Garden City center gets grant to expand vocational training for intellectually disabled

A Garden City nonprofit has received what leaders call a “life-changing” grant that will enable the organization to build a space dedicated to helping those with intellectual disabilities gain work skills. 

Life’s WORC, a nonprofit founded more than 50 years ago that helps those with intellectual and developmental disabilities, is expanding its footprint after receiving a $735,000 grant from New York State. The money will fund the creation of a “WORC Force” center in Garden City, which will address the underemployment of the population the nonprofit works with, said CEO Matthew Zebatto. The nonprofit is eyeing a late 2023 opening date for the center.

“It was a community need and community demand,” Zebatto said of the plan to offer expanded vocational training. “It really became a no-brainer.”

The Stewart Avenue property, owned by nonprofit chair Lynne Koufakis’ family, will be transformed into a hub where adult participants can gain work experience. Multiple training centers will be built across the 24,000 square foot property, including a retail model, office, automotive shop, commercial kitchen and computer lab. 

The nonprofit plans to offer different tracts of support so anyone, despite their ability, can gain skills, Zebatto said. 

The organization already has a small vocational program with about 45 participants, Zebatto said. Students learn a variety of skills through the program, such as cooperating with others, sorting mail, applying clothing decals and entering computer data. The new property has the potential to support hundreds of students.

Details of specific offerings are being finalized, Zebatto said. Life’s WORC will establish partnerships with local businesses that will teach different industry skills to students, he said, such as preparing vehicles for basic maintenance, retail pharmacy and food service production. After students complete training, the nonprofit will work with business partners to find jobs for participants. 

Maria Mawhinney, who splits her time between East Rockaway and Florida, said Life’s WORC was a “lifesaver” for her son Maclain, 21, who has autism and dyscalculia, a learning disorder that prevents him from being able to count money or tell time. 

He didn’t do well in school despite his love for knowledge, but is thriving at Life’s WORC, where he is gaining independence, Mawhinney said. The new center will only enhance that, she said.

“It’s going to be a game changer for those in Nassau County and Suffolk County,” said nonprofit board vice chair Vanessa Rogan, of Garden City. Rogan’s 26-year-old son Harry lives in one of the nonprofit’s group homes.

Life’s WORC has given needed support to Rogan’s son, who has autism and has been involved with programming, like socialization classes, since middle school. The new center will provide him with opportunities to enhance his work skills, Rogan said. 

“As a parent, I know I speak for us all when I say people like Harry, people on the spectrum, need more opportunities for engagement, opportunities to try and succeed at different things,” Rogan said. “For each different level of ability, you can do something that will have a positive effect on you.”

By Brinley Hineman

brinley.hineman@newsday.com

Brinley Hineman covers the Town of Hempstead and the City of Long Beach for Newsday. She previously was a reporter in Nashville, Tennessee, and is a West Virginia native.