James Scott, Direct Support Professional

I learned a lot about working with people with IDD in high school. Not where I attended, but where I worked. It was while working with special needs students at College Park High School that I learned about New Danville. I started here full-time in 2009, though I worked part-time here for a bit before.

I was not unfamiliar with special needs – I have a nephew who is an adult with IDD – but knowing about it is not the same as working with it. The Wranglers have taught me so much about myself and life. My nephew knows that I work here and I think he likes that.

After a career stint in the pharma industry, I took a job at the high school where I served as a job coach, helping students and employers in ways that provided meaningful jobs to the students. The work was so rewarding, but, all of it has been and is.

People ask me to name which of the many roles that I have had at New Danville is my favorite. I can’t do that. I love it all, but I do have a special appreciation for the team that was the lawn crew many years ago. A team of Wranglers took care of cutting and edging around here. Can you believe that? They took such great pride in the work. Eventually, there was too much to be done for a devoted crew to handle.

It is rewarding to see Wrangler’s bloom. They are the most honest, open, fair-minded, unprejudiced, candid people. They see others for who they are. I appreciate that Wranglers trust me as a sounding board when they encounter people or situations that stresses them or seem confusing. It works because we are all family at New Danville.  Families aren’t perfect, but they’re special…and we’re family here.