Carla works with our Community Day Service program as a Direct Support Professional (DSP). A few fun facts about Carla, she can write both right and left handed, and wanted to be an actor when she was growing up. Carla started working with UCP-Center for Disability Services because her mother had a connection with the Residential Supervisor here at the time, and was told to put in an application – and the rest-as they say- is history, because she has been with our organization for 29 years!
Carla’s favorite thing about her job is seeing the participants smile, but the toughest challenge has been losing some of them over the years. This is especially hard because our Community Day Services program is like a family, so when someone passes on, the loss is felt by everyone. She says the best advice she can give to someone who just started is to take things day by day as it can sometimes be overwhelming.
Carla says she motivates herself by looking at every moment as a new experience. She is most proud that the participants who attend our Community Day Services program love to be here and miss it when they are not. Cassie Farley, Director of Adult Services, said “Carla is the matriarch of our program. She is always willing to give advice or be a listening ear, and she will always help with anything.”
Carla said her biggest inspiration is the appreciation she receives from participant’s parents and/or guardians. She added that the hands-on experience she has received working as a DSP in the Community Day Services program is not something that can be taught in school, and she is grateful for the professional experience she has gained as a DSP by working with our adults.
We are so extremely honored and proud to have Carla on our staff. Her dedication to our mission and her positivity is an inspiration to us all, and we are so grateful for everything she has done and continues to do to empower our adult participants to live their best lives.
To learn more about what our Direct Support Professionals do, or to get involved, please visit our website at ucp-cds.org
