Mia Adjusts Well to Work Life
Patrical Nobbie, D.P.A, Mia's Mom
taken from the Fall 2006 Issue of Making a
Difference Magazine

In the Fall 2005 issue of Making a Difference, Mia and I described her journey to employment, but the magazine went to print before we got to the end of the story. At the time, Mia's school district had agreed to hire a job coach, and they were scheduled to meet with the hotel where she got a job to work out the training and support arrangement.

The district allowed me to choose the supported employment provider, and we were all set to go. Mia began working two, 4-hour shifts at the Holiday Inn, refilling salt and pepper shakers, stripping tables, vacuuming ballrooms, polishing brass and doing some dishes. It was hard work, and the pepper made her sneeze, but except for the time that her job coach found her in a ballroom annex sound asleep, (sitting staight up and snoring no less!) she performed her duties responsibly. Even more gratifying was how proud she was - she told everyone she met that she had a job at the Holiday Inn - she was walking PR for the hotel!

But it wasn't enough work to keep her busy, so her job coach, Jenni, started looking for another job Mia could do on the days she wasn't at the Holiday Inn. Not long after, Jenni called me to say she had found something at the University of Georgia Alumni Association, 20 hours a week, helping out with the enormous number of mailings the Alumni Association sends. Mia called the Holiday Inn and gave them two weeks notice. They offered to keep her on their payroll until she tried out this new job, and said if it didn't work out, she could come back to the hotel. I thought this was a great reflection on the relationship that the job coaches had built with the hotel staff members who were learning along with Mia, and on how hard Mia had worked.

We went shopping for Bull Dawg clothes, and Mia started at the Association in April. It has been a wonderful experience. The staff is small, and Mia knows everyone. They of course know all about our family since Mia is so social. Mia has her own desk, and has learned the process for several types of mailings. She participates in Division banquets and staff birthdays and brings home fun Bull Dawg paraphernalia like mini footballs and stickers. A co-worker even brings her home a few days a week since she lives around the corner. We still have some issues with nodding off on the job, a problem related to her weight, sleep habits and diet. It'll be a group effort, but the Association staff is willing to work with us. She has really found her niche.

So "pre-employment" Mia is working a full 20 hours, getting herself up in the morning, making her own lunch and getting to UGA via her college "entourage," Maggie and Briana, who switch off driving her as their schedule allows. Soon another employment staff person will help her build some exercise into her schedule to hopefully improve her stamina and energy level. Mia is so proud. I knew how seriously she took her job when the church asked her if she wanted to still come and set up tables for Wednesday night dinners, the activity we started last year to get evidence that she was ready to work. She thought for a moment, and then said, "I don't think so. I don't want to miss my job."