news and highlights

NEW KENSINGTON, PA- Wesley Family Services is excited to announce that they have received a grant award from the West Penn Power Sustainable Energy Fund (WPPSEF) to co-fund the installation of a solar panel array for their Pioneer location at 1045 4th Ave in New Kensington.  Wesley Family Services provides a variety of behavioral health services, a drop-in center, and affordable housing to the community out of this location.

Completed in 2020, Wesley Family Services wanted to generate affordable housing for the community, create a new and sustainable set of offices for staff, and be a part of the economic development in New Kensington.  Designed to be solar ready, Pioneer exemplifies Wesley Family Services commitment to energy conservation, as the building is both LEED Gold Certified and meets Passive House standards.  Adding a solar array to Pioneer is the culmination of this project and will provide the building with a clean source of locally produced energy.

“We are thankful to have received the support of WPPSEF to help cover the cost and installation of these new solar panels. We not only believe in providing transformational care to those we treat but to the communities we support as well. This solar panel system will help our New Kensington location realize its initial vision of being energy independent and help the surrounding community,” said Doug Muetzel, CEO of Wesley Family Services.

“We applaud Wesley Family Services for building their Pioneer location to Passive House and LEED construction standards which will produce a more comfortable building and a building that has lower utility bills. Once the energy efficiency goals were met, WPPSEF provided some additional funding to support the installation of solar PV to produce on-site electric production. Wesley Family Services approach of addressing energy efficiency first followed by on-site electric production is the preferred pathway of building tomorrow’s building today”, said Joel Morrison, WPPSEF Fund Administrator.

 

This story was originally published in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

Another free shuttle service is being launched to help give New Kensington residents in the city’s downtown “food desert” access to groceries.

Wesley Family Services, the New Ken Downtown Partnership and Westmoreland Community Action are partnering in the pilot transportation program, which will start Monday, April 10.

The Fresh Food Shuttle will run from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

A van will pick up residents at Kensington Arms, Pioneer Apartments and Parnassus Manor. They’ll be taken to the Golden Dawn and Aldi in New Kensington and the Walmart and Aldi in Frazer.

The program is starting with offering the service to residents of those high-rises, with the hope of expanding in the future.

“Everyone deserves access to healthy food options,” said Michelle Thom, president of the New Ken Downtown Partnership. “Communities around the New Kensington area have limited options to purchase healthy, nutritious meals. Often, members of this community will have to walk, ride the bus and travel long distances to purchase basic items. We are proud to offer this shuttle as a way to help community members meet their needs.”

The van will have room for seven to eight people. Riders must be 18 or older and can bring up to four bags.

There will be a schedule of four trips a day, made in one-hour increments.

Pickups can be scheduled by calling 724-895-8270.

Funding for the shuttle is coming from Westmoreland Community Action to be spent in New Kensington, while funds from an anonymous donor will allow it to eventually service Arnold.

Thom said officials plan to be flexible with pickup locations and destinations to accommodate residents’ needs.

“We encourage everyone who has a need to take advantage of this service, and we are excited and honored to be able to provide a small solution to the ‘food desert’ in downtown New Kensington,” Thom said.

The shuttle will join a grocery shopping program sponsored by Harrison-based Allegheny-Kiski Health Foundation, that provides a free grocery bus twice a month, generally on Wednesdays, in New Kensington and Arnold. It picks up people at Kensington Manor, Arnold Towers, Citizens Plaza and Parnassus Manor and takes them to Walmart and Aldi in Frazer.

But that service, which began in 2021, is full with its regulars and can’t accommodate additional riders, said John Pastorek, the foundation’s president and CEO.

Having another shuttle running will be helpful, he said.

“We don’t have room to add more people.”

This story was originally published in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Wesley Family Services held its annual gala at the Wyndham Grand, Downtown Saturday night. Nearly 300 people came to support WFS at the gala, which started with a cocktail reception and included a silent auction.

This year’s event showcased the Quality Whole Person Care model, which has a holistic approach and meets clients’ physical, emotional, social, financial and other needs.

WTAE-TV’s Shannon Perrine emceed and the gala chair was Len Corton.

“I want to thank everybody who attended the gala and supports our mission,” said Doug Muetzel, CEO of Wesley Family Services. “This event is so important to Wesley Family Services and the proceeds raised help us provide transformational care to members of our community throughout the year.”

Many were honored for serving a wide range of people, from those with intellectual disabilities to families going through difficulties to senior citizens. Among the honorees were Rose Morris and the Quality Whole Person Care Award winners Deanna Bennis, Mina Al Doori, Brendan Barnett, Mary Jo Thomson, Blanche Wedel, Deanna Bennis, Amy Kimicta-Savarino, Sherry Buford, Nicole Harris and Gale Foster.

“To be recognized by an organization that is led by someone as amazing as Doug and does such incredible work is beyond an honor,” said Morris.

“We could not think of better person to honor than Rose Morris and our Quality Whole Person Care Award winners  because they are true mission-advancers and valued members of our community,” noted Muetzel. The event grossed $170,000.

Among those applauding were KDKA’s Josh Taylor, Sean Biggart, Jim Patton, Art and Ann Cipriani, Danny and Debbie Brown and Andrea Bowser.

This story was originally published in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

Marjorie Bungard is one of the lucky ones.

Her days at Community Living Care’s New Florence program mean regular socialization, an exercise routine and stops at the grocery store. Last week, she made a St. Patrick’s Day craft.

“This is where most of my friends are,” she said.

There are five people on a waiting list — hoping to get into the day program for people with autism and intellectual disabilities — if the agency can increase its workforce of direct support professionals. That has proved difficult, said Jason McIntosh, chief administrative officer for the agency and director of the New Florence facility.

Before covid, there were 19 people who attended the program. Now, there are nine, he said. The number of direct support professionals has dropped from eight to four.

Advocates say they need more money from the state — the only source of funding for such agencies — to increase wages in an effort to adequately provide services such as the day program and residential group homes.

When Bungard doesn’t have access to the New Florence program, she is bored.

“She is a very social woman, and when she was not able to be here, she would get very depressed,” said Alice Leighton, her sister.

Providers of those services are facing a crisis: A dearth of direct support professionals means people who have funding to attend day programs or live in group homes may be placed on waiting lists or left with little choice in their day-to-day lives, advocates say. It’s an issue that can have a ripple effect for them and their families while negatively affecting a person’s ability to develop, connect socially and work.

“We are very concerned that our system is falling apart in front of our eyes,” said Mark Davis, president and CEO of Pennsylvania Advocates and Resources for Autism and Intellectual Disabilities. “We see contractions in every sector of our system, and we see people not being able to access services that are critical supports to them, either not as often or not at all.

“We’ve seen a growing issue with what we call a ‘hidden waiting list’ — that means people have funding for services but are unable to obtain services.”

Underfunded, understaffed

It’s a complex system where providers are funded solely by the state and through Medicaid. Advocates say they need more money from the state — $430 million — to attract more direct support professionals with beefed-up hourly wages, which average around $14 to $15, depending on the area.

“The work that they do is much more valuable than that,” Davis said.

The provider doesn’t control those amounts, said Nick Kratz, vice president of government relations with the state advocacy group. The lack of staffing has forced community providers throughout Westmoreland County to close group homes over the past year and limit the number of people who can access day programs where they work with support staff to interact, learn and grow.

It’s becoming challenging to maintain a level of options in a system that promotes choice — where a person wants to live, what they want to do for work and with whom they want to spend their time — Kratz said.

“Right now, as a system, we are failing,” said Sharon Roskovich, CEO of Community Living Care.

At the center’s Greensburg day program, there are 15 people on the waiting list.

“When people come here during the day, then their families can work. They can … take care of things that they need to,” she said.

Agencywide, there are 177 direct support professionals. Before the pandemic, that number was 246. Staffing issues have prompted Community Living Care to close three group homes — where, typically, a few people live with around-the-clock supervision — in Unity, Jeannette and Hempfield, while a second one in Jeannette remains vacant, McIntosh said.

They’re not alone.

A survey of about half of the providers in the state conducted by the advocacy group found that more than 4,000 Pennsylvanians with autism or intellectual disabilities are no longer receiving services, Davis said. Staffing was the most common issue.

“We’ve never seen a contraction of our residential system like we’re seeing now,” he said.

Dedicated staff lauded

A group home where four people live in Mt. Pleasant, operated by Valley Community Services, is set to close. Two others shuttered last year, said G.N. Janes, chief executive officer.

“Not because we don’t want to provide the supports, but because we can’t,” he said. “We simply do not have the staff.”

The agency has seven homes in Arnold, New Kensington, Cheswick and Springdale, all of which are short-staffed. In January, nearly one in five hours worked by direct support professionals in those homes was overtime, he said.

“The only reason we haven’t had to close any homes in that area is because of the dedication of our direct support professionals,” he said.

Wesley Family Services has opened two group homes over the past six months, and the agency’s day program in O’Hara expanded to help adults with autism, said Heather Duncan, vice president of transition-age and adult services. Those homes are among 22 in Allegheny, Westmoreland, Armstrong and Butler counties that provide services to 66 people.

“Wesley Family Services has experienced an increase in referrals to our day program as a result of other agencies discontinuing services,” she said.

All of the agency officials praised the work of their direct support professionals who sometimes work extra to make sure clients maintain their current level of service.

“Direct support professionals help individuals remain safe, healthy and independent in their homes and in the community,” Duncan said.

Socialization at stake

During a gathering of advocates and leaders in Greensburg this month, state Rep. Eric Nelson, R-Hempfield, pointed to 500,000 people who started receiving government benefits during the pandemic, but no longer qualify for them, as a potential source of new direct support professionals.

Nelson is a member of the state’s legislative task force established in 2022 that is focused on examining how Pennsylvania delivers services to people with autism and intellectual and developmental disabilities. The group is looking into needs, system capacity and other facets of the program, including workforce issues. A report will be prepared with its findings.

He said it is important that the state encourages able-bodied people to get back into the workforce as a short-term fix.

“These are wonderful careers, and there is a lot of satisfaction in serving here,” he said. “The consequence is that our individuals with disabilities are left sitting at home watching TV and losing wonderful opportunities for socialization.”

If the New Florence center had more staff, they could help day program participants resume work in the community, helping local businesses and churches with tasks like folding bulletins and assembling silverware packs, McIntosh said. That would add a different level of socialization for the program that provides stability and a schedule for Bungard, her sister said.

Staffing issues have left others seeking that stability without options, which Leighton said can be breach of basic human rights.

”She needs to feel like she’s valued, that her opinions and her feelings count for something,” Leighton said.

This story was originally published in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

Wesley Family Services in New Kensington will offer a seminar series, “Families in Recovery: Strengthening Connections One Day at a Time,” from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m. Wednesdays March 2 through April 13 at the Pioneer Building, 1015 Fourth Ave.

The group is for parents and caregivers who are in recovery or experiencing issues with substance abuse. The class is for adults only and masks are required. Lunch will be served at noon.

To enroll, contact Samantha Maggio at 724-217-8306 or Samantha.maggio@wfspa.org.