M Street House

Working at M Street is an ever changing experience, nothing stays the same and the challenges change from day to day.  The residents of M Street are also as varied as the challenges.

M Street is a duplex with very different residents on either side.

KM is a young man on the go who lives alone on one side of M Street. He plans his own activities with minimal assistance and challenges staff to facilitate his desire to see and learn new things each and every day. One day KM is happy to be here in town, riding the bus and participating in ATE and the next he may want to visit another area of the state. If staff introduce him to something new, KM will be off and running with the idea. He is currently taking classes at the Hilyard Center.  He also takes a private art class at home. KM is very interested in finding work and has advocated for himself to do this through Vocational Rehabilitation Services.

SH is someone who gets her point across without saying a word. She is the unofficial “boss” of the house and she will let anyone know who doubts her. SH enjoys arts and crafts, especially painting.  She also enjoys swimming each week at Tamarack pool and spending time at the Alternative to Employment room at the Alvord Taylor office. One thing very important to SH is her magazines.  She can never have too many!

When RJ moved into M Street she had issues with both staff and her new housemate. However, the two have since grown very close.  RJ openly states that she misses SH when she leaves on her own for an outing. RJ enjoys hunting for bugs, frogs, snakes and other critters when she is out at a local park or in her own backyard. RJ generally loves the outdoors and is more than willing to walk around local parks. Both SH and RJ spend many hours with each other outside on the swing just enjoying each other’s company.

Jeff Schmidt, Program Manager