{"id":68443,"date":"2025-09-24T12:59:40","date_gmt":"2025-09-24T16:59:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/?p=68443"},"modified":"2025-09-24T12:59:40","modified_gmt":"2025-09-24T16:59:40","slug":"wyoming-county-dawn-ratigan-wins-2025-thomas-a-maul-direct-support-professional-excellence-award","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2025\/09\/24\/wyoming-county-dawn-ratigan-wins-2025-thomas-a-maul-direct-support-professional-excellence-award\/","title":{"rendered":"WYOMING COUNTY\/Dawn Ratigan wins 2025 Thomas A. Maul Direct Support Professional Excellence Award"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Dawn Ratigan, residential manager at Arc GLOW\u2019s Sanford IRA, with Sabrina Leschander\/Provided photo<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Press release<\/p>\n\n\n\n

PERRY \u2014 A spark of interest and a genuine connection with a customer is what jump-started Dawn Ratigan\u2019s career working with people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI was working at Perry Market, and I had weekly interactions with one of the now longtime individuals that I work with, when she came to the deli,\u201d Ratigan said when she was interviewed for her 30-year milestone working at Arc GLOW. She decided to apply to what is now Sanford IRA and began work as a relief staff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Working as a residential manager of the Sanford IRA in Perry, Ratigan has become a cornerstone of the Arc GLOW community and due to this, has been awarded The Arc New York\u2019s 2025 Thomas A. Maul Direct Support Professional Excellence Award.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is an annual award which recognizes a direct support professional (DSP) who consistently demonstrates excellence, creativity and commitment to providing supports to people who have IDD.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAt the core of Dawn\u2019s approach is her belief in meeting people where they are, embracing each individual\u2019s unique strengths, needs and personalities,\u201d said Jennifer Powers, Arc GLOW coordinator of residential services in a letter of support. \u201cShe teaches her staff that their role is not to \u2018fix\u2019 or change others, but to support growth, learning and fulfillment. She models this philosophy every day through her own actions and creative approaches.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sabrina Leschander, one of the residents of Sanford IRA, said in her letter of support that Ratigan has been with her since she moved into the home in May 2016. She supported Leschander, allowing her to grow her confidence from someone who didn\u2019t talk very much to being comfortable and social.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDawn is like family to me now \u2026 she\u2019s a great staff, and feels like a mom to me,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Leschander isn\u2019t the only person who Ratigan has helped.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Powers said she helped someone who struggled with self-care for years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhile this person didn\u2019t always see value in caring for herself, Dawn noticed she was extremely compassionate toward others. Recognizing this, Dawn helped the individual adopt a pet can and structured a goal that required her to first complete her own self-care before caring for her pet,\u201d she said. \u201cThis gentle, motivating approach has led to a significant and sustained improvement in the individual\u2019s ability and willingness to care for herself.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Additionally, when Ratigan became concerned about the declining health of a resident\u2019s mother in a senior living community, she advocated for her to receive appropriate medical attention and a higher level of care. This allowed the resident could continue to safely visit her mother, preserving an important relationship between the two.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ratigan\u2019s day-to-day responsibilities include overseeing all aspects of support for the nine women living in the home. Her primary duties include developing individualized residential support plans, coordinating ongoing medical and clinical services, and ensuring the DSPs under her supervisions are well-trained and effectively implementing all treatment plans. In addition, she manages individual finances, household budgets and promotes active community engagement for each of the residents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI couldn\u2019t be more pleased with the selection of Dawn for this prestigious statewide award,\u201d said Deb Tuckerman, vice president of residential services at Arc GLOW. \u201cShe has spent her entire career working closely with individuals and their families, and she has made such a positive difference in countless lives. She truly is a role model, and I\u2019m beyond grateful for her many years of service.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The award will be presented to Ratigan Saturday, Oct. 25 during The Arc New York\u2019s Annual Meeting at the Warren-Washington-Albany chapter of The Arc New York (WWARC). She will also receive the Arc GLOW DSP of the Year Award at the Annual Awards Dinner and Meeting, Oct. 15 at Batavia Downs.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Dawn Ratigan, residential manager at Arc GLOW\u2019s Sanford IRA, with Sabrina Leschander\/Provided photo Press release PERRY \u2014 A spark of interest and a genuine connection with a customer is what jump-started Dawn Ratigan\u2019s career working with people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). \u201cI was working at Perry Market, and \u2026<\/p>\n

Continue reading<\/i><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":68444,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[16],"tags":[3242,5393,5392],"class_list":["post-68443","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-wyoming-county","tag-arc-glow","tag-dawn-ratigan","tag-thomas-a-maul-direct-support-professional-excellence-award"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8eTP4-hNV","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":68433,"url":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2025\/09\/23\/glow-region-award-winners-for-arc-glows-3rd-annual-awards-dinner-and-meeting\/","url_meta":{"origin":68443,"position":0},"title":"GLOW Region\/Award winners for Arc GLOW\u2019s 3rd Annual Awards Dinner and Meeting","author":"aka","date":"September 23, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Press release BATAVIA \u2014 Arc GLOW will be holding its third Annual Awards Dinner and Meeting. Taking place 5:30 p.m. Oct. 15 at Batavia Downs, John Prospero, Arc GLOW vice president of transportation, will be the emcee. Arc GLOW\u2019s talent will be providing entertainment. In August, Arc GLOW nominated staff,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "GLOW region"","block_context":{"text":"GLOW region","link":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/category\/glow-region\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":69117,"url":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2025\/10\/17\/glow-region-arc-glow-honors-awards-winners\/","url_meta":{"origin":68443,"position":1},"title":"GLOW Region\/Arc GLOW honors\u00a0awards\u00a0winners\u00a0","author":"aka","date":"October 17, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Press release\/provided photos BATAVIA \u2014 Over 300 people attended Arc GLOW\u2019s 3rd Annual Award Dinner and Meeting Wednesday night at Batavia Downs Gaming and Hotel. Local representatives attending Arc GLOW\u2019s 3rd Annual Awards Dinner and Meeting included Assemblyman Steve Hawley and Assemblywoman Andrea Bailey. Also attending were Gregg Torey representing\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "GLOW region"","block_context":{"text":"GLOW region","link":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/category\/glow-region\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Eric-Parker-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Eric-Parker-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Eric-Parker-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Eric-Parker-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Eric-Parker-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":36776,"url":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2022\/10\/14\/orleans-county-garrod-receives-statewide-direct-support-professional-award\/","url_meta":{"origin":68443,"position":2},"title":"ORLEANS COUNTY\/Garrod receives Statewide Direct Support Professional Award","author":"aka","date":"October 14, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Matthew congratulates Arc GLOW Direct Support Professional Roger Garrod. Press release (ALBION, NY) \u2014 Roger Garrod, a longtime Arc GLOW Direct Support Professional (DSP), has received a Thomas A. Maul Direct Support Professional Excellence Award from The Arc New York. The Albion resident has been an Arc team member since\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Albion"","block_context":{"text":"Albion","link":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/category\/albion\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/PHOTO-2-scaled.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/PHOTO-2-scaled.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/PHOTO-2-scaled.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/PHOTO-2-scaled.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/PHOTO-2-scaled.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/PHOTO-2-scaled.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":81229,"url":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2026\/09\/16\/glow-dan-crofts-wins-2026-thomas-a-maul-direct-support-professional-excellence-award\/","url_meta":{"origin":68443,"position":3},"title":"GLOW\/Dan Crofts wins 2026 Thomas A. Maul Direct Support Professional Excellence Award","author":"aka","date":"September 16, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Press release\/provided photo For over 15 years, Dan Crofts has worked as a direct support professional for Arc GLOW. Today, he can be found within the IGNITE (Inspiring Growth and Nurturing Independence Through Education) program at Genesee Community College (GCC). In this role, he supports people with intellectual and developmental\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "GLOW region"","block_context":{"text":"GLOW region","link":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/category\/glow-region\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/Dan-Crofts-1.jpeg?fit=1195%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/Dan-Crofts-1.jpeg?fit=1195%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/Dan-Crofts-1.jpeg?fit=1195%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/Dan-Crofts-1.jpeg?fit=1195%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/Dan-Crofts-1.jpeg?fit=1195%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":58028,"url":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2024\/10\/17\/wny-arc-glow-honors-winners-at-arc-glows-2nd-annual-awards-banquet-and-annual-meeting\/","url_meta":{"origin":68443,"position":4},"title":"WNY\/Arc GLOW honors winners at Arc GLOW\u2019s 2nd Annual Awards Banquet and Annual Meeting","author":"aka","date":"October 17, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Press release\/provided photos BATAVIA \u2014 Last Wednesday night was Arc GLOW\u2019s 2nd Annual Awards Banquet and Annual Meeting. Over 300 staff, individuals, family members and community members came to the Batavia Downs to honor the 12 award recipients. Congresswoman Claudia Tenney and representatives from Senator George Borello and Assemblyman Steve\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Genesee County"","block_context":{"text":"Genesee County","link":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/category\/genesee-county\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/462593366_548984667501472_6246560693213312612_n.jpg?fit=828%2C1104&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/462593366_548984667501472_6246560693213312612_n.jpg?fit=828%2C1104&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/462593366_548984667501472_6246560693213312612_n.jpg?fit=828%2C1104&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/462593366_548984667501472_6246560693213312612_n.jpg?fit=828%2C1104&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":58533,"url":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2024\/11\/01\/arc-glow-residential-manager-wins-state-dsp-award\/","url_meta":{"origin":68443,"position":5},"title":"Arc GLOW residential manager wins state DSP award","author":"aka","date":"November 1, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Heather Taft DSP: Pictured from left: Marlene Hill, board of directors; Cheryl Englert, board of directors president; Heather Taft; Gabriel MacMillan, Taft\u2019s fianc\u00e9; John Huber, board of directors vice president; and Martin Miskell, CEO. Press release AVON \u2014 When people talk about Heather Taft, dedication is said in the same\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Batavia"","block_context":{"text":"Batavia","link":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/category\/gennesse-county\/batavia\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/Heather-Taft-DSP-scaled.jpeg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/Heather-Taft-DSP-scaled.jpeg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/Heather-Taft-DSP-scaled.jpeg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/Heather-Taft-DSP-scaled.jpeg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/Heather-Taft-DSP-scaled.jpeg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Dawn-Ratigan.jpg?fit=1200%2C1600&ssl=1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/68443","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=68443"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/68443\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":68446,"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/68443\/revisions\/68446"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/68444"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=68443"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=68443"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=68443"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}