Opportunity Development Center Empowers People with Disabilities
This week, longtime Opportunity Development Center (ODC) participant Stuart Mancil celebrated four years of employment at Weiler Convenience Stores in Marshfield with cake and a small gathering.
Mancil has been an ODC participant since 1987 and Weiler’s was his first direct hire in the community.
ODC’s mission is to empower people with disabilities to achieve their work and life goals by providing skills training and employment services, and assistance in becoming more active in their communities.
“We work towards really focusing on individual’s abilities and helping them find their place in the community, whether it be work or volunteering or just figuring out how they want to connect to the community with the different programming that we have,” said Mancil’s case coordinator, Michelle Berdan. “Stuart has just a great personality. He’s got a great sense of humor. He’s always so focused when he’s at work and he’s just a good person to work with. Most people that meet Stuart enjoy working with him.”
“We enjoy having Stuart on our team because he is so excited when he is working, and takes such pride in the work he does,” said Trish Mayer, manger at Weilers.
“We like working with ODC because it makes us proud to offer a position to somebody who otherwise maybe wouldn’t get to have a job,” she added. “The job coaches Stuart has had so far always ensure the tasks get done well, while being patient and having a good time with Stuart while he is completing them.”
Mancil is known for his “Stuartisms,” a term created by his first job coach, Patty.
“Stuart is full of witty comebacks, one liners, and jokes. Because of this, his first job coach, Patty, termed them ‘Stuartisms,'” said Mayer.
To learn more about ODC, visit them online at www.odcinc.com.
Author: News Desk
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