Disability Return to Work Program

Overview:

After being on disability for years, I began to feel that it was hurting me more than it was helping. It provided a very limited income and had strict limits on being able to earn any more. I found myself becoming depressed and feeling that I was not living life at the level that I wanted. I also felt as if I was contributing nothing to society.

I began to explore my return to work options and found that the government has programs that sound good; Vocational Rehabilitation, "Ticket to Work", etc., but in reality, they do very little. I spent a year in Voc Rehab and never had one job. It's a bureaucratic mess and sadly, the only ones getting paychecks are the bureaucrats!

Vision:

It is my vision to start a private Return to Work program, funded by donations, that will work directly with disabled individuals who want to return to work. The program will offer counseling, training and educational support for its clients and will aggressively maintain contacts with companies and business leaders who can hire our candidates without delay. There is no reason someone who wants to work should have to wait a year or more to get a job!

Fundraising Goal:

My goal is to raise $25,000 to acquire office space, computers and the basic necessities needed to set up and begin operations. I would like to begin accepting new clients by March 1, 2014. My goal is to hire only disabled staff and to use this initial office as a scalable model for expansion so that disabled persons around the country will have access to a professional and aggressive program that connects those looking for work with job creators nationwide.

Why It Will Work:

Disabled persons often have many professional skills from prior work experience. They also bring invaluable life skills and lessons to any work place. They are usually highly motivated to work and eager to show what they can achieve. They tend to be reliable, honest and tremendously loyal employees if given the chance. By hiring disabled workers, employers create a win-win-win scenario where the worker wins, the company wins and the community wins!