Heather Taft DSP: Pictured from left: Marlene Hill, board of directors; Cheryl Englert, board of directors president; Heather Taft; Gabriel MacMillan, Taft’s fiancé; John Huber, board of directors vice president; and Martin Miskell, CEO.
Press release
AVON — When people talk about Heather Taft, dedication is said in the same breath.
A residential manager at Avon IRA, Taft has been a direct support professional for over 14 years. It is through her efforts Avon IRA fills Arc GLOW’s Facebook page to this day with sporting events, house parties, and other meaningful, life enriching activities.
“I recall a time many years ago that the individuals in the home were bored, so Heather pulled together an impromptu whacky fashion show by encouraging the gentleman to dress in the most unusual combinations of their wardrobes that they could manage,” said Adam Moore, director of residential services at Arc GLOW.
It is through this dedication and spirit which Taft was nominated — and awarded — of The Arc New York’s 2024 Thomas A. Maul Direct Support Professional Excellence Award.
This is an annual award which recognizes a DSP who consistently demonstrates excellence, creativity and commitment to providing supports to people who have intellectual and other developmental disabilities.
Taft’s job requires her to author person-centered plans alongside the person and their team, trains her team on the implementation of those plans, manages the financial and medical needs, and takes a hands-on approach to demonstrating the support needs of each person in the home. The role of a residential manager is often “everything and the kitchen sink” within a home.
“I start to tear up thinking back all the greatness Heather has contributed to our family during a very, very rough COVID time,” said Karen Duboy, whose son, Matthew, moved into the Avon IRA in May 2022. Matt Duboy had lived in an Office for People with Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD) home for 17 years before he was moved into another facility during COVID. “He was used to 11 residents to be moved into a house of 22. He was overwhelmed, we were overwhelmed.
“Heather had such a special way with Matthew right from the start, and without any hesitation the two connected,” Karen Duboy continued in a letter of recommendation to The Arc New York. “She took the time to visit him at his day program at Arc GLOW, and from the first time she met him, she had wanted him in the home. What a refreshing feeling. Finally, Matt was going to have a home where he was an individual ready to start a new adventure.”
This isn’t the first time Taft went above and beyond for the people in her house.
Paula Comstock, a care coordinator at Person Centered Services, said she watched Taft spend personal time with an individual’s parent who was in hospice while other family members were quarantined with COVID. Moore spoke of when an individual sought dental implants rather than traditional dentures, Taft
supported their advocacy and assisted with the process to ensure that became a reality for the person. When an individual decided he wanted a driver’s license and personal car, she helped lead in that process and most recently helped them in the purchase of a replacement vehicle.
“Heather grieves with and for the individuals and staff at the IRA,” Comstock said. “She is also the first to acknowledge and celebrate accomplishments and successes.”
Taft received the award Friday afternoon in Saratoga Springs.