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ucpn Community-Based Day Habilitation at Wantagh Celebrates 10 Year Anniversary

ucpn Community-Based Day Habilitation
at Wantagh Celebrates 10 Year Anniversary

 

The ucpn Community-Based Day Habilitation at Wantagh program is celebrating 10 years of providing services in the community at the Wantagh HUB. The program moved from a small space in ucpn to the Wantagh Hub on December 15, 1999. The program consists of 28 developmentally disabled adults and seven staff members who go in to the community daily volunteering and assisting at 10 different non-profit organizations.

 

A anniversary luncheon celebration was held on December 14th at the Hub with many guests in attendance including family and friends of the Day Habbers.  Karen Geller-Hittleman, ucpn Assistant Executive Director gave the official welcome and extended congratulations on behalf of all at ucpn to Mary C. Hodge, the Manager of the Wantagh Hub, the staff and the particpants on all their impressive accomplishments over the past decade.  Mike Kruter a community neighbor and good friend to the group was also on hand for the celebration which happened to occur on his birthday.  The group serenaded Mike with a heartfelt rendition of “Happy Birthday” along with an expression of thanks for all his kindness and support.  Elvis Trenchfield, a Community Coach at the Hub and talented chef, catered the entire luncheon with delicious food that rivaled the best any gourmet restaurant could offer!  There were tears, smiles and laughter at this memorable commemoration of many wonderful years of helping in the community and, in so doing, helping program particpants learn new skills, make new friends and experience new things to make life fun and rewarding.

 

When the Day Habbers are not Volunteering, they are in the community taking part in educational or social events. The Day Habbers also access the community through LIRR trains rides into Manhattan and local public bus trips. When asked how he feels about Day Hab, participant Michael Fitzgibbon remarked, " I like Day Hab because I can go out to Volunteer at the Sandel Center in Rockville Centre and Meals on Wheels in Suffolk where I like to help take meals to the Seniors’ houses. I like to go out and buy lunch at Friday's where I work on money skills and I like to talk to the staff.  I love the staff at Day Hab."

Anna Maria Impagliazzo, parent and Council of Auxiliaries volunteer joins her daughter Loretta and felllow Wantagh Hub partipants at the anniversary celebration.