Word from the President:

Passion is the word that best describes starting a non-profit.

When it came time to find a placement for my 22-year old son, Andy, who has developmental disabilities, after he graduated from high school, the task proved monumental. I traveled the state looking at different opportunities, from ranches in the desert to colleges in Phoenix. But the one thing that always came back to haunt me was-if I am gone and there is no family person to help Andy out where do I want him to be. Placed in a group home in the middle of Phoenix where he knew no one or try to get a group home started in Wickenburg where he grew up and was accepted for who he was.

The first meeting to discuss transitional living for adults with developmental disabilities was on September 3, 2003. The meeting included citizens from Wickenburg Community Services, two high school counselors, the Superintendent of Schools, a school board member, and three concerned parents.

The meeting was groundbreaking. We ended up with a lawyer who would help us with our incorporation papers, a bank that would set us up with a free checking account and an accountant; who would provide bookkeeping services.

We had many meetings and asked many speakers, who discussed developmental disabilities, life planning, special needs trusts, guardianships and much more, to find out as much information as we possibly could.

Our main goals for Wickenburg Ducks in Row Foundation were:

  § Find independent housing and jobs for adults with developmental disabilities
              who live in Wickenburg and the surrounding area.

  § Provide workshops in Wickenburg for people who are interested in being
              hired as providers for respite, habilitation and occupational therapy.

  § Start a Parent Support Group.

  § Provide an Adaptive Recreation Program and get the support of the Town
              of Wickenburg’s Recreation Program

Midge White, Executive Director of the Arizona Governor’s Advisory Council for Developmental Disabilities in Maricopa County was instrumental in starting our Adaptive Recreation Program call WAGS (Wickenburg Self-Advocacy Group). This program was initiated on May 14, 2003, and is still active today.

My son, Andy, was appointed as a director to the Advisory Council and four years later is still on the board. Our Adaptive Recreation Program was used as a pilot program for other rural communities in Maricopa County.

The Recreation Program has been successful in general terms of providing opportunities for recreation and a type of recreation participants with disabilities might not otherwise have opportunities to enjoy. It has also provided opportunity for participants who might otherwise be homebound to socialize and thus to become more accepted and accepting members of the community at large. Some specific benefits have been striking. For example, at one of the first bowling events there were only two of twelve participants who had ever bowled before, and gutter bumpers and bowling ramp were made available for participants who could not throw a ball but who could push a ball down a ramp. And in another case, a parent ascribes help with increased self-esteem a reduction of stuttering and an increase in school grades to a child’s successful participation in Foundation social recreation activities.

Benefits of the recreation component also include a Self-Advocacy Convention in Sierra Vista, AZ the first weekend each June, where participants attend workshops and social events such as a pool tournament. To provide practice for this event, a grant was awarded the Foundation to purchase a pool table and all the amenities that come with it. With this the participants are able to go the Self-Advocacy Program knowing that they have practiced like other participants and have a chance of possibly winning an award.

Two years ago, the Arizona Department of Developmental Disabilities (DDD) worked with the parents of three men to hire Ameriserve International, to purchase and maintain a group home in Wickenburg. The men have their own bedrooms, work in the community, attend church and attend a day program provided by Ameriserve, plus other activities.
When the men moved into the House, DDD bills each person 70% of their income from Social Security and are not allowed to have more than $2,000 in assets at any given time. Extra cash for incidentals are slim and some recreational events that the men would like to do are too expensive for their participation.

Donations to help provide recreational activities for the men and participants in the recreational program can be mailed to Wickenburg Ducks in a Row Foundation, P.O. Box 1364, Wickenburg, AZ 85358. Wickenburg Ducks in a Row Foundation is a non-profit, 501c3 so all donations are tax-deductible.

I hope I haven’t made this sound too easy-because it’s not.

There are countless hours of meetings, phone calls, out of town conventions, time on the computer and much more. You have to have passion for what you do-no matter what it is, never give up.