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When Easterseals Pre-Vocational Services group enters the room, it is all hands (and paws) on deck to help Faithful Friends stay in tip top shape so they can continue the great work they do in the community. While the Easterseals participants are helping Faithful Friends, they are also learning valuable job skills that can lead to full-time, paid employment.

It is hard to find a group of people who bring dedication and a hard-working attitude but also smiles with them. The CHEER Center, which serves seniors in the Sussex County Region, found that in a group of volunteers from Easterseals Pre-Vocational Services. Participants at Easterseals love volunteering in the community, and thanks to this partnership, they are able to do just that while learning valuable work
skills.

Brian Perry, of Frederica, DE, is a world traveler, recently returning from Germany where he competed in the Special Olympics World Games as a swimming champion representing the United States. Meanwhile at home, his team at the café at Delaware State University, where he has worked for the last ten years through Easterseals’ Supported Employment program, was cheering him on.

Doctors may have painted a bleak picture for little Demi Rodgers, who was born without an esophagus, the part of the body that connects the throat to the stomach, and Spina Bifida. However, the team of therapists at Easterseals Delaware & Maryland’s Eastern Shore is working side-by-side with her family, offering support and encouragement to help Demi meet her milestones.

It is a typical scene happening in many homes across the country, a family sharing a meal at the table. However, for the Shrieves family, this night is anything but typical. For the first time since two-year-old Cheyanne was born, the family is all eating the same meal. Easterseals speech therapy services helped this magical moment come true.

Bill Sudell may be the ‘official’ volunteer when he signs in for duty at the Easterseals in New Castle but it’s his dog, Skipper, who is the star of the show. For the last six years Bill Sudell and Skipper, an eight-year-old Schnoodle, have brightened the days of the people who attend Easterseals day services.

When Emily Hurst, of Hockessin, first walked through the doors of Easterseals she was very nervous, but little did she know how much she would grow to love the environment, the staff, new friends and, of course, the dance parties. As those nerves faded, Emily’s mom, Julia, has watched her grow into a more independent woman thanks to the skills she is learning at Easterseals.

Experiencing the joy and unconditional love that is Kenzie Pickett, of Lincoln, DE, is one of the world’s great gifts to offer. She can find a friend in any room and knows who needs a hug the most. Kenzie is a three-year-old girl full of sass, spirit and who also happens to have Down Syndrome. Kenzie is meeting her milestones with Easterseals by her side every step of the way.

Easterseals Delaware & Maryland’s Eastern Shore recently received a $25,000 grant through Discover Bank to support its Supported Employment program – a program that opens the door to meaningful work and competitive wages in the community for adults with intellectual disabilities, while providing employers with dedicated, productive employees.

Easterseals was out in full force at the rally last week to support HB 104, the Michael McNesby Full Funding for Adults with Intellectual Disabilities. We are asking the State to keep its promise and approve $9 million in state funding as a first-year commitment to fully fund disability services.

A group of participants from Easterseals Delaware & Maryland’s Eastern Shore’s day program for adults with intellectual disabilities recently received the “Community Partnership Group of the Year Award” for 2019 from Habitat for Humanity’s ReStore in New Castle County for having the most volunteer hours.

Easterseals Delaware & Maryland’s Eastern Shore is delighted to announce that Conor Pellinger, of Berlin, MD, will serve as this year’s ambassador for their inaugural “Walk With Me & 5K Fun Run Salisbury” event. It will be held on Saturday, September 10, 2022 at 9 a.m., at the Salisbury Elks Lodge #817 located at 401 Churchill Avenue, Salisbury, MD.