Jill’s Journey

 

In June of 1995 Jill Erin Egle myself graduated with a diploma from James Madison High School. Thoughts of college weren’t even in my mind because of my Intellectual Learning Disability. I was already thinking where would I work and what kind of career would I have?

  

   I really wanted to be an actress or gymnast but those careers are hard to come by so I began a very long journey of little pay and lots of different careers. I have done everything from entering data for US Senator from Louisiana Mary Landrieu from being a courtesy clerk at Safeway, a stocker at Michaels, and I even did a brief position at SOC Enterprises. It has not been an easy Journey. Careers were hard to keep and often times I didn’t like what I was doing. Did I say I didn’t get paid very much money? Let me put it this way, I never ever got paid as much as my brothers who are younger than me. I even got let go from Safeway because I was being too courteous.

 

I am 31 years old even though I like to feel that I’m 28 years of age. I have learned that it is very important to like a career and have the rights support regardless of an ability. There are 4 elements that make a career successful.

 

1)     Good Supervisor

2)     Good Colleagues

3)     Good Support Job Coach, husband, wife, boyfriend and family member

4)     Oh there is one other element that also important good pay and raises.

  

The two careers that I have been most successful in are both careers that I started as a volunteer – at the YWCA and at The Arc of Northern Virginia. They had all the elements I listed above.

 

I left the YWCA after 2 hard years of working there which was July 26^th 2005 to July 26^th of 2007. Now I am an Intern Leadership Co Executive Director at the Arc Of Northern Virginia. I have been at the Arc Of Northern VA two and a half years. I was promoted September 3, 2007 as a Co Executive Director Leadership Intern for one year. I get regular salary, benefits and comp time I can used. I share an office with St Nancy Mercer and we go to all meetings together. My focus this year is on three different goals;

 

1)     To facilitate the people first self advocacy group which is the second Thursday of every month at the Arc Of Northern VA 98 North Washington Street Falls Church VA 22046

2)     To Increase The Arc of Northern VA membership.

3)     To Increase the 30^th Annual Patriots cup

4)     To get rid of the R word.

  

It has been very effective this year with the bill changing Mental Retardation to Intellectual Disability. Erin Thompson, Jill Egle, St Nancy Mercer, Jamie Trosclair and Vivian Alonso have been taking a stand for this bill because no self advocate likes to be called a retard or retarded because it hurts our feelings in our lifetime and it puts us down oh by the way the MR ID Bill passed for this year 2008 at the General Assembly Session but there is a reenactment clause for next year 2009.

 

Does this sound like a lot of work? It takes a lot of energy to go to Richmond back and forth from Northern Virginia.

 

Although St Nancy Mercer said you don’t have to share all your secrets I have one more to share with you Green Vault

 

Ann Long asked how staff can help students to be better self advocates.

 

Staff can teach them how to do things:

 

To ask for help when they need it: if there is a crisis at school they can ask the principal or teacher or peers for help.

 

To speak up for themselves and their rights; when they want to advocate when a guy is bothering them, they can say leave me alone. If the guy says no they can run away yelling for help.

 

Staff can ask what their interests are; Meaning what sports, activities or clubs are out there. Help them to get involved in and what they like.

 

They can ask what kids want to do; meaning what they like to do when they graduate high school and then help them do that.

 

They can ask what they good at meaning what are the things they are good at and what are the weakness areas.

 

They can help them to participate in the IEP’s. Meaning that they need to take a stand and participate in the IEP’s to set there goals in life when they graduate from high school.

 

They can be a self advocate in People First

 

Also teach them how to make good choices and problem solving.