The Philadelphia “Employment 1st, Employment NOW!” Steering Committee is once again celebrating this event with a month of employment success stories. Each day we will be posting another success story about someone who is contributing to their community through employment. For those who have requested to receive our employment announcements, you will receive the link to the story in your mailbox. We invite you to join us as we celebrate the successes of people with disabilities working in our communities!

Awesome Job Perk in Roxborough!

October 4 – Patrick F.

It’s a beautiful day in Philadelphia’s Roxborough neighborhood, and Patrick is out and about on the grounds of Summit Park Communities. His job responsibilities have him travelling on foot across three apartment complexes, a sizeable range to cover so he must move quickly. Patrick loves that he gets to work independently and keep moving, and enjoys the perk of getting to know the resident dogs that he regularly encounters.

Patrick is responsible for checking in with tenants about issues, distributing communications from management, and a variety of tasks to keep the complex in order. At first, he faced challenges with interpreting, time-stamping, and correctly processing communications with residents, which proved to be a bit frustrating for him. Patrick overcame these challenges, and has come a long way with maintaining a professional disposition while at work, even during times of stress. When Patrick started 3 years ago, he was receiving support during every shift. He now receives just a weekly check-in from his job coach and is proud of the independence he has achieved.

Patrick’s Manager tells us “he is a joy to have around, and always does an excellent job.” Here’s Patrick out and about, enjoying the sunshine as he tackles the day’s work.

 – submitted by Community Integrated Services (CIS)