Before being a partners graduate, I thought I was pretty good at facilitating and leading support groups. I thought I could pretty much start anything that was a passion and follow through on it. Now as time has passed and maturity has begun to set in, I realize how much Partners helped me become the person I am today. The broad span of knowledge and speakers we experienced has never been met again by any conference or workshop I have attended. The ability to practice our public speaking skills on topics we felt compassionate about in a supportive atmosphere was something each partner needed.
I was not employed when I graduated from Partners. For the last 5 years I have been employed by The Advocacy Center as the Public Education Coordinator, providing presentations to the community on disability awareness along with the speakers bureau I coordinate. I would not have had the skill base needed for this job if not for the Partners program. Through my current position with the support of the speakers bureau, we are able to reach approximately 3,000 people a year in our community, hopefully promoting change in attitudes toward people with disabilities.
I thank the DDPC for having such a wonderful program that reaches far and wide in many ways I am sure they are not aware of.
Colleen Brown,
Parent of a child with a disability
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