The Mille Lacs County Area DAC had a lot to celebrate in 2022, and its staff and members did just that during the Winter Wonder Years Milestone Celebration of Wednesday, Dec. 28.
The DAC aims to provide vocational and social opportunities to people with disabilities to help them realize their full potential and improve their quality of life within the community.
2020 was scheduled to be the DAC’s 50th year anniversary, but with the COVID-19 pandemic, celebrations were postponed until 2022.
Plans for the celebration were finally put in place this past December for the anniversary and to celebrate staff and members of the DAC who have been with the program for 20 years or more.
Three staff members have worked with the DAC for over 20 years and were presented with certificates from the DAC to show its appreciation for their work. Those staff members are Ann Daniels, Rita Cassens, and Jenny Mitchell.
Daniels first started her work at the DAC on Aug. 16, 1999 or 23 years ago, doing production in the workroom. Five years later she switched positions to work in life skills where she helps clients with cooking, cleaning, and fulfilling their goals.
“I was actually in accounts payable before this,” Daniels said. “I wanted a job close to home to be by my kids and I wanted to be able to help people.”
Daniels’s job as a life coach allows her to help clients of the DAC get out into the community, learn life skills, and be able to work.
“I like to give a lot of people one-on-one. We sit and listen and joke around. If they need help with something, you’re there to help them whether it’s for work or they come in upset, you’re able to help them,” Daniels said. “Everybody’s different, so how you help everybody is different because each person needs something different.”
Daniels went on to say that her favorite part about working with the DAC are the clients served.
“They became like my second family,” Daniels said. “It’s a fun place to work and you don’t have to be scared of saying the wrong thing, just treat them like you would anybody else. They have good days, bad days, but they’re no different than us.”
Rita Cassens joined the DAC team in October of 1997 and has worked as a sub for all 25 years. Her job allows her to work in any area of the DAC, filling in as needed when other team members are sick or are on vacation.
Cassens favorite part about working for the DAC is also working with the clients served.
“The clients. They’re so happy, the little things that make them happy are really surprising,” Cassens said.
According to Cassens, the DAC is a “warm place” for someone with a disability, and the people there care about them and want to teach them.
Similarly, Jenny Mitchell felt the DAC was helpful to the clients served by giving them opportunities to be proud of.
“The DAC helps the community in many ways because they take a lot of pride in where they work,” Mitchell said. “They will be so prideful even if it’s just a small paycheck that they earn. I have also discovered that the pride they take in the job they have coming into the facility is so important to their lives.”
Mitchell has been a staff member with the DAC for 28 years, having started in 1994 in living skills, moving to community skills, and finally into the designated coordinator position.
Her motivation to continue her work with the DAC comes from the people she serves.
“My motivation has been the people that we serve. You start out and it’s just a job and it turns into more like one big family. Wondering about them over the weekend and if they’re feeling better. It started becoming bigger than just a job to go to everyday,” Mitchell said.
Mitchell’s favorite parts about her job with the DAC is working with the teams and organizing conferences with parents or guardians and the persons served to discover their goals.
“My favorite part about working with the DAC is working with the team. I supervise many people like staff, but my favorite part is having conferences with parents or guardians, the people that we serve, trying to figure out what’s important to them and what they want for their future. It might be something little or ginormous,” Mitchell said.
Mitchell also encourages people to explore the DAC website, ask questions, and check out the DAC.
“We have so much to offer,” Mitchell said. “It just becomes kind of an addiction sometimes because you want to help and see what they can accomplish.”
To learn more about the Mille Lacs County Area DAC, visit its website at http://www.mlcdac.org/.
The DAC serves its clients out of locations in both Milaca and Princeton.
Reach Chloe Smith at chloe.smith@apgecm.com.
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