Lorraine McCall, Employment Specialist
at the Island Lane Day Program
was one of three nominees from Marrakech for
ANCOR's 2015 DSP Recognition Award!
This national, annual award recognizes the best of the Direct Support Professional
workforce and, at the same time, raises awareness of the devotion,
professionalism and quality supports DSPs provide in their daily work. Most
people are not aware of the vital role DSPs play in their communities; and the
American Network of Community Options and Resources (ANCOR)'s National Advocasy Campaign is out to change that.
We are so proud of Lorraine and are honored that she has been a part of the Marrakech family for over 25 years! We congratulate her and thank her for the wonderful work she is doing with the individuals she supports.
Here is information from Lorraine's nomination:
What are
some of the activities and accomplishments Lorraine has shown in assisting the
individuals in achieving person-centered positive outcomes?
One of
the individuals with whom Lorraine worked was more than capable of working in
an employment setting at his day program, but seemed to always have difficulty
staying on task no matter which job coach was working with him; his behaviors
when reminders were given would always increase. Lorraine came along and
everything changed. She was able to teach him the value of working by helping
understand his value.
She built up his confidence by telling him over and over that she knew he was
the “man for the job”, and gave him examples of things he would be able to
purchase with the amount that he held on payday. Lorraine began calling him her
“assistant” because he became so driven to work, which her manager reports “made
him beam with pride”. His behaviors at work have disappeared and he is now the
highest earning participant in the program.
Description of the relationships Lorraine has developed
with the people she supports.
Two
years ago, Lorraine’s mother passed away, which was very difficult for her.
When she returned to work, not only did every individual she works with have a
homemade sympathy card ready for her, but in the days following her return,
many individuals independently approached her with nice words and big
hugs, which illustrates how important she is to them. This enabled
Lorraine to get through the difficult time. She truly treats the folks she
works with the way she wants to be treated. Loraine’s gift as a
DSP has earned her several offers of promotion to management, but
turned them down because she valued her relationships with these individuals
and knew, despite the pay increase, that taking a promotion
would reduce the time spent with the folks she loves. She says that she rewards
them, but they reward her in return. And those rewards, she says,
are bigger.
Examples of how Lorraine has advocated or affected change with
and/or on behalf of people with disabilities.
Years ago Lorraine noticed that one of the individuals she worked
with at the group home, LK,
was always talking about current events, but when she asked him if he was
registered to vote, he didn’t know that that meant. She knew that she needed to
help him to understand what it meant to vote and advocate with him to help him
get registered. She took him to get information about what voting meant, what a
difference he could make by voting, and how to get registered and then sat down
and explained it all to him. After helping him register, she took him to vote
for the first time. When he got the sticker that said “I voted” that day, he
just “lit up”. He wore that sticker so proudly and showed everyone he saw that
day that he voted.
Description of
the sacrifices Lorraine has made in order to be a Direct Support Professional.
When a gentleman from the
group home she worked in went into a nursing home for medical issues, Lorraine
was sent to provide supports to him during the day. While there, she noticed
the regular nurses were not giving him the care they gave other patients, due
to his disability and blindness. She began to aggressively advocate for him
when he needed something, but worried about when she wasn’t there. She began
visiting him often on her own time, time she could have been spending with her
family. When she walks into his room and he hears her voice, he lights up. OG
ended up moving into the nursing home permanently and Lorraine continued to
visit after she finished her regular shift to make sure he was alright and
happy. Years later, she still visits him regularly; decorating his room for the
holidays and still making him smile.
What are some examples of
creativity Lorraine has shown in individualizing supports and services provided?
When Lorraine worked at the
group home, one individual, DC, often displayed inappropriate behaviors that
would cause her to fall. Because she was scared of going to the doctor, the
behaviors would be compounded if the fall caused an injury that required a
visit to the doctor. One day DC hit her head during one of these incidents,
which required stitches. Lorraine was somehow able to get her to the hospital
without incident, but once there, the doctors could not keep her calm enough to
stitch her injury. Lorraine quietly told the doctors to “work with her”,
climbed up on the table with DC, lay down with her, and had the doctors “give
her the stitches” first. Because Lorraine had developed such a special
relationship with her, DC began to console Lorraine and the doctors were in awe
when they were then able to give DC the stitches without incident.
Select one tenet
of the NADSP Code of Ethics and show how Lorraine exemplifies the chosen ethic.
While
working with our consumers for the last 25 years, just one of the tenets of the
Code of Ethics that we have seen Lorraine exemplify, along with many others, is“promoting
physical and emotional well-being”. It is very important to Lorraine that she
do everything she can to make them smile and support their well-being.
Recently, she was witnessed quietly singing “You Are My Sunshine” to one of the
consumers in her program to cheer them up; she didn’t know anyone was watching,
and the song recipient was clearly touched by her personal attention.
Lorraine’s supervisor describes her as “The kind of person you would want to
take care of your mother”, because of the gentle, consistent and compassionate
care and concern she has and shows for each individual she supports. When you
watch her interacting with individuals, you say to yourself, ‘Wow!’ She’s that
good”.
Each nomination also required
an affirmation letter or statement from the person(s) served and/or a family
member.
Here is
the letter submitted by Kathleen Colliton-Weisbruch M.A. CCC/SLP
Speech/Language Pathologist Consultant
To Whom It May
Concern,
Of the countless
lives that Lorraine McCall has blessed, there are two very special people that
would have a great deal to share. They would be honored to write letters of
genuine and heartfelt gratitude. It is my belief that if they were able, they
might look something like this…
Dear Lorraine,
Many many years ago,
when my hair was not this gentle shade of gray, and my once robust feet eagerly
took me everywhere that I wanted to go, I met you. I was in your day program. I
was a busy person and I wouldn’t sit still for very long. I would get very
nervous and frightened around people and would spit at them. But you understood
my fears. You would let me rest my head on your shoulder. You always respected
me. You were always patient with me.
I would often wander
over to peer out of the huge glass store front, with my hands and arms
instinctively wrapped and cocooned in my sleeves just as they’d been, at the
hands of others, during my early years. You would watch me as I would gaze out
of the large windows that looked out onto the hustle and bustle of the streets
around me. You decided that it was time for me to go outside.
Well, I’d never
gotten used to wearing shoes and I learned quickly just how to remove them as
soon as they’d been put on my feet. So, you would gently remind me to go and
get my shoes so that you could put them on me. Then, you’d swing open the door
and that beautiful light and all of that activity would engulf me. And everyone
in those little businesses on the street would greet us warmly. I felt like I
was somebody! I felt alive for the first time in my life!
Pretty soon, I
learned that if I wanted to go out- I could tell you. And you would listen to
me. All that I had to do was to go and get my shoes! You gave me the gift of a
lifetime. You are my greatest teacher. I will always remember you.
Your friend,
M
Dear Lorraine,
I don’t know where
to begin. You’ve been my strength for the many years of my life. As I lay here
quietly, all alone in my bed, listening to the sounds of the nurses and
attendants caring for those around me, the voices are all unfamiliar to me in
this place. I am looking out with eyes that can now only peer into my soul. I
remember of all of the places that I’ve been, and all of the places that I’ve
lived. Throughout all of them, you have been the one constant in my life.
Life in a nursing
home is not an easy one. When I felt my deepest and darkest, my loneliest, you
would suddenly appear for a visit! I would hear you approaching with your
cheerful voice ringing out in the hallway as you greeted the other residents.
The infamous “chinking” of the collection of bracelets you always wore, the
exclamations of admiration at the artistry of your hair and nails, the vibrant
colors of your clothing – these were what defined your signature style! How eagerly
I looked forward to your visits!
My body had long
since retired into a posture unforgiving and at times painful. I could no
longer sit up or reach out to you. You would lean over and gently kiss my
forehead. You would turn on classical music and speak to me of the memories
that we’d shared over the years.
They’d call you and
tell you that I was in the hospital-again. And there you were. You knew that
regardless of how sick I might have been, I would know that you were there
right beside me- again, and again.
Your friend,
O
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