Stratford District Secondary School student, Rich, has been building a life full of meaningful community connections through the Building Bright Futures initiative.
Because Rich and his family were new to the community, their first focus when working with his facilitator was connecting the family to local resources. His facilitator also helped Rich and his family apply for adult services such as Developmental Services Ontario (DSO) and the Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP).
For Rich’s mother, Nancy, having this support has been so valuable for her and her peace of mind. “I feel more reassured about Richard’s future knowing that there’s someone to help guide us along the path,” Nancy says.
With the help of his facilitator, Rich has also taken steps to further explore his career opportunities as they take steps to making his goals a reality.
“My dream job is to be an arborist,” Rich shares.
With this in mind, Rich and his facilitator met with the school’s guidance councillor to adjust Rich’s courses to better match his goal and his interests. They also explored opportunities that allow Rich to work outside and work with plants.
“[My facilitator] helped me get a job to get out in the world,” Rich says.
Rich has been doing landscape and gardening work alongside a local landscaper named Laurie.
More than just an opportunity to work and explore his interests, this role has allowed Rich to build a meaningful relationship with Laurie, who has become something of a mentor to Rich, sharing her passion and knowledge of plants with him.
“I really like working with Laurie,” Rich says.
Nancy has noticed big changes in Rich over the past year. Between working with his facilitator, and his involvement with Special Olympics Ontario and the Special Olympics Unified Sports Soccer Exchange Program, Nancy has seen Rich grow in many ways.
“He’s just matured a lot this year,” Nancy says. “He’s much more independent,” she adds, pointing out how much more talkative and confident Rich has become.
Because Rich feels more empowered, he has also started making new goals for his future.
Rich recently started discussions with his family and his facilitator about living independently in the future. So, their new goal for the coming year is to start exploring options and making plans to make this goal a reality.
The support of the Building Bright Futures initiative and his facilitator has inspired Rich to continue imagining and working toward the future he desires.
