| May 2006
Community Living Kawartha Lakes Our work is far reaching - beyond the City of Kawartha Lakes; some of our services also extend to the Counties of Peterborough, Haliburton and Northumberland. Community Living Kawartha Lakes has developed a variety of services and supports over the years. These include Arc Industries, a workshop for post-school work and continuing learning (1973-1990), as well as a nursery school (1982-1991). Group homes for supported living, first opened in 1979, continue to offer service today. In the mid 1980's, society was recognizing the right of all its citizens to fully participate in community life. There was a shift to support integration of those with developmental challenges into the community. As well, there was new emphasis on the importance of the family in meeting the needs of individuals within the broader community. Reflecting the move away from the mentally retarded label and focusing on community inclusion, our name changed to the Victoria County Association for Community Living (VCACL) in 1988. In 2002 we became Community Living Kawartha Lakes and we continue to offer a wide range of supports centered on the needs of the individual and family. We made this name change to reflect our participation in the Provincial Communications Strategy and the municipal restructuring that resulted in the City of Kawartha Lakes. In the past year alone we supported over 750 individuals and their families. Community Living Kawartha Lakes exists so that people with intellectual challenges and their families can achieve their personal goals and participate in the development of healthy, inclusive communities. As with most other non-profits, Community Living Kawartha Lakes has had to 'think outside of the box' and create external sources of revenue to maintain its continued level of service quality. Out of this new thinking has come Job Quest. Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP)'s employment supports are for people with employment barriers who can and want to work in competitive employment.
Putting all of her research on paper, Dorla made a presentation to Community Living's Executive Director Finance Manager. In her presentation, Dorla touched on what benefits the program could have to Community Living Kawartha Lakes - for example, generating revenue and expanding Community Living's services to assist clients to overcome barriers to employment. Our Executive Director suggested that Dorla present her research to Community Living Kawartha Lake's Board of Directors as a one-year pilot project to determine its viability - that is, to establish whether the employment supports program could cover all of its operating costs after the first year. If the pilot project was successful, Community Living would look at creating a business plan for the future of employment supports within the agency. Dorla presented her research to the association's Board of Directors and they voted to implement the ODSP Employment Supports Pilot Project. The pilot project approved, Dorla was given the responsibility to develop a proposal for Community Living Kawartha Lakes to become an employment support service provider. The next few months were busy for Dorla as she worked on the proposal while also continuing with her full caseload in Fenelon Falls. About two months later, Dorla completed the proposal and met with the Ministry on behalf of Community Living Kawartha Lakes to review and/or answer any questions that they had about making Community Living Kawartha Lakes a part of their Employment Supports Program. Four week later, Community Living Kawartha Lakes received a letter from the Ministry of Community, Family and Children's Services Regional Office offering congratulations for becoming their newest Employment Supports Program service provider within the City of Kawartha Lakes. The rest, as they say, is history. The one year pilot project is complete and the Employment Supports Program - now known as Job Quest - is a fully functioning and thriving division of Community Living Kawartha Lakes. Job Quest provides employment support services in the City of Kawartha Lakes and is a division of Community Living Kawartha Lakes. Job Quest gives people with employment barriers the power to enter or re-enter the workforce and to access the supports that they require to be successful. Removing the barriers to employment is the main objective of Job Quest. Competitive employment can be full-time, part-time, self-employment or contract work, earning minimum wage or more. Job Quest assists people in taking control of their own futures by planning a job-finding strategy and taking responsibility for following through. With assistance from Job Quest, participants complete a step-by-step employment plan through which they identify goals and plot out a job-finding strategy. Special skills and experience - as well as disability related challenges that participants may face in the workplace - are noted in the plan. Then, working together with staff, participants decide upon the supports that they need to be successfully employed. Todd gives us an example: "There are always ways to make money - for instance in the summer there are plenty of general labor jobs such as roofing, construction and landscaping, etc. For me, they are not an option because I cannot meet the physical requirements of the job. I need to find some other way to earn a living.” Todd’s approach in life has always been to face the challenge and fight it. Even so, there were times when he became angry and frustrated with the process of finding a job. Todd says, "The issue of money affects you socially, emotionally, physically and mentally.” With a strong work ethic and the desire to become competitively employed, Todd explored many of the employment programs out there. He tells us, "I tried several different employment programs but they just didn't follow through. They couldn't get past my disability." On a tip, Todd contacted program supervisor, Dorla Pearn, at Job Quest. "She saw the person and not the barrier to employment," Todd states. "I felt comfortable and able to pursue my goals.” With support from Job Quest, Todd secured a permanent cleaning contract as an employee of Community Living Kawartha Lakes. Simultaneously he acquired his F- License and works as a van driver for the city of Kawartha Lakes Boys and Girls Club. Todd’s advice to others is pretty straightforward:” Have a strong work ethic, have a good sense of humour, do your best, be proud of what you can do and of a job well done. Don't give up, keep going and get connected with Job Quest.
|
They
say "Nothing easy is worth doing and nothing worth doing is easy."
The short history of Job Quest is a testament to such perseverance. In
2004 Dorla Pearn - then a part of Community Living's Independent Living
team - attended an Ontario Rehabilitation Work & Community Conference
in Gananoquae and heard about the MCFCS (Ministry of Community, Family
and Children's Services) Employment Support Program. The information that
Dorla obtained at the conference inspired her make a presentation to the
Independent Living Team Leader. She was encouraged to gather additional
details to support the value of an employment program to Community Living
and then to present her findings to the association's Executive Director.
While still keeping her main focus as the primary support staff person
in Fenelon Falls, Dorla gathered resources and met with experts in the
field to determine if the employment supports program had the potential
of becoming a viable fee-for-service business for Community Living Kawartha
Lakes. 
Todd
Montgomery is one of Job Quest's first success stories! You can recognize
him by his big smile and witty sense of humour. He enjoys kayaking, 4-wheeling
and is the uncontested, self-proclaimed biggest fan of his daughter, who
is a promising young competitive swimmer. Todd has Cerebral Palsy. Since
birth he has had five operations on his legs. As Todd puts it, "Finding
employment is like a race. We all start out the same in life. If you are
well physically and mentally, you have more options to choose from and
you can get to where you want to go more quickly. If you have a disability,
there are hurdles to get over most every step of the way."