From One Voice: Spring 2025
By Mark Dodd | CEO, One Vision

What does our tagline, Advancing Independence and Inclusion, really mean? In this edition of One Voice, we share stories about how we help individuals advance their independence. You will read about how our Community Employment Services (CES) and Smart Living services enhance a person’s independence. With this independence, individuals participate in community events, connect with a faith community of their choice, attend sporting events, or enjoy a community dinner at the local American Legion, advancing their sense of inclusion in their chosen home community.

We are proud of these efforts and will continue this vital work to help individuals gain independence and inclusion, build meaningful connections, and feel like valued members of their communities. Yet, we remain limited in how impactful we can be despite the commitment of our staff, there are unique dynamics and limitations within this staff role. Ultimately, the people we serve want what we all want—friendship, belonging, and opportunities to share experiences.

Therefore, the next step in Advancing Independence and Inclusion is for those we serve to build friendships with others in their communities who share similar interests. Friendships are an important part of a successful experience of inclusion in a community and promote independence by providing connections outside of their care team to talk with about shared interests or attend events together.

A few of the interests of people we support include bowling, car shows, live music, swimming, going for coffee, watching NASCAR, going to movies, playing cards, shopping, and playing video games.

As you can see, their interests are much like yours and mine. If you are interested in learning more about connecting with a person we serve and sharing a common interest, I encourage you to reach out. We will help you get connected and ensure all involved are comfortable. As with any friendship, this is not about spending a specific amount of time ‘volunteering’ to be a friend, it is simply about spending time with a person who shares a mutual interest.