(WBIR-OAK RIDGE) An East Tennessee non-profit is leading the way in preparing people for jobs.
Federal law is shifting the way people with disabilities work. Sheltered workshops are going away. That's where people with disabilities work separately from others, usually for less than minimum wage.
The preferred approach is something called integrated employment. People get training to find jobs or to volunteer in the community.
That is something Emory Valley Center in Oak Ridge is already doing. The new approach is a great fit for the organization serving people with disabilities.
"I interact with the customers and interact with my co-workers," Anthony Lindsey explained.
He works at the Hardee's restaurant in Oak Ridge, where he starts his shift with food prep.
I prep ham and cheese, rice for a burrito, the breakfast ham, take the trash out, and sweep the parking lot," he said.
He landed the job with the help of Emory Valley Center.
"Emory Valley helps me a lot like to find a place to live, help to take me out on outings, and going to work," he said.
Jobs in the community - not at a sheltered workshop - is a priority for Emory Valley Center. Its Supported Employment Program has many success stories, like Anthony's.
"I like the people who are here. I have good friends here who take care of me," he said.
He is doing his part to give back.
"I went to a Leadership Academy in Nashville to help me advocate," he said.
In his advocacy role, Anthony talks with people who participate in Emory Valley Center's Vocational Opportunity Training Program
"Just to kind of answer some of the questions they have. They talk about what they do. They talk about some of their struggles and kind of how they deal with that in the work site so it's really neat," Ashlea Forlines said.
She is the vocational director. Ashlea Forlines develops community partnerships to help place participants in paying jobs.
"Maybe working at fast food, working at a hotel, hospitality, retail. They're really learning more of those hands on skills to get any job in the community that they would be interested in," she said.
They learn practical skills to help land those jobs.
Emory Valley Center will break ground later this month on a new building that will allow the training program to expand.
Meanwhile, Tennessee Career Center has opened its doors to the people Emory Valley Center supports. It's a place to not only learn typing skills and interview strategies but also a resource for job searches.
"A lot of our people really love their jobs and they love what they do," Ashlea said.
Anthony enjoys his job at Hardee's, but he does have a long term career goal.
"To be a football coach, a quarterback coach," he said.
Emory Valley Center is hosting a fundraiser this Friday, April 8, to support its programs.
A Night of Harmony and Humor starts at 6:00 at St Mary's Church gym in Oak Ridge. The address is 323 Vermont Avenue.
The event includes dinner, music, silent auction, and a comedian who overcame stuttering: Jody Fuller.
Tickets are $45 each or $80 for two.