So Much To Be Thankful For During This Time of Year

As we reflect on the past year during this Thanksgiving holiday and throughout this time, there is much for which we are thankful, whether it's personal, on-the-job, or just in general. A great example of thankfulness is the strong relationship between one of Westchester's premier organizations, the largest agency in the county, The Arc Westchester, and one of the highest-rated hotels in Westchester, The Cambria Hotel White Plains - Downtown, which is part of Meyer Jabara Hotels. The Arc Westchester supports children, teens, and adults with a range of developmental disabilities, helping them learn to succeed and prosper in today's workforce and society. The organization works with so many of these folks and their families, who can stretch and grow above and beyond to do many things, including landing and thriving in jobs and opportunities throughout the county. One of The Arc's leading relationships, The Cambria Hotel, here in downtown White Plains, has employed individuals with developmental disabilities and the results have been outstanding.

One of Cambria's stars, hired in 2023 through The Arc Westchester, is Mr. William "Will" Safran, who is part of the hotel's facilities staff and works under the hotel's Chief Engineer, Brian Marasco. According to Sean Meade, the General Manager of the Cambria Hotel, what has made Will so special is his love of the job, ability to adapt to the roles that he would succeed in and his willingness to be open-minded to learn on the job.

"Will has been here for almost three years, and he has been successful with us," said Meade. "When we really talk about how successful Will has been, it's that he would be the right person for a role that would suit him and us. We tried different roles that would serve a great need for the hotel. Before working under Brian, Will was recently in the kitchen, helping in the utility position and you can tell that he wasn't passionate about it. His comfort would be in facilities and Will has exceeded in that role.

His growth reflects on what we've done here. The moment Will started with us, he came with so much energy and life to him and at the same time, he's very kind, always looking to jump in and help. To see the growth that he's had from the time that he started in a breakfast delivery role during Covid to now, he's been able to work with everyone in different departments. It's been really cool to see that growth, as far as interactions and handling the various jobs, that's been pretty amazing."

Marasco agrees that having Will Safran working in his department has been nothing short of a perfect fit for all parties.

"Will has been a tremendous asset for us," said Marasco. "He helps me in so many different facets of this organization, everything from general maintenance, daily maintenance, we've been working on massive cleanup projects together, relighting in the parking areas, assisting in so many areas, he's always right there to lend a helping hand. Will is fantastic. I love having Will work with me on a daily basis."

Meade also talks about another staff member that the hotel received from The Arc Westchester, Hotel Reservation Coordinator, Alexandra Birenbaum. Ms. Birenbaum, who works in sales under the hotel's Sales Manager Danielle Jabara, also has specific developmental disabilities, but she has been able to juggle reservations, work out many different traveling obstacles, according to the needs of the customer, has been something that many could not do before her, according to Meade.

"The job that she's doing now is something that a few of us have tried to do, have tried to handle and hire for, but couldn't fill, could not get it done until Alex," said Meade. "Alex came in, handles it with such grace, and she is so amazing at what she does. She really takes a lot of responsibility for what she's doing in reservations. Alex has not only done it so well here that she's had additional hotels added. She's been a key part of this (Danielle's department). People here that make it happen."

From the perspective of The Arc Westchester, relationships like these when seeing those with developmental disabilities flourish in the workplace, is proof in the pudding that the hard work the agency does, goes a long way to not only help business fill key roles, but help these folks have their own lives with the same responsibilities that everyone has, unlike it was decades ago when people with these disabilities were left out in the cold and not treated fairly, unlike today. The key liaison who brings together The Arc Westchester and the client to properly place the employee is the agency's Career Supports Coordinator, Maria Varga.

"I really am grateful and thankful for Maria," said Meade. "She isn't just a job coach for the folks from The Arc Westchester, she's a job coach for us as well. She helps us understand how to leverage the resources that we have and how to drive performance. We need to deliver a promise to our guests, and we can't do that without our associates and people like Ms. Varga."

"We're again very grateful for the work that Sean and Brian do, but mostly, who they represent," said The Arc Westchester's CEO Tibi Guzmán. They represent a really involving, connected business community that reaches out and recognizes the talent that we have, and the talent that we actually grow within our organization through our support systems, through our training, through our counseling.

It's really wonderful that we have these testimonials that help the organization spread the word about what we do and the talent we have. The fact that it is recognized so well, bound and harnessed, and allowed to grow within their business is just amazing to me. I'm so grateful the hotel has expressed these wonderful words to us; it really speaks of the community at large, what this is all about."

Now that Thanksgiving is here, it is essential to look back at history and understand how those with disabilities were once treated and then compare it to today. This is a defining moment to be thankful that we have made strong, meaningful progress in this area.

"I think about the gratitude I have, for the broader community, here in Westchester and everywhere, in the modern day, where we have worked so hard collectively coming together to support programs like those that we run at The Arc Westchester, our advocacy to advance this mission and vision," said Barry Clark, Executive Director of The Arc Westchester Foundation. Through private philanthropy that helps close various budgetary gaps, it is this kind of support for innovation that we look to embody. Programs, such as supported employment, didn't exist 75 or 100 years ago, but now they do. It is everybody coming together to make that happen, so I have a lot to be thankful for that. It's good to be living during these times."