Welcoming our friends from the Olean Center

Tony Vellucci and Kim Wright were our guests at the meeting last Monday night. Tony is no stranger to the club and its members. He has been at the Olean Center for 37 years and well acquainted with the work we do and the contributions we have made to the town. Rotary Park sits next door to the Olean Center on Airport Road. 

 Tony began his career at the Ladd School and then spent a short time with the Hospital Association before coming to Westerly. He loves his job. It is a great place. He is excited because the Center will celebrate 50 years in 2016. 

The budget is 3.5 million dollars and they service 97 adults 69 children from across the state. Most of the children have some degree of autism and they serve them in their homes. The have a total of 185 staff members but nearly 100 of them are part time. The biggest challenge in their business today is funding. Hospitals, nursing homes and places like Oleans Center are dependent on government funding in many areas. One of the largest areas of state involvement comes in employing their participants. The state has promised to employ people with disabilities over the next ten years. That matches one of Olean’s goals. They are committed to employment. 

When Tony was asked what we could do, he didn’t hesitate to give us an answer. Offer acceptance, hope and gratitude. He asked us to be good neighbors. He told us to say hello and greet the participants if you see them at the YMCA, the store or in the park. He invited us take on a part time employee. The Olean Center works toward integration. Their model is to serve their participants to the extent that they need help and to encourage them to do what they can do on their own. The State of Rhode Island is moving away from group homes. They would rather have shared home situations. So every once in a while a need for a home comes up where a participant can be situated in a “foster” type situation. Tony told us that with tightened State budgets their funding has been cut . Kim’s job is to come up with new revenue streams as their development officer. 

Tony said he knew Frank Olean well and considered him a friend. He always prioritized his life by God first, family second and then the cause. As a result, Frank said if you put the participant first, everything else will fall in place. If you keep your eye on why you are here, you will get through the other stuff. Her believed that way to measure your success was by asking yourself if you are doing what the participant is asking you to do. 

Kim Wright has worked at the Olean Center for ten years. She was in another agency for eleven years. She really believes in the mission to help people reach their highest goals in develop-ment. The last few years she has been writing grants, doing fundraising, connecting to community neighbors, and sharing the mission and vision of the organization. She looks for community partners to aid them in their mission. As a result, Kim also coordinates the volunteers.

The Olean Center has a big year planned. It is leading up to the big anniversary. The Center is rich in history. It started as a parent based organization. Today it is so much more.  Last week they had fundraiser at the knickerbocker. They also used the event as an opportunity to create awareness, Upcoming events include a Telethon on June 13th with Chris Dipaola on WBLQ radio.  In August there is a volley ball tournament. Kim is now working to create and distribute newsletter and brochures to help build awareness. A lot of people don't know who they are. Some think it is a state agency. They need to do better publicity.