A LOCAL program that helps people with disabilities find employment is set to get national recognition next month.
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In a short space of time, the Employment Circles of Support program has proven to be lifechanging.
And now one of its great success stories will get to share her experience at a national conference in Melbourne, where the program will be shared with an audience of service providers from across the country next month.
Meg Pargeter began work experience at Albury’s Hume Bank last October as part of the pilot program to show how career pathways could develop for Border children and young adults with disabilities.
Diagnosed with Kabuki syndrome, the 18-year-old Belvoir Special School student has a mild intellectual disability and suffers muscle abnormalities.
When she began her work placement at the bank in October, it was quickly noted by her colleagues that not only did she lighten the workload, she lifted the mood.
That enthusiasm – and hard work – has paid off, with Meg having been awarded employee of the month and set to start a paid position for two days a week with the bank when she finishes year 12.
Meg's mother, Melissa Pargeter and her mentor, Jen Tait, were among the parents’ group which established the program.
In her early days of working at the bank, Mrs Pargeter noted how her daughter relished the experience and told The Border Mail she just wanted Meg to have the same opportunities and life pathways as every other young adult – “part-time work while she finishes school, further education in the career of her choice and the opportunity to make a contribution through meaningful, valued employment.”
Mrs Pargeter said the success of the family-driven program was proof of the power of people working together, having started out with a chat “over a cuppa”. And now her daughter will stand before an audience from across the country at the Australian Disability Employment Conference in Melbourne.
In front of that audience, Meg will not be defined or singled out because of a disability. She will be able to speak for herself and not have others speak for her, as her mother points out. She can proudly share her story of being a very normal hard-working 18-year-old student, with a part-time job – a young person making a meaningful and valued contribution within her community.