To the Editor
Smithtown Matters
My son Riko is a 52 year old man with severe autism who was born, raised and for the past 30 years lives in a group home in Smithtown. In October of last year Riko and his Direct Support Professional (DSP) saw a flyer from the Town of Smithtown Senior Citizen Department urgently looking for volunteers for their Meals on Wheels Program. Homebound seniors were at risk of missing meal delivery and suffering increased isolation due to an inadequate number of volunteer to make the deliveries.
Riko has been delivering Meals on Wheels for ten years and loves his volunteer work delivering Meals on Wheels in Center Moriches. Riko’s DSP called to volunteer to help with the MOW program’s crisis in Smithtown. To her utter dismay they were rejected on the grounds of contract and liability issues, issues that other municipalities were able to overcome.
The then Exectuive Director of Developmental Disabilities Institute (DDI) wrote to Supervisor Wehrheim regarding the problem and seeking a resolution. He received an email from Supervisor Wehrheim’s assistant stating that the matter was being turned over to Council member Lynne C. Nowick who was the liaison to the Senior Citizens Center. Council member Nowick responded on December 2, that she had an upcoming meet with the newly appointed director of the Senior Citzens Department where she would raise the issue of Riko volunteering for the MOW program. On April 22, almost 5 months later, DDI finally received a 3 page officious response from Doreen Perrino, Program Director, Smithtown Senior Center. In her response Ms. Perrini cited a laundry list of “requirements” set forth by the Suffolk County Office of the Aging and the New York State Office for the Aging that Riko would be unable to meet starting with the fact that the meals must be delivered by a person with a valid New York State drivers license. Clearly, Riko a man with severe autism, would not possess a valid drivers license.
Ms. Perrini goes on to “address” DDI’s statement that the agency works with other meals programs in Suffolk County. Apparently, in her mind, the fact that only two programs permit disabled people to volunteer to deliver meals and that they created specific routes to accommodate them was reason enough to reject Riko’s offer to help address Smithtown’s crisis by volunteering! Clearly, Ms. Perrini is not familiar with The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) which prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities in several areas and requires that accommodations be made to include them. She also added that “it was reported” that the disabled volunteers were either unreliable or exhibited behavior problems and that the person “overseeing” the disabled volunteer was disinterested and not alert.
I reached out to the Moriches Nutrition Program regarding their evaluation of Riko and his DSP’s work as volunteers for its Meals on Wheels Program. The Assistant Director said that she has known Riko for years. She went on to say that everyone loves Riko, he greets everyone by name with a smile and that the various people with him over the years have been, without exception, excellent with Riko.
After all that transpired last year, I was saddened to read the article in the recent issue of Smithtown Matters that, one year later, the Smithtown Senior Center was still desperately looking for volunteers to deliver Meals on Wheels to seniors who were home bound. Seniors are missing out on nutritious meals that could have been delivered by my son Riko—a smiling, friendly man with a severe disability who wants nothing more but to give back to his community but was, despite years of experience delivering meals for other towns, rejected as an unsuitable volunteer by the town he has lived in all his life—Smithtown.
I can NOT escape the very strong whiff of discrimination.
Disappointed,
Margaret Raustiala
Member Save our Services
CC Senator Mario Mattera
Assemblymember Michael Fitzpatrick
Jihoon Kim, Deputy Secretary for Human Services and Mental Hygiene
Kim Hill, Chief Disability Officer
Kerri Neifeld, Commissioner OPWDD
Smithtown Matters
My son Riko is a 52 year old man with severe autism who was born, raised and for the past 30 years lives in a group home in Smithtown. In October of last year Riko and his Direct Support Professional (DSP) saw a flyer from the Town of Smithtown Senior Citizen Department urgently looking for volunteers for their Meals on Wheels Program. Homebound seniors were at risk of missing meal delivery and suffering increased isolation due to an inadequate number of volunteer to make the deliveries.Riko has been delivering Meals on Wheels for ten years and loves his volunteer work delivering Meals on Wheels in Center Moriches. Riko’s DSP called to volunteer to help with the MOW program’s crisis in Smithtown. To her utter dismay they were rejected on the grounds of contract and liability issues, issues that other municipalities were able to overcome.
The then Exectuive Director of Developmental Disabilities Institute (DDI) wrote to Supervisor Wehrheim regarding the problem and seeking a resolution. He received an email from Supervisor Wehrheim’s assistant stating that the matter was being turned over to Council member Lynne C. Nowick who was the liaison to the Senior Citizens Center. Council member Nowick responded on December 2, that she had an upcoming meet with the newly appointed director of the Senior Citzens Department where she would raise the issue of Riko volunteering for the MOW program. On April 22, almost 5 months later, DDI finally received a 3 page officious response from Doreen Perrino, Program Director, Smithtown Senior Center. In her response Ms. Perrini cited a laundry list of “requirements” set forth by the Suffolk County Office of the Aging and the New York State Office for the Aging that Riko would be unable to meet starting with the fact that the meals must be delivered by a person with a valid New York State drivers license. Clearly, Riko a man with severe autism, would not possess a valid drivers license.
Ms. Perrini goes on to “address” DDI’s statement that the agency works with other meals programs in Suffolk County. Apparently, in her mind, the fact that only two programs permit disabled people to volunteer to deliver meals and that they created specific routes to accommodate them was reason enough to reject Riko’s offer to help address Smithtown’s crisis by volunteering! Clearly, Ms. Perrini is not familiar with The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) which prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities in several areas and requires that accommodations be made to include them. She also added that “it was reported” that the disabled volunteers were either unreliable or exhibited behavior problems and that the person “overseeing” the disabled volunteer was disinterested and not alert.
I reached out to the Moriches Nutrition Program regarding their evaluation of Riko and his DSP’s work as volunteers for its Meals on Wheels Program. The Assistant Director said that she has known Riko for years. She went on to say that everyone loves Riko, he greets everyone by name with a smile and that the various people with him over the years have been, without exception, excellent with Riko.
After all that transpired last year, I was saddened to read the article in the recent issue of Smithtown Matters that, one year later, the Smithtown Senior Center was still desperately looking for volunteers to deliver Meals on Wheels to seniors who were home bound. Seniors are missing out on nutritious meals that could have been delivered by my son Riko—a smiling, friendly man with a severe disability who wants nothing more but to give back to his community but was, despite years of experience delivering meals for other towns, rejected as an unsuitable volunteer by the town he has lived in all his life—Smithtown.
I can NOT escape the very strong whiff of discrimination.
Disappointed,
Margaret Raustiala
Member Save our Services
CC Senator Mario Mattera
Assemblymember Michael Fitzpatrick
Jihoon Kim, Deputy Secretary for Human Services and Mental Hygiene
Kim Hill, Chief Disability Officer
Kerri Neifeld, Commissioner OPWDD