Friday was a special day for Community Living Algoma.
In keeping with May being Community Living Awareness Month, and with Community Living Algoma celebrating 70 years of advocacy for people with developmental disabilities throughout Algoma, the Community Living flag was raised at the Civic Centre.
The ceremony was attended by approximately 70 people, including CLA clients, their friends and family members, CLA staff, board members and city councillors.
The flag was raised by Sault Mayor Matthew Shoemaker and Wawa-based Gordon Draper, Algoma Community Vision Advocates chair.
The flag raising was followed by an Awareness Walk by CLA clients, staff and supporters from the Civic Centre along the boardwalk to the exterior of the James L. McIntyre Centennial Library and back.
“I’m very proud. I've been with the organization for 35 of its 70 years. We have come such a long way as a sector,” said John Policicchio, Community Living Algoma executive director in an interview with SooToday.
“In the 1950s we still had people with developmental disabilities being taken away from their parents and sent away to provincial facilities and institutions and that meant that they were excluded from their community, from their families, but today it’s all about people being in their community, working in their community, living in their community enjoying relationships and friendships. I’ve seen tremendous progress.”
Policicchio said he is encouraged by how employers have accepted people with disabilities as employees and by how he has seen improvements in providing residential supports for them.
“Our motto is around inclusion. That’s what we’re striving for and we’re getting there.”
Still, Policicchio said there is more work to be done in terms of obtaining more provincial funding for more staff and more services for clients.
Community Living Algoma has approximately 50 employees at its main office on Northern Avenue East with a total of approximately 330 employees when offices in Elliot Lake, Wawa and Hornepayne are factored in. CLA clients in school work for the organization in summer jobs.
CLA has approximately 650 clients in the Sault and area.
The theme of this year’s Community Living Awareness Month is Authentic Inclusion.
“Authentic Inclusion means more than being active in the community. It’s about being seen, heard and valued for who you are and what you have to offer. As much as we would like to believe that always happens, it doesn’t. But we do keep moving forward and today’s flag raising followed by the Awareness Walk is a great example of that and a way to recognize our contributions, interests and dreams for the advancement of this cause,” said Mayor Shoemaker addressing the audience gathered outside the Civic Centre.
“CLA has been committed to the advancement of a community in which all people are recognized as full citizens, achieve personal dignity, enjoy the benefits, and responsibilities of independence and are supported to reach their full potential,” Shoemaker said.
“We hope to better ourselves and our community by growing and exploring solutions for shared issues,” said Gordon Draper of Algoma Community Vision Advocates at Friday’s flag raising.
“Raising a flag symbolizes citizenship through its expression of unity and pride in one’s community. It represents our shared values and encourages a sense of belonging and responsibility among all people. We hope that this flag raising ceremony will reinforce the expectations of participation and engagement of all citizens in upholding the principles and ideals of citizenship and belonging,” Draper said.