school
and allows or clients to serve breakfast to the students on a daily basis.
Recreational
Activities
Many activities take place such as bowling, horseback riding, swimming
and many other activities and trips are organized to allow the individuals
to get out into the community. A lot of time and concentration goes into
helping people realize their Outcomes and making sure the supports to
do so are in place. Our programs, although they are all unique, share
the same goal: to help individuals with developmental disabilities acquire
new skills and realize their potential to become as independent as possible,
so they can live life to the fullest.
Working
Together
G.A.C.L. was fortunate to receive funding from the "It Takes A Village"
project for a period of 36 months to hire a part time volunteer coordinator
for its "Working Together" proposal. In partnership with community agencies,
the coordinator under a residential manager, will:
· Develop a parents' network group
· Create an active "volunteer and friend connexion"
· Enable the Clients' Rights Committee to be an independent body
(at the same time being an arms length of the agency)
· To develop an educational/inclusion awareness presentation package.
Management
has completed its selection process and will soon start working on the
project with the coordinator. This is a very exciting project which will
prove very beneficail to all of our people.
Homesharer
Program (Associate Living)
This program is quite new to the G.A.C.L. It started approximately three
years ago. The focus of this program is to place an individual with a
developmental disability into a family environment. "family" takes on
a different meaning for each individual. In some cases it represents the
traditional family consisting of a husband, wife and possibly children
and in other cases it could be a single person. This program continues
to grow each year. We are actively recruiting families to welcome individuals
into their homes as well as families to provide respite. To date we have
4 individuals who have been welcomed into the homes of some very caring
families.
It
is great to see the difference that a loving family can make on an individual's
life and it is equally rewarding for a family who takes an individual
into their home.
Glengarry
Association for Community Living
332 MacDonald Blvd.
Alexandria. ON KOC IAO
Phone: (613) 525-4357
Fax: (613) 525-5360 |
