Our Support Their Stories
Meet Margaret
The Belmont County Board of Developmental Disabilities coordinates and funds services for people with physical and intellectual differences like autism, cerebral palsy, and Down syndrome. This is the first in a series introducing some of the children and adults we help live their best lives.
Margaret proudly wears the red uniform that identifies her as a valued member of the Riesbeck's Bakery team.
Margaret is pictured with two people who recognized her potential to work in the bakery. On the left is Janie, a Direct Support Professional (DSP) with Belco Works, and on the right is Shandyn, her Service and Support Administrator (SSA) with the County Board.
If you are a customer of the Riesbeck’s bakery, chances are your muffins, cookies, or loaf of bread have been carefully packaged by a woman named Margaret.
Margaret is one of many people with developmental differences who are employed locally, and Riesbeck’s is one of those businesses that values a diverse workforce.
Margaret works about four days each week in the bakery at Riesbeck’s. The other times she scans documents for the Belco Works Document Destruction department.
Belco Works is the provider Margaret chose to reach her employment goals. When the job at Riesbeck’s was presented as an option for her, Margaret was afraid. She thought her physical disability would prevent her from being able to close the bakery containers.
That wasn’t much of a concern for other people in her life, though. Janie, her supervisor at Belco Works, and Shandyn, her County Board SSA, knew what she was capable of doing.
“Margaret does the things that need to be done and does them well, Janie said.”
Shandyn echoed that sentiment. “She has such a strong mind and is determined to succeed.”
The team at Belco gradually introduced Margaret to tasks she would eventually take on in the bakery. As she discovered what she was capable of, her confidence began to grow. With time and encouragement, she felt ready to take the next step – working in the community.
Today her eyes light up when she talks about what she does in the bakery and how much she likes it. She is also excited to work in the new Belco Works plant that is slated to open this spring in the Fox Commerce Park.
Margaret has a simple yet encouraging message for others with developmental differences who may be afraid to try competitive employment.
“Do it. You will love it.”
Belco Works is a private provider that delivers services like adult day support and employment to people with differing abilities. Learn more at www.belcoworks.com
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Sweet Magnolia
What would you do for the love of a child?
Shelli and Fritz Brothers did what they believe anyone would for a fragile, infant granddaughter with an uncertain future: they welcomed her into their hearts and home.
Magnolia, who is affectionately called Magi, was born in February 2021 with Gestational Alloimmune Liver Disease (GALD), a rare condition caused by injury to the liver before birth. At just three months old, Magi had a liver transplant at UPMC, Pittsburgh. She spent months in the hospital and was discharged to the Children’s Home of Pittsburgh where she recovered for the next eighteen months.
Magi loves books, including her grandmother’s day planner that is full of appointments and fun activities for the toddler and her family.
As plans were made for her discharge, the Children’s Home contacted the BHN Alliance Early Intervention team for help.
“Magi needed an adaptive stroller called a Zippie Kart, so we went to work to find one for her,” said BHN Alliance Early Intervention Supervisor Lori Wells. After weeks of coordination and communication between Belmont County and Pittsburgh, the stroller was purchased.
“This was a great effort, and everyone worked well together,” Lori said, as she praised the physical therapy coordinator and therapists at UPMC and The Children’s Home of Pittsburgh; Belmont County’s Family and Children First Council for providing the funding; and Motion Mobility & Design, the vendor that provided and delivered the stroller to Pittsburgh.
As Magi recovered, her birth mother’s circumstances made it necessary to find a place for Magi to live and Shelli and Fritz were asked if they could provide that for her. It was complicated.
Another adult daughter had recently died, and the family was grieving. They were also unsure if they could meet Magi’s extensive medical needs. Love prevailed when Shelli found herself in tears one day thinking about the baby and her future. Shelli and Fritz decided to bring Magi to their home.
Months of extensive service coordination and training followed for Shelli, Fritz, and their 12-year-old daughter, Gabi. They also moved into a different house to accommodate the medical equipment Magi needed to live. In August 2022, they brought Magi back to Belmont County. Shelli admits she was “scared to death,” but fear soon turned to confidence.
“We used to have six bags of stuff just to go to the doctor’s office,” Shelli said. “Now I just scoop her up and we get by with two.”
Magi has a tracheostomy, feeding tube, and a ventilator so nurses come into the home to take care of her medical needs while early intervention addresses Magi’s developmental delays.
Early Intervention (EI) is a statewide system that provides coordinated services to address the needs of infants and toddlers with developmental delays and disabilities and their families.
Service Coordinator Johna Stonebraker and Physical Therapist Johnna Bear are part of an EI team of developmental specialists and therapists who provide focused instruction to families and children enrolled in EI.
Johnna Bear delivers physical therapy and coaches the family on ways they can help Magi gain strength and mobility.
“This family is the epitome of Early Intervention,” Johnna said. “I give them ideas and they faithfully work on them when I’m gone.”
Gabi plays a huge role in the toddler’s physical therapy, and she is frequently found on the floor playing with her.
By December 2022 Magi was progressing “by leaps and bounds, crawling everywhere and pulling herself up,” Shelli said. By February of 2023 she was on the trach only at night.
The family was told that Magi was not expected to talk, so she was taught American Sign Language by her nurse, Nettie. Magi now uses twenty signs, but she may not need them for long. She is talking, especially to Gabi. When the school bus pulls up to the house each afternoon, she stands in the window knocking and shouting “Gab Gab.” Her vocabulary is expected to increase once the trach is permanently removed.
Magi learns something new every day, and Shelli believes she will overcome her challenges.
“She’s going to be riding bicycles in a year,” she said.
Shelli says that Magi’s transplant scar is her story, but just part of it, and she smiles thinking of the chapters yet to be written for sweet Magnolia.
If you or someone you know has a child who could benefit from early intervention, call 740-695-0407, ext. 345, or log onto https://ohioearlyintervention.org/forms/referral
A First Job for Bayley
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First accomplishments are always cause for celebration and Bayley McCloud’s first job is being celebrated by more than just family and friends. That’s because this 16-year-old is the first student employed as a result of Skill-Building for Transition, a new IEP service offered by the Belmont County Board of DD and the East Central Ohio ESC.
Student 14 and older who enroll are given meaningful life and work experiences while still in high school. More than a dozen businesses, including discount retailers, hotels, gas stations, restaurants and gyms are Skill-Building work site partners.
“This is a chance for teens to discover their interests and abilities,” said Transition Specialist Katie Fischerkeller, who, along with assistant Becky Robey, make up the Skill-Building team.
Transition planning for youth is extremely important and this new support is a stepping stone to competitive employment after graduation. Referrals are made by the school districts and there are 18 students currently enrolled. Katie lights up when talking about the success she is seeing among them, especially Bayley, who attends Union Local High School.
“Bayley was quite shy and wouldn’t talk at first,” Katie said.
Thanks to a welcoming staff at 5 Below at the Ohio Valley Mall, it didn’t take long before Bayley exceeded expectations. She began working the front of the store, hanging up clothes and doing other merchandising tasks. She was soon smiling and cheerfully greeting customers at the door with the required, “Welcome to 5 Below!”
When the store began interviewing for positions late last year, Bayley went on an interview and was offered a job. She smiles broadly when remembering the email she received telling her that she got it.
Bayley has learned a lot and she offers other teens looking for work good advice: “Do a good job!”
Katie knows there are more good things to come for Bayley and the other teens engaged in Skill-Building for Transition. Information on this new service can be obtained by contacting Katie at 740-359-1478 or email kfischerkeller@bcbdd.org
Meet Emilee
“Thanks for shopping at Kroger. We appreciate your business.”
And with that, Emilee Mehl gets back to work, bagging groceries, collecting shopping carts or returning products to the shelves.
Emilee’s path to becoming one of Kroger’s valued employees began when she was a student at Bellaire High.
Emilee started transition activities at the age of 14 through a summer work program with Belco Works, Inc. She did job exploration at different businesses, learning new skills until she found the right fit at Kroger when she was a senior in high school. Her job coach, Emmy Helms, said that Emilee excelled in a short period of time.
“We faded fast,” Emmy said, referencing how quickly Emilee caught on to the job and no longer needed a job coach.
“Once she had a couple of shifts under her belt, a switch flipped and Emilee became an employee,” Emmy said.
Emilee has learned a lot since graduating from high school. She has grown into a capable young adult who is enjoying all the things that employment offers.
Transition activities coordinated through the Belmont County Board of Developmental Disabilities help youth ages 14 to 25 explore jobs and sharpen their skills in preparation for life after school. For Emilee, that started with summer work and ended up with a meaningful job.
Successes like Emilee’s are evidence that students with disabilities are capable of living a life of their choosing with the right support and access to opportunities in the community.
“Everybody is capable, but in the long run, we find a million more abilities than disabilities with young people,” Emmy said. “In the end, everybody wins – the person and the employer.”
For more information about transition, contact Transition Specialist Kara Shutler at 740-695-0407, ext. 353.
Meet Von
Von Schleicher with his taekwondo instructor, Lisa Stone
All it took was one demonstration and Von Schleicher was hooked. As he watched the team from Stone Martial Arts demonstrate the Korean martial art of taekwondo, he had to learn more. His mother, Bethany, soon enrolled him in the Academy and five years and four belts later, Von is on his way to becoming a Black Belt in taekwondo.
Von, 24, was diagnosed with autism as a toddler. From that point, his mother did whatever it took to help him live well. At age six, he began with a gluten-free/casein-free diet. As he grew, she made sure Von had what he needed to live up to his potential. This love and support came with expectations, too.
“I treated him as I would have treated any other child,” Bethany said. “I’m behind him all the way and he surprises me daily.”
Von graduated from Martins Ferry High School and explored various opportunities to improve his skills after graduation. Since 2016, he’s been developing physical and mental prowess through taekwondo.
Martial arts help improve balance, coordination, focus and self-regulation for people with autism and Bethany said Von is calmer and less stressed because of the training.
Stone Martial Arts is owned and operated by Jacob and Lisa Stone. Von’s teacher is Lisa, a 4th Degree Black Belt and practicing occupational therapist, who worked with Von when he was seven years old.
“When I met Von, I was at the beginning of my career working with people with autism ,” Lisa said. “He taught me more than I taught him at the time.”
She noted that Von had difficulty focusing, attending or doing any type of activity.
“The Von I see now can stand in front of me and do taekwondo,” she said.
Lisa has created adaptations of the martial arts for people with disabilities, focusing on what they can do, but there is still a standard she upholds.
“I require everything of Von that I do for everyone else and Von always meets the standards, if not going above them,” Lisa added.
Under Lisa’s watchful eye and instruction, Von attends classes twice a week where he learns more than just fighting skills. He is training his body and mind in anticipation of the intense, four-hour Black Belt test.
Lisa said that Von is fun and has bonded with people. He can now demonstrate his skills in front of the class, a huge accomplishment for him.
“He’s on the verge of being a black belt and that is something most people don’t even think about,” Lisa said.
When not practicing martial arts, Von is a frequent visitor to the library where he uses the computer and checks out his favorite books and movies. Von is involved in his community and participates in baseball with the Miracle League and basketball with Upward Sports.
Von has a goal of becoming a Black Belt in taekwondo and there is no doubt that this intelligent, talented young man will achieve it.
Note: Stone Martial Arts is a family owned and operated dojo for people of all ages and abilities. To learn more, log onto www.stonemartialarts.com or call 304-238-8083.
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