Monday, February 13, 2012

February is about Self Advocacy

This month, I had the treat of visiting DSI Self Advocate, Katie Shaw on the job and speaking with her employer, Dave Collins about the fantastic work she does at his store. Katie has been employed by JC Penny for approximately 1 year and works at the Michigan Road location. Her typical day consists of checking the fitting rooms and back room and putting clothing back out on the floor neatly. As is always a must in retail, Katie is also responsible for greeting customers and serving them in an excellent fashion. When Dave was asked about Katie, he remarked that, “She sets a great example.” And he is often thanked by customers for employing her. He also added that she is one of his most, “punctual employees”. I am not surprised. When Katie was asked about her career at JC Penny’s, she answered, “I LOVE IT HERE!”.

Not only is Katie a valuable employee at JC Penny but she is also a very valuable volunteer in the Down syndrome Indiana office. Katie has donated almost 800 hours of her time to assisting DSI in a multitude of capacities but most of all she is my right hand (wo)man when it comes to volunteer coordination. Katie is active with her church, involved in a book club and will be visiting her legislators at the statehouse on Tuesday, February 14th as part of the Arc of Indiana’s Valentine’s for Legislators event.