~PEF Members Shine~

~PEF Members Shine~
Speech pathologist goes extra miles Member’s dedication, earns her ‘Employee of the Yr. 2000’ By M.K. FOTTRELL “Terri Smith goes well above and beyond what a speech pathologist does,” says Linda Shower, a developmental aide at Integrated Employment Services and member of the Employee of The Month Committee at Western New York Developmental Disabilities Services Office (DDSO). Smith, a speech pathologist 2 at the DDSO’s Fredonia Day Habilitation site, was named Employee of the Month in July 2000 and recently was selected its Employee of the Year for 2000. One employee is selected from each of the two Western New York DDSO sites each month. Then, the committee chooses two employees from the 24 winners to be employees of the year. Smith says she feels very honored to have been named an Employee of the year 2000. She speculates the recognition might have been sparked by her willingness to help other staff and go out of her way for the clients. “I help out wherever I’m needed,” she says. “I’ll do whatever needs to be done, including changing someone’s diaper.” Smith often takes the clients out. “We go shopping, or out to eat,” she says, “just out into the community.” Smith says she had a great role model. Her mother, Carol McEntafer, a nurse, won the same honor many years ago, and is very proud of her daughter. A PEF Division 243 steward for four years, Smith gave it up when she adopted her now 2-year-old daughter, Shelby, and took a voluntary work reduction. She remains active in PEF by serving on Division 243 committees. Although she went to a four-day work week, Smith declined to give up any of her caseload. “I want to be there for the consumers,” she says. “They get used to you. Right now, I’m working out of my truck. We’re being relocated, so I put everything in my backpack and travel around.” She has put a lot of miles on her truck since being displaced from her work site, and she’s not sure when she’ll get a permanent office. “I don’t mind. I just bring everything with me,” she says. “I live out of my backpack.” But not everything she brings fits in her backpack. Smith says she began bringing her golden retriever, Sebastian, with her to work when she discovered he has a talent for bringing out spontaneous speech in even the lowest functioning clients. “I have one client, who will only say one word — ‘dog,’” she says. “And they get so excited when Sebastian comes with me. They love him. And he’s very gentle with them.” Other staff see Sebastian’s benefit, too. “The consumers love the dog,” Shower says. “Terri’s brought him along ever since he was a puppy and some of the clients can’t contain their excitement.” Smith’s co-workers organized a picnic to celebrate her being named Employee of the Year 2000. “They did it all on their own, and it was so nice,” Smith says. “I was a little teary.” The Communicator Home Page		Div. 167 gets award Co-workers honor member’s compassion, advocacy By M.K. FOTTRELL “He’s a man of the people and the salt of the earth,” says Marsha Wagner. She’s talking about PEF Division 167 member Ron Quatrani, a program manager 2 at the Western New York Developmental Disabilities Services Office (DDSO) in West Seneca. Quatrani was one of two PEF members selected by his co-workers and managers at the DDSO to be honored as Employee of the Year 2000 at ceremonies this December in Albany. Wagner is a senior recreation therapist at the DDSO, and serves on the nominating committee that selected Quatrani. “I’ve worked with Ron for years, and he’s just phenomenal,” Wagner says. “He’s got the most compassionate disposition. He advocates for the staff and for the consumers.” Quatrani was named Employee of the Month for December 2000. This past June, he was honored at a dinner where he was presented with a watch and a certificate signed by DDSO director Director Thomas Zielinski that read, “in grateful recognition of your outstanding performance, productivity, and dedicated service.” “I was shocked, pleasantly shocked,” to learn of the honors, he says. “It was very nice.” The Division 167 member and former steward for two years, began his career with the state in 1976 as a ward aide at the Craig DDSO. “Ron is very intelligent. He’s a kind and gentle man and works so well with the consumers,” says Marcia Wypych, a secretary at the DDSO, and one of the employees who originally nominated him for employee of the month. “He’ll stop at nothing to help. He’s also an excellent supervisor and is respected by everyone. He’s moved steadily up the ranks,” she adds. In 1978, Quatrani became an occupational therapy assistant and soon began attending graduate school after work — a process that would take eight years to culminate in a master’s degree in social work. Along the way, he was promoted to a social worker assistant 3. Still later, he worked as a community placement specialist 1 — opening the DDSO’s Lemans and Alden community residences. During that time, he also worked to develop policy and procedures for intermediate-care facilities. Quatrani achieved his current position of program manager 2 in 1985. Quatrani clearly enjoys his job, and feels fortunate to bring both the necessary hands-on experience and education to it. “I started as a direct-care worker,” Quatrani says. “So, staff in direct care see me as a person who can advocate for them. And my training and clinical experience help me to empathize with the challenges facing clinicians too. “Having done both direct-care and clinical work helps me get consumers the services they need,” he adds. “‘Make every day a quality day‚’ is a theme in our agency’s mission statement. I advocate that and try to give my staff a sense of ownership in everything they do,” he says. Quatrani strives for flexibility in his schedule and travels wherever he is needed each day. At home, Quatrani also has a busy but happy family life, indulging his fondness for Yankees baseball and other sports. He and his wife, Vicki, enjoy vacations in their condo on Isla Del Sol in Florida. And, now, they are excited about preparing for the wedding of their daughter, Devon, next July. Quatrani and his co-workers have had a lot of fun injecting some humor into the Employee of the Year honors, covering his office door, desk, bulletin board and even his computer’s screen saver with reminders of the honor. But it’s also apparent that he is deeply moved by the honor. “I’d like to say a heartfelt ‘thanks’ to the consumers and staff I work with,” he says softly.	Two PEF members selected Employees of the Yr. By STEVEN KARPE “I always wanted to go into special education, because I felt the work would be more rewarding,” says Howlett, who began pursuing that goal by earning a B.A. in special/elementary education from the State University of NY at Old Westbury. Like Jackson-Breland, Howlett came to work for BFDC in 1990 as an habilitation specialist 1, but in the sheltered workshop program. Earning two promotions since then, she is now a rehabilitation counselor II. Howlett supervises 30 staff and 86 developmentally disabled individuals in a vocational/day-habilitation setting in BFDC’s Corona unit. It’s a role filled with responsibilities and challenges — something she seems to thrive on. Howlett says two concepts help her to keep things in perspective and deal with challenges as they arrive. “I don’t take everything personally,” she says. “And I remind myself and staff that we are there for the consumers.” Howlett was nominated for Employee of the Year, because of her outstanding work as a workshop and academic-area supervisor, and as a team leader when needed. While working full-time, Howlett earned her master’s degree in special education from Queens college. Howlett has a life outside of BFDC, but it also involves taking responsibility for others. She is a single parent, caring for a 3-year-old daughter. And Howlett has legal guardianship of her teenage nephew. This role of parent and guardian, she says, is one of the most rewarding experiences of her life. Both of these dedicated employees will be honored at an awards ceremony later this year in Albany.	Advocacy, responsibility draw honors for Bernard Fineson DDSO members By STEVEN KARPE When employees are dedicated and care about their work, those around them benefit. Staff and managers at Bernard Fineson Developmental Disabilities Services Office in Queens have thanked and honored two such employees — PEF Division 207 members Keeva Jackson-Breland and Nita Howlett — by selecting them as their Employees of the Year 2000. After earning her B.A. in speech pathology from Wake Forest University, Jackson-Breland came to work at BFDC in 1990 as an habilitation specialist, helping developmentally disabled individuals learn independent-living skills. She fondly recalls starting a cooking class in which her students had the opportunity to shop in the community and prepare a variety of dishes that they otherwise would not have had the chance to cook. In 1994, she transferred to the placement unit and was promoted to a social work assistant 3, where she currently works as a service coordinator with many duties. The aspect of her job that she likes best, she says, is the chance to “advocate for my consumers. They have rights, just like anyone else. And if a consumer wishes to go on a vacation, he or she should be able to do it.” Jackson-Breland doesn’t stop caring and giving when her work day ends. She developed and participated in the Family Care Bowling League on her own time. She’s a member of the Recreation Committee, which arranges trips for consumers in family care. And she is coordinator for the Queens family-care Special Olympics. And if all of that didn’t keep her busy enough, Jackson-Breland has earned her master’s degree in counselor education from Queens College while working full-time as a service coordinator. But she didn’t do it alone. “I could never have accomplished so much without the wonderful support I receive from my mom and my husband, Everett,” she says.