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Sense of pride

Since 1984, Avenue II was been assisting people with developmental disabilities gain employment and participate in the community.
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Avenue II executive director Suzann Doherty says they help integrate into the community. (Jodi Lundmark, tbnewswatch.com)

Since 1984, Avenue II was been assisting people with developmental disabilities gain employment and participate in the community.

Thursday morning they showed their appreciation to about 50 employers in the city who have hired their clients with a breakfast at the Victoria Inn.

The Canadian Diabetes Association has been partnering with Avenue II for 15 years now and regional director Suzanne Sterling said the relationship is beneficial to both organizations.

“We’ve got Judy that comes in once a week and she rolls all our coins,” she said.

“There’s Bill who comes in on Mondays and he helps water the plants and empty the garbage. If we haven’t been producing enough garbage that week, he’s kind of upset because there’s not enough.”

Sterling said she can see the Avenue II employees have a sense of pride in their jobs and she said it also gives them a sense of belonging.

“We invite all of our folks to our Christmas parties and our summer barbeques. They’re very much part of our team,” she said.

Avenue II executive director Suzann Doherty said for some of their clients the jobs are about that pay cheque that gives them a little extra spending money, noting they are all on limited incomes.

But for others, it’s not about the pay cheque, but about the social aspect.

They not only gain social skills, but make friends. Some volunteer at various non-profit organizations because they want to give back.

Others get something else entirely.

“We had one gentleman who just passed away; he wanted to be on airplanes. There was a partnership with one of the flight companies where we would work and clean their planes and he would get an airplane ride once a month,” said Doherty.

The breakfast was to thank their various partners for showing Thunder Bay is a leader in supporting people with disabilities.

 



Jodi Lundmark

About the Author: Jodi Lundmark

Jodi Lundmark got her start as a journalist in 2006 with the Thunder Bay Source. She has been reporting for various outlets in the city since and took on the role of editor of Thunder Bay Source and assistant editor of Newswatch in October 2024.
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