Vision, Mission and Principles
Our Vision
“A community where everyone belongs”
Our Mission
To nurture the ability and willingness in our community to welcome and support all people as valued and contributing citizens.
Our Principles
Principle # 1
We believe everything starts with the person.
- We will help people plan for their good life
- All supports are tailor made together with the person and their family
- All budgets are individualized
- We will advocate for the Ontario government to individualize funding for disability supports
Principle # 2
We believe we are accountable to the person first while honouring relationships in the person’s life.
- We will support the individual’s right to call on family and friends for support and advocacy throughout his or her life
- We will support families to be active decision-makers in the lives of their children and youth
Principle # 3
We believe that a range of relationships are valuable and important to everyone.
- We will support people to explore and develop those relationships through intentional and natural opportunities
Principle # 4
We believe everybody has the right to self-determination.
- We will support people to be full citizens of their community
- We will support people to direct and monitor their services and budget
- We will support People First
Principle # 5
We believe that inclusive communities are created and strengthened by recognizing and acting on the belief that each person has unique gifts that are necessary contributions.
- We will help people discover their gifts, abilities and skills
- We will help people use/share/contribute their gifts
Principle # 6
We believe in our commitment to people with developmental disabilities from St. Marys and Area.
- We will walk with people through their journey
- We will find ways to support people currently not supported
- We will have a clear, transparent, equitable process for how decisions are made regarding who receives what service (including the allocation of funds, existing and new, human resources and assignments)
Principle # 7
We believe that being involved in your community leads to full citizenship.
- We will create inclusive supports
- We will not create or operate segregated and congregated supports
Principle # 8
We believe we have a role in grassroots community development.
- We will support people who use our service, families, board members and staff at every level to lead and take part in community initiatives
- We will support self advocacy
- We will support family advocacy
Principle # 9
We believe it’s important to plan for future needs of people living in our community.
- We see our role as an agent of change in the areas of education, seniors, transportation, housing, recreation and employment
- We will advocate for individual and system change to help people get supports they need
Principle # 10
We believe in an organizational culture that encourages learning, risking, evolving and innovating.
- We will learn together by continuing to question ourselves and each other
- We will stay connected to movements within human services including citizenship, human rights, advocacy and best practices
- We will share information and stories – team-to-team, general staff, newsletter and newspaper
Principle # 11
We believe in the honourable role that staff play in people’s lives.
- We will recognize and appreciate staff, encourage leadership and mentoring opportunities, invest in training
and advocate for good wages, benefits and employment opportunities
Principle # 12
We believe in planning that is separate and local and also, we believe there is a role for independent, unencumbered planning in Ontario’s developmental service system.
- We will explore issues of further separating planning from services
- We will continue to act as a provincial resource while balancing local needs
Principle # 13
We believe that our organization is healthier when there is an active quality assurance process in place in every area of the organization.
- We will regularly ask people who use our service and their families about the quality of services they receive