CASE Member Spotlight
Fort St. John Association for Community Living
Pour la version française de cet article, veuillez cliquer ici. | For the French version of this post, please click here.
For over 60 years, the Fort St. John Association for Community Living (FSJACL) has supported individuals with developmental disabilities and complex needs to achieve full and meaningful lives in Fort St. John, British Columbia, and the surrounding community.
Comprehensive Programming for Individuals to Live Independently
- FSJACL currently runs five housing programs, with each home accommodating the individual’s unique needs, such as space designed for wheelchairs and accessible bathrooms. Supported Living Services are offered for individuals who live or are ready to live in their own home, including support to manage their life independently.
- Homeshare is another housing option that allows an individual to live in the community with a caregiver roommate or family in a home environment that supports their unique desires and needs.
- Community Connections Inclusion program provides life skills, such as cooking and budgeting, to further enhance their ability to live day-to-day.
- Part of living an independent life is finding the right job or career. FSJACL’s Supported Employment Program assists individuals who are seeking employment in the community. The organization networks with local businesses, provides on the job support, and ensures that individuals are job ready to prepare them for opportunities and to help fill the labour market shortage.
Everyone Has Something to Contribute
FSJACL believes that everyone has something to contribute. An important part of most people’s lives is their job, and like all people, persons with developmental disabilities or complex needs want “real work for real pay.”
People are supported in finding relevant, purposeful employment and in maintaining it, while opportunities are continuously sought for clients to grow, both professionally and personally.
Staff at FSJACL spend time getting to know the people they support and what local employers need. With that information they create, develop, and implement innovative services, which might explain why the retention rate for long-term placements is 95%.
FSJACL empowers people to seek out and take opportunities, to advocate for themselves and their neighbours, to dream and set goals that are ambitious, and to take risks for the rewards they seek.
Growth: A Byproduct of Empowering People with Opportunity
FSJACL focuses on impacting people’s lives by connecting them to opportunities. They empower people to seek out and take opportunities, to advocate for themselves and their neighbours, to dream and set goals that are ambitious, and to take risks for the rewards they seek.
They see their role as helping clients to understand their rights and to learn about their abilities, so individuals can pursue their own paths and impact the broader community. Growth is a byproduct of empowering people with opportunity.\
For more information about FSJACL, visit their website.