A San Francisco nonprofit will be celebrating its efforts to move residents with developmental disability forward.
The Arc San Francisco is marking its 75th year. To celebrate, it will hold its 24th Annual WorkLife Awards on Thursday to recognize workers, employers and community partners who have helped ensure opportunities for Bay Area residents who are often overlooked or underestimated.
“We work with adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and support them, partner them, so they can achieve whatever they want in their lives,” Senior Director of Workforce Inclusion at The Arc San Francisco Virginia Wan Nogueira said.
That could include living independently, getting a job, taking classes, or support managing healthcare.
The nonprofit has a robust workforce development team with a host of tasks, including resume writing and job interview prep.
“When they get the job, we support them with onboarding and maintaining their job through job coaches who work very closely with our employers to ensure that when they are working here, that things are going well, that our participants and our employers get the support that they need,” Nogueira said.
“I talk to leaders in hospitality and other partners that we have and let them know that we have other options and other platforms where we can hire many different skills and Arc is one of them,” Director of Human Resources Beacon Grand Dale Dadoy said. “When an I/DD worker comes into work, they bring in their own whole self. They do not take the position for granted, they do their best and if they can’t do their best, they communicate they raise their hand and that is when leaders like me come in and say what do you need because everyone deserves that kind of success in the workplace.”
“If we can give a helping hand to those who are I/DD, such as me, then we can help other people get jobs in this society, in the hotel, or even anywhere,” banquet houseman Tuan Le said.