To kick off National Disability Employment Awareness Month, we’re excited to share this story showing what a person can achieve in the workplace when paired with an employer committed to their success.

Meet Melissa, who recently celebrated her five year anniversary in her job at the Willow Grove YMCA

In her five years on the job, Melissa has gone from full coverage job coaching to just a single check-in per month, meaning she’s fully independent at work!

Melissa’s managers and coworkers at her job site have been nothing short of outstanding. Melissa cites Willow Grove Y’s caring management and family-like environment as vital to building her confidence. She shared with us that her managers are extremely supportive of job coaching and went above and beyond to ensure that Melissa grew comfortable and confident in her tasks early on, which has helped her to fade from on-site job support altogether.

“It’s just a great team environment,” said CIS’s Mia Decker. “Her coworkers treat her like family, and even the YMCA members have come to know Melissa well, always thanking her for her excellent work. Melissa gets a raise every year, and she has become a true pro: working throughout summer camps, gymnastics meets, renovations, staff changes — she can handle it all!”

Congratulations to Melissa for doing a great job at work, and a big shoutout to the Willow Grove YMCA for being a model of the kind of supportive work community that can help employees with a disability find so much success!