CLEC’s Mayors’ Luncheon connects community leaders to clients looking for employment

by Sylene Argent, Local Journalism Initiative

For two-decades, Community Living Essex County – a local organization dedicated to providing supports and services to over 700 individuals with an intellectual disability of all ages and their families – gathered local elected officials from the municipal-level to take part in the annual Mayors’ Luncheon.

  This year’s event took place last Wednesday at St. Mary’s Hall, with the theme being “Journey to Belonging.”

  CLEC’s aim is to ensure all those who have an intellectual disability can “be seen, be heard, and belong.”

  The connection event – held during Community Living Month – not only promotes inclusion, it provides a pathway municipal leaders can take to hire some of CLEC’s clients not only looking for employment, but wanting to find their place within their community.

  Manager of Community Relations and Resource Development, Tony DeSantis, noted the event is like a potluck, bringing together elected officials, so they can “create a feast of ideas for collaboration.”

  Essex County Warden Hilda MacDonald, loves the idea of inclusivity.

  “Inclusivity has become one of those words everyone is avoiding.” She noted it is important for organizations like CLEC to keep elected officials accountable.

  “Don’t we all want to belong?” she asked. “We all want to feel connected. We all want a space in the community.”

  She spoke of how community leaders need to think of that when making decisions. “We can and should do better.”

  Lakeshore Mayor Tracey Bailey is also the CEO for the Community Support Centre of Essex County. She spoke of how in her political role, she makes a strong effort to ensure the most vulnerable members of the community have services and resources available to them, including the opportunity to serve the community.

  The Community Support Centre of Essex County, she said, plays an incredible role at enhancing quality of life for seniors, those with disabilities, caregivers, and those who face barriers to wellbeing everyday.

  “In this dual role, I have the unique opportunity to serve both at the policy-level through municipal leadership, and also at the grassroots-level, directly supporting individuals and families who rely on vital services everyday.”

  Wearing both hats allows her to “align vision with action.”

  Bailey spoke of how both organizations benefited from working with CLEC clients. 

Ron Ricci, Past President of the Roma Club of Leamington, introduced Tom, an individual hired through CLEC’s Career Compass, a program that connects clients to potential employers.

  Tom reminds everyone at the Roma Club of the incredible value of dedication, heart, community spirit, and that everyone belongs.

  What truly brings the club to life – what gives it its soul – are the people behind the scenes, Ricci said.

  He called Tom an irreplaceable part of the team since joining in 2017. “Someone whose presence has made our work place richer, our team stronger, and our hearts a little fuller.”

  Tom has a sense of pride in every task, from folding napkins to greeting guests with a genuine smile.

  “More than anything, Tom reminds us that a good team is about more than speed or perfection, it is about heart, it is about consistency, and it is about showing up with your best. And, let me tell you something, it shows. Our guests notice it, our staff [members] feel it, and the atmosphere of our banquet hall is better because of it.”    

  Special guest speaker Kevin McShan was the recipient of the 2012 Queen’s Diamond Jubilee medal for his commitment to promoting equality for individuals with disabilities, the Community Excellence Award from CLEC, and the 2015 Influential Advocate Award from Assisted Living Southwestern Ontario for his work promoting employment and societal equality on behalf of individuals with disabilities in the region.

  DeSantis said McShan’s primary message as a motivational speaker is to challenge others to reach their fullest potential and maximize their productivity in life, work, and play.  

  McShan noted he loves living life and talking about the importance of promoting inclusion in the workforce. He was born with spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy and was three-months premature. At age nine, he was told he would never walk for the duration of his life.

  He finds it pretty cool that he now makes a living as a public speaker telling his story, having spent over seven-years in speech therapy.

  His focus last week was to speak on how to build bridges to opportunity, which begins with accelerating access to opportunity.

  “I’m here this afternoon to ask all of you to use your societal, political capital to make an investment in inclusion, because it is my belief that talent is an equally distributable commodity,” he said.

Municipal leaders can collaborate with businesses to create more internships and job opportunities, offer educational workshops for employers to help them understand the positive benefits of hiring inclusively, advocate for increased federal and provincial funding to ensure those with disabilities have access to educational and job placement opportunities, and establish an inclusion committee.

  He shared four key principles to help job seekers is to consider: in what roles in the organization can people with disabilities exhibit their most passion; what employment opportunities will light their internal fire, what partnerships and resources can be made to maximize the potential of those opportunities, and how can those relationships and connections be made into viable possibilities, potential, and productivity.  

  Outlining the importance of providing individuals with disabilities a chance to demonstrate their abilities in the workforce, McShan described how the Ontario Disability Support Program maximum allowance in the region is $1368 a month. In contrast, the average cost of rent is around $2000.

  “The best way to include someone in society is by giving them a job, because that enriches social independence, financial security, and also provides them with a sense of belonging,” he noted.

  Sharing his own story, McShan graduated with a Diploma in Journalism in 2010. It took six-and-a-half years to get his first paying job.

  With his heart set on being a sports reporter, he said he heard various versions of the same story. That story often noted he would be a great fit, but they could not hire him because they did not have the manpower they believed he needed to be successful.

  Then, he pivoted.

  He volunteered for four consecutive years, covering stories for a local news outlet. Through his advocacy work and perseverance, he was discovered by the Province, which hired him to help appoint an individual to look at how to hire more inclusively.

  He was shortly after invited to participate in a press conference, which changed the trajectory of his life.

  Now he travels across Canada and the US to advocate for inclusivity.     

As politicians and employment professionals, McShane urged those in attendance they can act as an ally. He noted persons with disabilities can be transformational problem solvers and innovative.  

  As a not-for-profit organization, CLEC values the collaboration and engagement it receives from community and municipal partners, Executive Director, Karen Bolger, added.

  “Together in partnership with communities across Essex County, we can transform lives and break down barriers. With your partnership and commitment to include, we can ensure everyone feels they belong.”

  During the event, First Vice President of CLEC’s Board of Directors, Chad Sutherland, took a moment to acknowledge the dedication LaSalle Councillor Sue Desjarlais poured into the organization for the past 11-years. Desjarlais recently passed away, but her lasting impact will continue to inspire possibilities and initiate opportunities.