In 1993 a small group of CEOs from Northern NY, USA and Southern Ontario Canada, of Organization providing services to persons with special needs, met for the first time. This group later became the corner stone of the 1 world foundation.
1995
Job shadowing was the focus. Job shadowing is defined as the opportunity to link with similar colleagues to share information, approaches and ideas. This may be accomplished through clinician to clinician direct communications, visits and spending time on the job at each worksite.
January 1995
Staff from Southeastern Ontario agencies and staff from Northern New York agencies met in Alexandria Bay, New York for an information exchange, including tours of each other’s work sites.
October 1995:
Executive Director of Ongwanada presented to Executive Directors of agencies in New York State and to the Family Support Council.
November 1995:
Conference on grieving and the DD individual was held in Kingston, 3 employees from New York State attended.
February 1996:
New York agency representatives participated in a presentation on Cooperative Initiatives Utilized in Ontario.
April 1996:
Two Canadian Physicians and Ongwanada staff member presented at the Aging Conference in Lake Placid, New York.
June 1996:
Sunmount DDSO staff presented in Toronto to the Great Lakes Society (physicians) at their Annual Meeting on the topic of Individualized funding.
August 1996:
Ongwanada staff members toured Day Services in New York.
October 1996:
Administrators and Executives from Ontario and New York met in Albany to participate in an exchange and to learn about the legislative process and funding for services to individuals in New York.
June 1997:
Administors and Executives from New York and Ontario met in Toronto to participate in an exchange and to learn about the provincial process and funding for services and individuals in Canada.
December 1997:
Staff from Southeastern Ontario Agencies along with Northern New York state agencies met in Alexandria Bay, New York for an exchange on direct care staff issues and tours of each others work sites.
1998:
The 1 World Foundation was incorporated in the United States and Canada.
May 1998:
Staff from Northern, Central and Western New York agencies along with Southeastern Ontario agencies met in Belleville, Ontario for an information exchange on direct care staff issues and tours of each others work sites.
2001: May 23 & 24, Kingston
2002: May 15 & 16, Lake Placid
TCI Human Services Inter-Agency Coordination
1WF representative met with TCI (Turks & Cakos Island) Human Service agency leaders, individually and as a group. TCI agency representatives included leaders from: Social Services, Education, Corrections, Environment, Medical HIV, Senior Citizen Services, among others.
The goal was to enhance the working relationship between and among the agencies while improving the coordination of service delivery.
Development of a Human Service Directory
As an outgrowth of brining TCI Human Services agency heads together, the 1WF assisted in the compilation of a Human Service Directory. This includes description of services, names, addresses, phone numbers of agency contact people to serve as a one stop guide for the people of TCI who need assistance/service from one or more agencies.
Public Awareness/Sensitivity Training was provided to hotel employees
1WF representatives conducted a full day of public awareness sensitivity training regarding persons with special needs to the staff of Beaches, Club Med and Allegro Resorts. The goal was to raise awareness of resort staff to the special needs of not only persons who may be guests at their establishment, but fellow countrymen as well.
2003: May 14 & 15, Gananoque
Airlift of hospital beds and other durable medical equipment
The 1WF through arrangements with medical providers and the Canadian Air Force arranged for shipment via air of hospital beds, wheelchairs, walkers and other durable medical equipment to TCI. Rotary in TCI, Canada and the US, assisted in this effort.
2004: May 12 & 13, Lake Placid
Island Dreams Disabilities Public Awareness Campaign
A team from 1WF and TCI Governmental Officials planned, developed and implemented a multi-media public awareness campaign. The goal of the initiative was to sensitize people throughout TCI about persons with special needs, their hopes and dreams and those of their families.
Public service announcements were developed for radio and television. Brochures were produced regarding information about disabilities.
A television feature was produced and broadcast in New York State, USA and Southern Ontario, Canada.
2005: May 18 & 19, Kingston
Creation of a National Action Plan
1WF representatives together with TCI Human Service Agency leadership representatives, persons with special needs, family members, and school/agency board of directors, developed a nation-wide action plan.
Specifically the goals of this plan were:
- To identify what services for persons with special needs existed in TCI.
- To identify what services were needed to be developed.
- To priorities the services needed, and identify strategies to help develop them
2006: May 17 & 18, Lake Placid
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2007: May 9 & 10, Gananoque
TCI Nation-wide Special Needs Assessment
A joint team of 1WF planners and clinicians and TCI government officials and clinicians conducted 4 days of individual assessments on 3 different islands. Over 300 people attended. 151 individual assessments were completed including 36 needs which could be met in a relative rapid fashion.
The joint team was comprised of:
- Physicians, planners, teachers, nurses and others.
- The 151 completed individualized needs assessments were presented to TCI governmental leadership in written and database format on disk.
2008: May 14 & 15, Lake Placid
TCI, Rotary and 1WF collaboration
In 2008 the 1WF in an attempt to follow through on meeting some of the needs identified in the 2007 nation-wide assessment solicited the assistance of Rotary International along with Rotary clubs in Canada, the US, and TCI on Providenciales and Grand Turk.
Meetings occurred between and among 1WF representatives, Rotary and TCI governmental officials. Again, paper and data disk copies of the 2007 special needs nation-wide assessment were provided and reviewed.
2009:
In November 2009 four volunteer 1 World Foundation CEOs, three of whom are board members traveled to the Turks a Caicos Islands. The focus of assistance provided included, Meeting with new local governmental leaders and other stake holders to review joint initiatives over the last ten years and to determine future directions to better support persons with special needs in this island nation. A new Memorandum of Understanding was negotiated and signed to facilitate future initiatives. As new hospitals were under construction, the existing sites were visited and strategies discussed for their future use to best support persons with special needs.