When Heather came to Dungarvin Kentucky, she was in dire need of support. She had lived with her father her whole life, requiring support due to her intellectual and developmental disabilities. However, her father’s health began to decline significantly, eventually forcing him to make the difficult decision to trust others with his daughter’s care.
Initially, Heather, 37, and her father worked with a different service provider on a trial basis to see if it could meet her needs. However, the agency turned them down because of Heather’s “crisis” status and because she did not yet have a Supports for Community Living waiver.
After that disappointment, her father found Dungarvin, which quickly began working to support Heather in the organization’s person-centered way. When she first came to the Lexington team, all she had was a trash bag full of old clothes — nothing else. Her broken eyeglasses were glued together, her shoes were too small and she had medical issues requiring immediate attention.
The team partnered with Heather, her father and a case manager from another agency to set up a trial period with Dungarvin. That trial quickly led to her placement with a Dungarvin Adult Foster Care provider and her admission into the organization’s Adult Day Training program and Respite services.
The team also pulled together to provide Heather with clothes, new glasses, hygiene products, bedding and other necessities.
Today, Heather is thriving in the Day Training program, where she enjoys playing games on her tablet, listening to music and socializing with her peers and staff. She’s also gone out for walks and participated in crafting activities. Unfortunately, her initial Foster Care placement didn’t work out. But no worries — her Dungarvin team quickly trained a new Foster Care provider, a woman who lives with her mother. The two warmly welcomed Heather into their home, and she is receiving excellent support there.
Heather is now looking to a happier, brighter future, and the Lexington staff have noticed she is smiling bigger than ever! She enjoys going shopping during the weekend with her Foster Care provider and hanging out on the home’s back yard deck.
Dungarvin Kentucky is proud of Heather for her resilience and striving to make progress in her daily life. And all of Dungarvin is proud of our Kentucky team for supporting Heather to live a healthy, happy life.
If you or someone you know is interested in learning how you can receive support from Dungarvin, please visit us at www.dungarvin.com.