October 2, 2025 • 30 mins
A member of the Partners For Quality family of agencies, Citizen Care has been committed to providing services and supports to individuals with intellectual disabilities and autism since 1975.
Citizen Care 50th Anniversary GalaWednesday evening, November 5 Heinz History Center Food… music…dancing…historical presentations… toasting the past, present & future.Citizen Care PA . org -or- PFQ . org for information and tickets.
Citizen Care 50th Anniversary GalaWednesday evening, November 5 Heinz History Center Food… music…dancing…historical presentations… toasting the past, present & future.Citizen Care PA . org -or- PFQ . org for information and tickets.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:04):
This is always an interesting interview. All right, Welcome in everybody.
This is a public affairs program shedding the light on
the interest and issues and concerns of the greater Pittsburgh Gary.
Speaker 2 (00:14):
Good morning.
Speaker 1 (00:14):
My name is Johnny Hartwell special guest. Old friend Maggie. No,
it's not that she's old. She just thought, yeah, thanks
a lot. Maggy Rothenberger, President's CEO of Partners for Quality, Maga,
how are you?
Speaker 3 (00:25):
I'm really good, honey, how are you good?
Speaker 2 (00:27):
And you brought a friend?
Speaker 3 (00:28):
I did a new friend.
Speaker 1 (00:29):
This is Johannah Garino, Director and Development of Partners for
Quality Foundation, which directs which is part of that's.
Speaker 3 (00:36):
Right, it's a subsidiaries of Partners for Quality.
Speaker 1 (00:38):
Let me let me say good morning to Johannah. Good morning,
How are you nice? To nice to meet you?
Speaker 3 (00:43):
Really well?
Speaker 2 (00:44):
You haven't worked with each other for very long?
Speaker 3 (00:46):
Or have you think it's been a couple of years.
It's more like twenty or thirty at least maybe a
solid decade.
Speaker 2 (00:53):
You never brought her into us, I know. Are you
embarrassed to know?
Speaker 1 (00:57):
No?
Speaker 3 (00:58):
No, no, no.
Speaker 4 (00:58):
He likes to keep me in an office stares away
from the people.
Speaker 1 (01:03):
I gotta tell I gotta tell you everybody, because I've
worked with you guys for a couple of years now.
Speaker 2 (01:10):
This is my favorite interview because of that.
Speaker 3 (01:12):
To everybody, I don't, I.
Speaker 2 (01:14):
Don't and I wouldn't you know.
Speaker 1 (01:16):
Uh, you know, I try not to tell Maggie because
it will go to our head.
Speaker 3 (01:20):
It does, and just all, oh yeah, no, I put
it everywhere. Johnny Hartwell's my you know, he loves me best.
So well, I'm absolutely gullible, so I believe every word
of it.
Speaker 5 (01:30):
There.
Speaker 1 (01:30):
We are all right, Partners for Quality, Maggie, tell me everything.
Speaker 2 (01:34):
Tell describe what the organization is.
Speaker 3 (01:37):
So, UH, Partners for Quality is an agency that serves
people with intellectual and developmental disabilities as well as mental
health behavioral health needs. We have five agencies UH subsidiaries.
We are the parent corporation, so we do all of
the back office work. We do HR, we do it,
and fiscal and compliance, all of that, and it allows
(01:59):
our subsidiaries and our executive directors and directors of those
subsidiaries to really focus on the work. So, for example,
since we have Johannah here, she is the director of
the foundation, so we take care of all of the
things that she needs things taken care of, her software,
how we collect money, all of that, So that way,
Johanna's out there and she's able to work very very
(02:22):
hard on obtaining grants and funding for some of the
things that we really need for our subsidiaries.
Speaker 1 (02:29):
All right, and we're going to be talking about the
subsidies subsidi here and there's going to be a different
thing for you to say, Oh no, it's not and
it could be confusing. So we're going to try to
define some.
Speaker 3 (02:41):
Of the family that does different work everywhere.
Speaker 2 (02:43):
So, Johannah, what is the foundation and what do you
do for the foundation?
Speaker 4 (02:46):
Absolutely, the foundation is the part of the organization that
handles all of the grants that we seek from our
incredibly generous foundation community here in Pittsburgh. We also manage
our very generous donors, so we have a lot of
very kind folks who are supporting our organizations to make
sure that the folks that you know, we're providing services
(03:07):
for have access to more things than just the basics
in life. You know, the foundation really exists so that
the people we support can live the lives they choose,
whether that's attending a concert or you know, getting a
new couch, the things that really make a life fulfilling
and worth living. You know, the foundation works really hard
to raise money, so all of our special events throughout
(03:28):
the year, that money goes right back to the people
we support.
Speaker 2 (03:31):
All right, Now, that's just one of the subsidiaries.
Speaker 1 (03:35):
Correct and correct, and so we're going to talk about
but let's talk about citizens Care.
Speaker 2 (03:40):
Is that also a subsidiary or yes?
Speaker 3 (03:42):
Yes, actually, citizen Care this year is celebrating it's fiftieth anniversary.
That's right, I know, fifty years, which is pretty remarkable.
Speaker 2 (03:51):
Shame on me. I should have brought a birthday cake.
Speaker 3 (03:53):
Oh you know what you should have. But that's okay.
You have a whole year to celebrate. So if I'm
not mistaken, was May fourth, May the fourth be with you.
That's when they celebrated their actual thing in nineteen in
seventy five, that's when they opened. And this year we're
celebrating it all year long, so you have a little
(04:15):
bit of time for the birthday cake.
Speaker 1 (04:16):
But no.
Speaker 3 (04:17):
So one of the things that I have always always
always wanted to do is kind of collect our history
of how we came about. So citizen Care was actually
the first. It is the anchor of our organizations and
Partner's Quality was born out of Citizen Care. So citizen
Care is our first and it was formed and part
of the history that we've been going through is it
(04:38):
was formed due to the fact that Polk Institution was
overcrowded and people weren't being treated very nicely.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
So se so, for the people who don't know the
backstory of Polk, that was an institution here.
Speaker 3 (04:51):
The state institution that housed people with developmental disabilities, behavioral
health need, physical disabilities, you know. Unfortunately in the day
in the nineteen seventies, it was just really a place
people were told to drop off their kids and told
that they'll be fine, you know, and they really weren't.
And so anyhow, so that's where our history came from,
(05:11):
is pulling. We pulled and ended up transitioning one hundred
and thirty two people out of Polk Institution into the
Robinson Development Center, which is actually the office building we're
in now. And then in the two thousands, we transitioned
people that were in this mini institution, if you will,
(05:32):
although very well staffed and very well taken care of,
into the community and the building was donated back to us,
so that we could use it for administrative purposes, but
going through this history has been amazing. And we also
still have I think it's seven or eight people who
transitioned from polk that are still in our care. Yes,
I mean they're elderly, they're elderly now, but yeah, And
(05:57):
so we've tried to get a hold of their families
and to really talk about what it was like fifty
years ago for their loved one and what they were
told and all of that. So we're putting all this
together with the Foundation's help with marketing and communications, and
we're putting together a video, we're putting together a history line,
(06:17):
and we are turning all of this into a giant
gala celebration at the Heinz History Center. Although in November
fifth it really is because when we started down this
road back in March, what we found was the Heinz
History Center actually had documents concerning citizen Care online. And
so in working with them in obtaining some of our
(06:40):
history and providing them our history back so that they
can we're donating it to them, a new partnership has developed.
So very very exciting to have our gala there.
Speaker 2 (06:51):
All right, So tell us more about the gala.
Speaker 3 (06:53):
I'm going to turn that over to Johannah because Johannah
is part a parcel of the foundation which is helping
through this. Yeah, just part of the team that's doing
some of the planning.
Speaker 4 (07:03):
You know. It will be Wednesday night, November fifth. We're
starting with cocktail hour at six, of course, and then
we will have dinner and a program of speakers that
I think anyone who is engaged in their community, who
cares about folks who have disabilities or mental health or
behavioral health needs would find very interesting. We're going to
hear a bunch from our past executive directors through our
(07:27):
current programming, and then we really hope to launch into
what we see the next fifty years of citizen care
might look like. So it should be really wonderful. And
then we'll have dancing and more drinks and lots of fun.
An important question is there going to be cake? There
will be dessert about maybe we should add that to
(07:51):
the program. Maybe we should be singing happy Birthday.
Speaker 3 (07:53):
I think that's not a back.
Speaker 2 (07:56):
I'm obsessed with cake.
Speaker 3 (07:57):
It sounds like you might.
Speaker 2 (08:00):
I might be. No, I'm just I'm just kidding it.
Speaker 1 (08:03):
So this is an event where you know, you want
to celebrate the fact that, you know, fifty years and
you've helped how many people have problems.
Speaker 3 (08:10):
Thousands, thousands, thousands, Yeah, and even peripherally. You know, that
includes families who just called us because they had a
question and that we were able to help them. So
we've been in the community and for any company who
does this kind of work to still be in business
after fifty years and thriving and looking at the next
(08:31):
fifty years. And I think for me this year has
been very poignant in looking at that, going wow, look
at where we came from, and look at where we're going,
and to just glimpse in the rear view mirror, but
then focus on the road ahead. It's been really wonderful
in talking with people throughout Citizen Care and our other
agencies to go all right, now, what now? What can
(08:53):
we do? And you know, the times are very different,
everything's very different. When Johannah was talking about why the
foundation was necessary, a lot of the people that we
support are they're not able to become employed right now.
That doesn't mean that they don't want to work, it's
just that jobs out there can be scarce. People with
(09:14):
disabilities have a harder time managing time and getting to work.
So where you and I take for granted that we
go to work, we get a paycheck and we can
do that that stuff with our paycheck. A lot of
our individuals don't have that, and again not because they
don't want to, it's because unfortunately they haven't been able
to find that right fix you know what I mean.
Speaker 1 (09:35):
Find the job, then find the transportation, find the kind
of training exactly, and the kind of patience that is
required for somebody.
Speaker 3 (09:42):
I mean, look at the patients you have to endure
today with me, and you know, but that's something that
it's always are. But I'm not you make an excemption,
but I think when you look at that and then
you see somebody who is like, wow, you know, it's
really important for me to get my hair a colored,
or it's really important for me to go to a
(10:02):
baseball game. But the money isn't there because the job
isn't there. And the Foundation will provide that through our
make you know, difference maker grants. And that's really what.
Speaker 1 (10:12):
The part of for Quality is kind of an organization
that lets other organizations focus on the individual that's correct.
Speaker 2 (10:20):
You give them the kind of life and Thrive.
Speaker 1 (10:22):
That's right, the thrive, not just you know, right, and
so let's talk about some of the other subsidiaries.
Speaker 3 (10:28):
Okay, So we also have Milestone Centers, which is the
corporate office for Milestone is out in Monroeville, so that's
on the you know, on the east side of Pittsburgh.
We're on the west side of Pittsburgh, so there's a
plethora there and they provide supports. They do behavioral health
supports along with intellectual and developmental disabilities. They have a
thriving outpatient program, supported rehab. They have service coordination as
(10:53):
well as they have community programming, so they do a
lot of that. They also have what kind of programming
we're doing well. Chain of Hope is a drop in
center for people with mental health issues along with being
a food source for people who have food insecurity. So
we do do a whole bunch of meals. People can
come by pick it up, so it's that kind of
(11:15):
a boots on the ground program. In addition, we also
have Alleghanty Children's Initiative which is in Southside and they
do a great job with younger folk under the age
of twenty one, working with families. Most recently, we had
a concern with funding for the Mom's Empowerment Club. So
(11:36):
we have about eight families And what is that I
knew you were going to ask me. That Mom's Empowerment
is where they bring together families that have had intimate
partner violence and bring them together with some therapists and
some community workers to help them through and help the
family through some really difficult times and hopefully by having
(11:58):
that network available to them, they're able to go back
into the community and thrive. So we have I think
about four or five sessions or you know, clumps a
year every every year that they're able to come in
and get this kind of help. But as we all know,
funding is very difficult, especially in Allegany County. We compete
(12:19):
for roads, we compete with the homeless obviously, which we
have a concern here in Allegany County. So sometimes the
foundation we rely on that as well to make sure
that we're helping the people that need to get help.
Speaker 1 (12:31):
All right, So the gala is this also a fundraiser?
Are you hoping to raise some funds for that?
Speaker 3 (12:36):
It's a combination or it's a comic.
Speaker 2 (12:37):
Way to educate people and to celebrate the thing is.
Speaker 3 (12:40):
It is, and it is and hey, you know what,
if you go on p FQ dot org, we're happy
to take donations all times of the year, So don't
ever feel like you only have to give money when
you hear from us.
Speaker 1 (12:52):
But you know what, if somebody is not familiar with
your your organization or some of the subsidiaries and they
want to get more information, the website is a great
way to do it. But if they come to the gala,
they'll get to really know.
Speaker 3 (13:05):
Well. The gala has really so it's been very interesting
working with some of the people supported. So some of
the people at Citizen Care are so excited. So a
friend of mine, and I call her a friend because
let's face it, that's what we are, even though she's
supported by us, she got her clothes and she needs
them altered and sewed. So I was summoned to her
(13:29):
home where she tried everything on and told me, which
she that's right. And you know, so now I had
to go take measurements and now I have to go
do all this alteration and people are getting dresses and
most CEOs well yeah, you know, all other duties as assigned.
But I do charge her a glass of wine for
all of this. Yes, so and and she she was
(13:51):
hysterical because she ended up wanting tickets to this over
the summer, and I'm like, well, we don't have tickets yet.
So she ended up calling Johanna. I'm like, call Johannah,
and she ended up tickets absolutely and is registered and
ready to go. She was very very close. Yes, but again,
so this is the kind of excitement that's going on,
(14:11):
and so we are going to have a lot of
the people that we support celebrating with us.
Speaker 2 (14:16):
So if I go to the gala, what should I wear?
Speaker 1 (14:19):
Well, I mean, you know how I normally last time
I showed up in a disco bod.
Speaker 3 (14:24):
Hey, I think as long as you show up, Johnny,
it doesn't matter, it doesn't matter what you wear. I'm
summon you. I am summoning. Yes, yes, so this is
a formal occasion, so I think that we are probably
not going to want people in yoga pants and maybe
a skirt.
Speaker 2 (14:43):
Should I wear my formal disco gear then.
Speaker 3 (14:46):
Yes, yes, absolutely, as long as you have your top hat,
I think that's going to be important. But no, we
decided to go a little more formal this year, so
black tie I wouldn't say black tie, but certainly a
tie would be helpful, you know, even if it's disco related.
Speaker 1 (15:02):
All right, well, speaking of disco, I you know I
wore the disco because it was disco.
Speaker 2 (15:07):
Duck season last year, we go.
Speaker 3 (15:09):
The ducks again. Already it's October. It's duck season. Oh
my goodness, it's always ducks.
Speaker 2 (15:15):
Yet have you started planning the duck Derby?
Speaker 3 (15:17):
Of course we have get a load of this. We
have to change the date of the duck Derby. Ask
me why, oh why? Because of the NFL Draft. Can
you believe it? And it is on May?
Speaker 2 (15:29):
Yeah, Roger Gandel on the phone.
Speaker 3 (15:32):
You know what, Amy, you got to move the draft.
Speaker 2 (15:35):
Sorry, Roony, you got to pick another weekend.
Speaker 3 (15:37):
Yeah, so May ninth, May nine. Typically it was in April,
but we have set May ninth as the u Is
it the fifth the fifth fifth annual? Oh my gosh,
five years and it's duck season already and.
Speaker 1 (15:50):
Well in October. Those who aren't familiar with the duck.
Speaker 3 (15:53):
Derby, it's the Steel City Steel Derby. I've been trained
on this. Yes, And you can get in Fortion on
Partners for Quality dot Com PFQ dot com.
Speaker 1 (16:03):
And what you do is you you buy a duck
and then they load up.
Speaker 3 (16:08):
Yeah, a plastic duck, Jenny gulls and you want that's right? No,
well we've had that black question. That's why I have
to say a plastic duck. We've gone over this before.
Speaker 2 (16:18):
The Pittsburgers are fascinated with Rubbert ducks.
Speaker 3 (16:20):
Oh my gosh, they are. I know they are.
Speaker 2 (16:23):
I mean we have our DNA.
Speaker 3 (16:24):
I don't know what it really is, and we've had people,
We've had people end up like wearing duck costumes and
not just our you know, mascot duck. I'm just talking
duck ducks.
Speaker 4 (16:35):
Wait till you see there's a there's a new special
guest who will be arriving at the doctry this year.
Speaker 2 (16:40):
Don't tease me, Johanna, tell us what special.
Speaker 3 (16:43):
There will be a twenty foot inflated Robert.
Speaker 4 (16:49):
Got the big one, and he is available to travel
to sponsors anyone who's interested in getting involved. We're happy
to bring him to your parking lot and put him up. However,
and are.
Speaker 1 (16:57):
Who are some of your corporate sponsors for that? Because
do you have a jeep dealership? Because you know how
people are fascinated with ducks at the g everybody.
Speaker 4 (17:06):
This is something Tammy Rippy, who is our incredible special
events director, has been working on for the entirety of
these five years. And we are reaching out to I'm
talking to you people on those Facebook groups who are
the ductor the duck jeep people. They are, They're enthusiastic
and we want to connect with you. We really want
to make sure that you're involved. We want you to
(17:27):
bring your jeeps and line them up in the parking
lot so that everyone can see all your ducks, and well.
Speaker 3 (17:32):
We would love to get involved, so reach out to us.
Speaker 1 (17:34):
You're looking for sponsorship and of course okay, always, always,
always and always and it's a great cost. And so
that is that the Duck Derby probably your your biggest fundraiser.
Speaker 3 (17:47):
You would think it's our biggest community fundraiser. So that's
our our gift back to the community. And by that
I mean everybody's invited. It doesn't cost anything except you know,
five dollars a duck. We do ask that you do,
but you don't have to. We have food trucks, face
painting stuff for the kids. You know. As long as
the we struggle with the weather at times. But May ninth,
(18:08):
I hear Tammy's already put in a huge favor to
to mother nature. It's going to be beautiful out there.
The only thing we're gonna have to worry about is
suntail lotion. So but yeah, no, it's that's our community event.
I think that our biggest fundraiser event is our Bob
Pompiani golf outing. Okay, and this year will be number
thirty five.
Speaker 4 (18:29):
It's a big Martin So it's relatively new, Yes, it is.
Speaker 3 (18:33):
It's relatively new. Bob has been doing this with us
for many, many years, and now his family's involved, and
he has been so gracious with his time and what
he does. From who is this Bob, I'm not sure.
I hear that he's somebody maybe on TV once in
a while and then doing that the other thing and everywhere.
Speaker 1 (18:52):
Is every person on a local TV news and sports
named pomp Pianny. Because I think that the Poppiana family
is taking over ate dynasty.
Speaker 3 (19:00):
That's right?
Speaker 2 (19:01):
Do I have to change?
Speaker 1 (19:03):
Have to?
Speaker 3 (19:04):
You have to talk to Bob about that.
Speaker 1 (19:05):
I've clearly talking to you guys. I never know where
this conversation would go.
Speaker 3 (19:10):
It's supposed to be fun like it's supposed to be
fun like.
Speaker 4 (19:13):
It's It's really interesting though to think. I mean, we
think about thirty five years of this golf outing and
fifty years of Citizen Care. There are not a lot
of organizations or companies or places that can really say,
you know that they've been along around for this that long,
and that's really about thusands.
Speaker 2 (19:29):
Of people that you've helped and staff.
Speaker 4 (19:32):
I think it's important to bring up that we have
staff at Citizen Care who have been there for more
than forty years, who were there when they moved the
initial folks from the Polk Institution into Robinson Development Center,
and they're still there, and they're still there, and they
are still working so hard, and they are making sure
that the people we support so they devoted.
Speaker 2 (19:49):
The vision of the organs.
Speaker 3 (19:51):
They could have.
Speaker 4 (19:51):
Gone somewhere and made a lot more money a long
time ago, but they are still because they care.
Speaker 3 (19:57):
We make a difference every day.
Speaker 1 (19:58):
All right, let's go to reset the Partners for Quality
kind of like explaining exactly what the organization does.
Speaker 3 (20:05):
Parris for Quality is a parent organization of five subsidiaries
that provide supports to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities
along with behavioral health needs. And we do that for
children all the way to we'll call them our seniors
for lack of a better word, and we do all
lines of business in between. And our subsidiaries are the
(20:27):
Partners for Quality Foundation, the Exceptional Adventures, which is our
traveling company. We just got a new giant van, a
party party bus. We get a party bus. You got
to go on I know we haven't talked about it,
but you get to go online and see this party bus.
It has fifteen seats and a table for cards and
(20:48):
party lighting. It's unbelievable. The actually the Foundation was able
to secure grants for this particular party bus, so that
that was a huge donor event as well. Very happy
about that. So that's Exceptional Adventures, Milestone Services or Centers,
which is also behavioral health and intellectual and developmental disabilities,
(21:09):
Citizen Care, which is turning fifty this year. And I
believe that's all five of them. Okay, well, oh an
Allegheny Children's Initiative, which is our our children's department. That
are our children's agency that serves people under the age
of twenty one.
Speaker 1 (21:24):
All right, you just mentioned that the Citizen Care is
turning fifty and the big gala on November fifth at
the Hind's History.
Speaker 3 (21:31):
Set correct with disco duck, with disco what disco duck?
Speaker 2 (21:34):
Oh, disco duck. No, now, just you.
Speaker 3 (21:36):
And your disco suit and we'll give you a duck.
Speaker 1 (21:39):
If it's going to be formal, I'm going to look
at Okay, I look good?
Speaker 3 (21:42):
Oh good?
Speaker 1 (21:43):
So all right, and so the information Johanna to tell
us everything we need to know about gay everything.
Speaker 4 (21:48):
Everything's on the website. You can get their easiest at
PFQ dot org. It'll link you right from the top banner.
The event starts at six pm. Tickets are one hundred
and fifty dollars for individual attendees. That but that includes drinks, dinner, dancing,
lots of fun. We promise it to be lots of fun.
And we have had a number of donors and also
(22:08):
Citizen Care, which should just be called out for the
fact that they are discounting and underwriting the cost of
tickets for staff and people supported it. Citizen Care. We
really want this to be about and for them.
Speaker 1 (22:19):
Why did you start thinking up this idea to do
the celebrate the fifty years.
Speaker 3 (22:24):
I think we put together the committee in March, March
or April, and so it was a little later than
we had originally anticipated. However, it's worked out very well.
But the committee is also, like I said, we're going
to be unveiling a citizen care video talking about the
history as well as little vignettes or little reels that
we'll be able to post online.
Speaker 1 (22:45):
And there's a little connection between the Hinz History Center
and that's right.
Speaker 3 (22:49):
So when we started out in March and started looking
for some documentation, early documents to be part of our
historical committee. So our historical committee actually consists of all
employees who have been there longer than forty years. It's
a mandated committee.
Speaker 1 (23:06):
Subsidiaries, Yeah, you have you milestone, the jild Care, now the.
Speaker 3 (23:12):
Historical Yeah, the Historical Committee consists of all of our
employees who are are have been there longer than forty years.
They didn't really have a choice, and they have done
a tremendous job of pulling a lot of the old
information and the beginnings of everything so that we're able
to capture and really celebrate the history of the agency.
(23:33):
And then the other thing that's really awesome is that
Jen Dayton, who's our executive director of Citizen Care and
her crew have put together this is what we're looking
at for the future. So that's going to be really
special as well.
Speaker 1 (23:46):
Do me a favor, Maggie, Yes, you obviously, this is
an organization that's been serving the community, Pittsburgh community for decades. Yes,
but put a face kind of what are who are
the people that you are helping and how many local
people are are you assisting? So tell us, tell us,
you know, give us a face behind the organ.
Speaker 4 (24:07):
You mind if I jump in, Maggie a couple of stories.
So Maggie mentioned Johnny in the beginning that the foundation
does a program called Difference mak or grants, and that's
just we give some money back to folks who are
in our services or in programs for the things that
that they want. And recently a person supported by Citizen
Kara's name is David, you know, really wanted to live
on his own. He was living with family, didn't love
(24:29):
that situation. Is absolutely capable of living independently, just needed
a few extra supports, you know, some folks to help
him get to his job and some folks to you know,
check on his his his lifestyle, to make sure, he's
taking care of himself and things like that, but you
know what he didn't have was he didn't have furniture
to move into an apartment. He didn't have a couch,
he didn't have a kitchen table.
Speaker 2 (24:50):
So the foundation so many things that we take for
granted that.
Speaker 3 (24:53):
We can just go somewhere and buy.
Speaker 4 (24:55):
I mean we really And you know what's so important
about that is that we get to choose it. I
get to go to a furniture store and pick out
what my living room looks like. And David got to
do that too. You know, some really special staff at
Citizen Care made sure that he got to go shopping
and pick out his couch and pick out his table
in chairs and move into his apartment. And he just
couldn't be more thrilled. And we couldn't do that without donors.
(25:16):
We can't do that without folks who support our organization.
Speaker 3 (25:19):
And I don't mean to interrupt jo him, but how
old is heave it. He's in his fifties. He's in
his fifties, So imagine that I can still remember as
you're telling the story, I got goosebumps because I can
remember going out with my first apartment in college. Imagine
that you're living with your parents and that this is
a dream of yours that you had since your twenties. Absolutely,
(25:39):
and you're going out to pick out your couch for
the first time in your fifties. I mean, these are
the things that make life worthwhile. And I can still
remember all the member the funky stuff you got, and
you know, you're looking for this, and you're looking for that,
and you're at thrift stores and all of that, but
you picked it out yourself. Absolutely, So you got to
choose what's in his home. He gets to choose where
(26:00):
watches TV every night, and and and there are people
out there listening, going, what do you mean that's how
everybody does it? Well, sometimes they don't. You know, if
you come to a community home, the furniture is kind
of already there. So how are we helping people make
choices in their life? And that's that's really the face
of all of this is we want everybody to have
(26:20):
an everyday life like you and I period, And that's
what we strive for every single day.
Speaker 2 (26:25):
Strive, but you also make them.
Speaker 3 (26:27):
Thrive absolutely absolutely, look at look at about their happiness.
Oh god, yes, nobody talks about so when you come
into work on Monday, they say, how was your weekend?
Did you say, oh, well, you know, I paid the
bills and went to the grocery store. I mean, you
do that. That's part of your life. You talk about
all those things, those connections, the relationships. So I went
to the game, or I saw my friend, or I
(26:47):
visited my family. Those are the things we remember. We
don't necessarily care that we paid our rent. You know,
we know that it has to happen, but that isn't
the special thing that happened over the weekend. And that's
what we do every single day.
Speaker 4 (27:00):
Every day citizn't care is taking people to volunteer at
the library, or they're delivering meals on wheels. They're they're
becoming part of our community rather than being segregated as
in some ways that you know, doesn't allow folks to
really feel their own worth and their own value. We
want the folks we support to know that our community
wouldn't be what it is if they weren't a part
(27:21):
of it.
Speaker 1 (27:21):
That's all right, all right, we only have a couple
of minutes left, so let's let's encourage people to get involved,
to get to know your organizations. Yes, and to possibly,
you know, help support some of these courses that you go.
Speaker 3 (27:33):
Of course, aside for money, we we would love you
to give a call. Johannah will talk to anybody and
let you know about our agencies. Yes, exactly, we have.
You know, we have several events throughout the year. This
year they're a little different because of the gala. So
the gala again or a gala. I don't know is
a gala or gala? I think both are acceptable. Both
(27:55):
are acceptable. There you go, so November.
Speaker 2 (27:59):
I think gala is just for gals, isn't it?
Speaker 3 (28:01):
Is that what it is? You might be right, I
don't know, so gala.
Speaker 2 (28:04):
I do not know what I'm talking about.
Speaker 3 (28:06):
We have one minute, yes, so it'll be fun regardless, Yes, yes,
PFQ dot org for more information to donate. We also
have the duc Derby coming up, a Steel City Duck
Derby on May ninth, and then our Bob Pompiani Golf
Spectacular outing I think is what June eighth, ninth, tenth
in there that.
Speaker 2 (28:25):
It's twenty twenty six. I'm just trying to get through twenty.
Speaker 3 (28:27):
Twenty Well, aren't we all? Hides History Center really wonderful
to part partner with them this year and looking forward
to everything. What did I miss? You got it all
all right? No.
Speaker 1 (28:37):
If you want tickets or more information, go to CITIZENCAREPA
dot org or PFQ dot org for information and tickets.
Speaker 2 (28:45):
Maggot's always great to see you.
Speaker 3 (28:46):
Oh, it's such a pleasure. Thank you so much for
your time.
Speaker 2 (28:48):
Joanna was really nice to me.
Speaker 3 (28:50):
Oh fun. Thanks for having us as always.
Speaker 1 (28:52):
If you have any comments, concerns, or an idea for
a future program, please email us from this radio station's website.
Speaker 2 (28:58):
I'm Johnny Hartwell, thank you so much for listening.
Speaker 6 (29:14):
We ask parents who adopted teens to share their journey.
Speaker 7 (29:17):
I think my biggest challenge was getting through to him
to understand that love is real, and you have goals
of mind, You have things that want to happen, and
I want to help you get there.
Speaker 3 (29:27):
Sometimes people tend to shy away from wanting to adopt
teenagers because they feel like they've lost so much, but
there's still so much to gain.
Speaker 5 (29:37):
Just knowing that there's just that other person that cares
and loves me out there, it feels great and they've
done so much for me and I can only be
appreciative every single day for just having them in my life.
Speaker 7 (29:51):
I think it's been the best decision because I gained
a son and he's the best son ever. If I
was down and out, he'd be there.
Speaker 6 (29:59):
Learn about it. Adopting a teen from foster care. You
can't imagine the reward. Visit adopt us kids dot org
to learn more. A message brought to you by adopt
Us Kids, the US Department of Health and Human Services,
and the ad Council
This is always an interesting interview. All right, Welcome in everybody.
This is a public affairs program shedding the light on
the interest and issues and concerns of the greater Pittsburgh Gary.
Speaker 2 (00:14):
Good morning.
Speaker 1 (00:14):
My name is Johnny Hartwell special guest. Old friend Maggie. No,
it's not that she's old. She just thought, yeah, thanks
a lot. Maggy Rothenberger, President's CEO of Partners for Quality, Maga,
how are you?
Speaker 3 (00:25):
I'm really good, honey, how are you good?
Speaker 2 (00:27):
And you brought a friend?
Speaker 3 (00:28):
I did a new friend.
Speaker 1 (00:29):
This is Johannah Garino, Director and Development of Partners for
Quality Foundation, which directs which is part of that's.
Speaker 3 (00:36):
Right, it's a subsidiaries of Partners for Quality.
Speaker 1 (00:38):
Let me let me say good morning to Johannah. Good morning,
How are you nice? To nice to meet you?
Speaker 3 (00:43):
Really well?
Speaker 2 (00:44):
You haven't worked with each other for very long?
Speaker 3 (00:46):
Or have you think it's been a couple of years.
It's more like twenty or thirty at least maybe a
solid decade.
Speaker 2 (00:53):
You never brought her into us, I know. Are you
embarrassed to know?
Speaker 1 (00:57):
No?
Speaker 3 (00:58):
No, no, no.
Speaker 4 (00:58):
He likes to keep me in an office stares away
from the people.
Speaker 1 (01:03):
I gotta tell I gotta tell you everybody, because I've
worked with you guys for a couple of years now.
Speaker 2 (01:10):
This is my favorite interview because of that.
Speaker 3 (01:12):
To everybody, I don't, I.
Speaker 2 (01:14):
Don't and I wouldn't you know.
Speaker 1 (01:16):
Uh, you know, I try not to tell Maggie because
it will go to our head.
Speaker 3 (01:20):
It does, and just all, oh yeah, no, I put
it everywhere. Johnny Hartwell's my you know, he loves me best.
So well, I'm absolutely gullible, so I believe every word
of it.
Speaker 5 (01:30):
There.
Speaker 1 (01:30):
We are all right, Partners for Quality, Maggie, tell me everything.
Speaker 2 (01:34):
Tell describe what the organization is.
Speaker 3 (01:37):
So, UH, Partners for Quality is an agency that serves
people with intellectual and developmental disabilities as well as mental
health behavioral health needs. We have five agencies UH subsidiaries.
We are the parent corporation, so we do all of
the back office work. We do HR, we do it,
and fiscal and compliance, all of that, and it allows
(01:59):
our subsidiaries and our executive directors and directors of those
subsidiaries to really focus on the work. So, for example,
since we have Johannah here, she is the director of
the foundation, so we take care of all of the
things that she needs things taken care of, her software,
how we collect money, all of that, So that way,
Johanna's out there and she's able to work very very
(02:22):
hard on obtaining grants and funding for some of the
things that we really need for our subsidiaries.
Speaker 1 (02:29):
All right, and we're going to be talking about the
subsidies subsidi here and there's going to be a different
thing for you to say, Oh no, it's not and
it could be confusing. So we're going to try to
define some.
Speaker 3 (02:41):
Of the family that does different work everywhere.
Speaker 2 (02:43):
So, Johannah, what is the foundation and what do you
do for the foundation?
Speaker 4 (02:46):
Absolutely, the foundation is the part of the organization that
handles all of the grants that we seek from our
incredibly generous foundation community here in Pittsburgh. We also manage
our very generous donors, so we have a lot of
very kind folks who are supporting our organizations to make
sure that the folks that you know, we're providing services
(03:07):
for have access to more things than just the basics
in life. You know, the foundation really exists so that
the people we support can live the lives they choose,
whether that's attending a concert or you know, getting a
new couch, the things that really make a life fulfilling
and worth living. You know, the foundation works really hard
to raise money, so all of our special events throughout
(03:28):
the year, that money goes right back to the people
we support.
Speaker 2 (03:31):
All right, Now, that's just one of the subsidiaries.
Speaker 1 (03:35):
Correct and correct, and so we're going to talk about
but let's talk about citizens Care.
Speaker 2 (03:40):
Is that also a subsidiary or yes?
Speaker 3 (03:42):
Yes, actually, citizen Care this year is celebrating it's fiftieth anniversary.
That's right, I know, fifty years, which is pretty remarkable.
Speaker 2 (03:51):
Shame on me. I should have brought a birthday cake.
Speaker 3 (03:53):
Oh you know what you should have. But that's okay.
You have a whole year to celebrate. So if I'm
not mistaken, was May fourth, May the fourth be with you.
That's when they celebrated their actual thing in nineteen in
seventy five, that's when they opened. And this year we're
celebrating it all year long, so you have a little
(04:15):
bit of time for the birthday cake.
Speaker 1 (04:16):
But no.
Speaker 3 (04:17):
So one of the things that I have always always
always wanted to do is kind of collect our history
of how we came about. So citizen Care was actually
the first. It is the anchor of our organizations and
Partner's Quality was born out of Citizen Care. So citizen
Care is our first and it was formed and part
of the history that we've been going through is it
(04:38):
was formed due to the fact that Polk Institution was
overcrowded and people weren't being treated very nicely.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
So se so, for the people who don't know the
backstory of Polk, that was an institution here.
Speaker 3 (04:51):
The state institution that housed people with developmental disabilities, behavioral
health need, physical disabilities, you know. Unfortunately in the day
in the nineteen seventies, it was just really a place
people were told to drop off their kids and told
that they'll be fine, you know, and they really weren't.
And so anyhow, so that's where our history came from,
(05:11):
is pulling. We pulled and ended up transitioning one hundred
and thirty two people out of Polk Institution into the
Robinson Development Center, which is actually the office building we're
in now. And then in the two thousands, we transitioned
people that were in this mini institution, if you will,
(05:32):
although very well staffed and very well taken care of,
into the community and the building was donated back to us,
so that we could use it for administrative purposes, but
going through this history has been amazing. And we also
still have I think it's seven or eight people who
transitioned from polk that are still in our care. Yes,
I mean they're elderly, they're elderly now, but yeah, And
(05:57):
so we've tried to get a hold of their families
and to really talk about what it was like fifty
years ago for their loved one and what they were
told and all of that. So we're putting all this
together with the Foundation's help with marketing and communications, and
we're putting together a video, we're putting together a history line,
(06:17):
and we are turning all of this into a giant
gala celebration at the Heinz History Center. Although in November
fifth it really is because when we started down this
road back in March, what we found was the Heinz
History Center actually had documents concerning citizen Care online. And
so in working with them in obtaining some of our
(06:40):
history and providing them our history back so that they
can we're donating it to them, a new partnership has developed.
So very very exciting to have our gala there.
Speaker 2 (06:51):
All right, So tell us more about the gala.
Speaker 3 (06:53):
I'm going to turn that over to Johannah because Johannah
is part a parcel of the foundation which is helping
through this. Yeah, just part of the team that's doing
some of the planning.
Speaker 4 (07:03):
You know. It will be Wednesday night, November fifth. We're
starting with cocktail hour at six, of course, and then
we will have dinner and a program of speakers that
I think anyone who is engaged in their community, who
cares about folks who have disabilities or mental health or
behavioral health needs would find very interesting. We're going to
hear a bunch from our past executive directors through our
(07:27):
current programming, and then we really hope to launch into
what we see the next fifty years of citizen care
might look like. So it should be really wonderful. And
then we'll have dancing and more drinks and lots of fun.
An important question is there going to be cake? There
will be dessert about maybe we should add that to
(07:51):
the program. Maybe we should be singing happy Birthday.
Speaker 3 (07:53):
I think that's not a back.
Speaker 2 (07:56):
I'm obsessed with cake.
Speaker 3 (07:57):
It sounds like you might.
Speaker 2 (08:00):
I might be. No, I'm just I'm just kidding it.
Speaker 1 (08:03):
So this is an event where you know, you want
to celebrate the fact that, you know, fifty years and
you've helped how many people have problems.
Speaker 3 (08:10):
Thousands, thousands, thousands, Yeah, and even peripherally. You know, that
includes families who just called us because they had a
question and that we were able to help them. So
we've been in the community and for any company who
does this kind of work to still be in business
after fifty years and thriving and looking at the next
(08:31):
fifty years. And I think for me this year has
been very poignant in looking at that, going wow, look
at where we came from, and look at where we're going,
and to just glimpse in the rear view mirror, but
then focus on the road ahead. It's been really wonderful
in talking with people throughout Citizen Care and our other
agencies to go all right, now, what now? What can
(08:53):
we do? And you know, the times are very different,
everything's very different. When Johannah was talking about why the
foundation was necessary, a lot of the people that we
support are they're not able to become employed right now.
That doesn't mean that they don't want to work, it's
just that jobs out there can be scarce. People with
(09:14):
disabilities have a harder time managing time and getting to work.
So where you and I take for granted that we
go to work, we get a paycheck and we can
do that that stuff with our paycheck. A lot of
our individuals don't have that, and again not because they
don't want to, it's because unfortunately they haven't been able
to find that right fix you know what I mean.
Speaker 1 (09:35):
Find the job, then find the transportation, find the kind
of training exactly, and the kind of patience that is
required for somebody.
Speaker 3 (09:42):
I mean, look at the patients you have to endure
today with me, and you know, but that's something that
it's always are. But I'm not you make an excemption,
but I think when you look at that and then
you see somebody who is like, wow, you know, it's
really important for me to get my hair a colored,
or it's really important for me to go to a
(10:02):
baseball game. But the money isn't there because the job
isn't there. And the Foundation will provide that through our
make you know, difference maker grants. And that's really what.
Speaker 1 (10:12):
The part of for Quality is kind of an organization
that lets other organizations focus on the individual that's correct.
Speaker 2 (10:20):
You give them the kind of life and Thrive.
Speaker 1 (10:22):
That's right, the thrive, not just you know, right, and
so let's talk about some of the other subsidiaries.
Speaker 3 (10:28):
Okay, So we also have Milestone Centers, which is the
corporate office for Milestone is out in Monroeville, so that's
on the you know, on the east side of Pittsburgh.
We're on the west side of Pittsburgh, so there's a
plethora there and they provide supports. They do behavioral health
supports along with intellectual and developmental disabilities. They have a
thriving outpatient program, supported rehab. They have service coordination as
(10:53):
well as they have community programming, so they do a
lot of that. They also have what kind of programming
we're doing well. Chain of Hope is a drop in
center for people with mental health issues along with being
a food source for people who have food insecurity. So
we do do a whole bunch of meals. People can
come by pick it up, so it's that kind of
(11:15):
a boots on the ground program. In addition, we also
have Alleghanty Children's Initiative which is in Southside and they
do a great job with younger folk under the age
of twenty one, working with families. Most recently, we had
a concern with funding for the Mom's Empowerment Club. So
(11:36):
we have about eight families And what is that I
knew you were going to ask me. That Mom's Empowerment
is where they bring together families that have had intimate
partner violence and bring them together with some therapists and
some community workers to help them through and help the
family through some really difficult times and hopefully by having
(11:58):
that network available to them, they're able to go back
into the community and thrive. So we have I think
about four or five sessions or you know, clumps a
year every every year that they're able to come in
and get this kind of help. But as we all know,
funding is very difficult, especially in Allegany County. We compete
(12:19):
for roads, we compete with the homeless obviously, which we
have a concern here in Allegany County. So sometimes the
foundation we rely on that as well to make sure
that we're helping the people that need to get help.
Speaker 1 (12:31):
All right, So the gala is this also a fundraiser?
Are you hoping to raise some funds for that?
Speaker 3 (12:36):
It's a combination or it's a comic.
Speaker 2 (12:37):
Way to educate people and to celebrate the thing is.
Speaker 3 (12:40):
It is, and it is and hey, you know what,
if you go on p FQ dot org, we're happy
to take donations all times of the year, So don't
ever feel like you only have to give money when
you hear from us.
Speaker 1 (12:52):
But you know what, if somebody is not familiar with
your your organization or some of the subsidiaries and they
want to get more information, the website is a great
way to do it. But if they come to the gala,
they'll get to really know.
Speaker 3 (13:05):
Well. The gala has really so it's been very interesting
working with some of the people supported. So some of
the people at Citizen Care are so excited. So a
friend of mine, and I call her a friend because
let's face it, that's what we are, even though she's
supported by us, she got her clothes and she needs
them altered and sewed. So I was summoned to her
(13:29):
home where she tried everything on and told me, which
she that's right. And you know, so now I had
to go take measurements and now I have to go
do all this alteration and people are getting dresses and
most CEOs well yeah, you know, all other duties as assigned.
But I do charge her a glass of wine for
all of this. Yes, so and and she she was
(13:51):
hysterical because she ended up wanting tickets to this over
the summer, and I'm like, well, we don't have tickets yet.
So she ended up calling Johanna. I'm like, call Johannah,
and she ended up tickets absolutely and is registered and
ready to go. She was very very close. Yes, but again,
so this is the kind of excitement that's going on,
(14:11):
and so we are going to have a lot of
the people that we support celebrating with us.
Speaker 2 (14:16):
So if I go to the gala, what should I wear?
Speaker 1 (14:19):
Well, I mean, you know how I normally last time
I showed up in a disco bod.
Speaker 3 (14:24):
Hey, I think as long as you show up, Johnny,
it doesn't matter, it doesn't matter what you wear. I'm
summon you. I am summoning. Yes, yes, so this is
a formal occasion, so I think that we are probably
not going to want people in yoga pants and maybe
a skirt.
Speaker 2 (14:43):
Should I wear my formal disco gear then.
Speaker 3 (14:46):
Yes, yes, absolutely, as long as you have your top hat,
I think that's going to be important. But no, we
decided to go a little more formal this year, so
black tie I wouldn't say black tie, but certainly a
tie would be helpful, you know, even if it's disco related.
Speaker 1 (15:02):
All right, well, speaking of disco, I you know I
wore the disco because it was disco.
Speaker 2 (15:07):
Duck season last year, we go.
Speaker 3 (15:09):
The ducks again. Already it's October. It's duck season. Oh
my goodness, it's always ducks.
Speaker 2 (15:15):
Yet have you started planning the duck Derby?
Speaker 3 (15:17):
Of course we have get a load of this. We
have to change the date of the duck Derby. Ask
me why, oh why? Because of the NFL Draft. Can
you believe it? And it is on May?
Speaker 2 (15:29):
Yeah, Roger Gandel on the phone.
Speaker 3 (15:32):
You know what, Amy, you got to move the draft.
Speaker 2 (15:35):
Sorry, Roony, you got to pick another weekend.
Speaker 3 (15:37):
Yeah, so May ninth, May nine. Typically it was in April,
but we have set May ninth as the u Is
it the fifth the fifth fifth annual? Oh my gosh,
five years and it's duck season already and.
Speaker 1 (15:50):
Well in October. Those who aren't familiar with the duck.
Speaker 3 (15:53):
Derby, it's the Steel City Steel Derby. I've been trained
on this. Yes, And you can get in Fortion on
Partners for Quality dot Com PFQ dot com.
Speaker 1 (16:03):
And what you do is you you buy a duck
and then they load up.
Speaker 3 (16:08):
Yeah, a plastic duck, Jenny gulls and you want that's right? No,
well we've had that black question. That's why I have
to say a plastic duck. We've gone over this before.
Speaker 2 (16:18):
The Pittsburgers are fascinated with Rubbert ducks.
Speaker 3 (16:20):
Oh my gosh, they are. I know they are.
Speaker 2 (16:23):
I mean we have our DNA.
Speaker 3 (16:24):
I don't know what it really is, and we've had people,
We've had people end up like wearing duck costumes and
not just our you know, mascot duck. I'm just talking
duck ducks.
Speaker 4 (16:35):
Wait till you see there's a there's a new special
guest who will be arriving at the doctry this year.
Speaker 2 (16:40):
Don't tease me, Johanna, tell us what special.
Speaker 3 (16:43):
There will be a twenty foot inflated Robert.
Speaker 4 (16:49):
Got the big one, and he is available to travel
to sponsors anyone who's interested in getting involved. We're happy
to bring him to your parking lot and put him up. However,
and are.
Speaker 1 (16:57):
Who are some of your corporate sponsors for that? Because
do you have a jeep dealership? Because you know how
people are fascinated with ducks at the g everybody.
Speaker 4 (17:06):
This is something Tammy Rippy, who is our incredible special
events director, has been working on for the entirety of
these five years. And we are reaching out to I'm
talking to you people on those Facebook groups who are
the ductor the duck jeep people. They are, They're enthusiastic
and we want to connect with you. We really want
to make sure that you're involved. We want you to
(17:27):
bring your jeeps and line them up in the parking
lot so that everyone can see all your ducks, and well.
Speaker 3 (17:32):
We would love to get involved, so reach out to us.
Speaker 1 (17:34):
You're looking for sponsorship and of course okay, always, always,
always and always and it's a great cost. And so
that is that the Duck Derby probably your your biggest fundraiser.
Speaker 3 (17:47):
You would think it's our biggest community fundraiser. So that's
our our gift back to the community. And by that
I mean everybody's invited. It doesn't cost anything except you know,
five dollars a duck. We do ask that you do,
but you don't have to. We have food trucks, face
painting stuff for the kids. You know. As long as
the we struggle with the weather at times. But May ninth,
(18:08):
I hear Tammy's already put in a huge favor to
to mother nature. It's going to be beautiful out there.
The only thing we're gonna have to worry about is
suntail lotion. So but yeah, no, it's that's our community event.
I think that our biggest fundraiser event is our Bob
Pompiani golf outing. Okay, and this year will be number
thirty five.
Speaker 4 (18:29):
It's a big Martin So it's relatively new, Yes, it is.
Speaker 3 (18:33):
It's relatively new. Bob has been doing this with us
for many, many years, and now his family's involved, and
he has been so gracious with his time and what
he does. From who is this Bob, I'm not sure.
I hear that he's somebody maybe on TV once in
a while and then doing that the other thing and everywhere.
Speaker 1 (18:52):
Is every person on a local TV news and sports
named pomp Pianny. Because I think that the Poppiana family
is taking over ate dynasty.
Speaker 3 (19:00):
That's right?
Speaker 2 (19:01):
Do I have to change?
Speaker 1 (19:03):
Have to?
Speaker 3 (19:04):
You have to talk to Bob about that.
Speaker 1 (19:05):
I've clearly talking to you guys. I never know where
this conversation would go.
Speaker 3 (19:10):
It's supposed to be fun like it's supposed to be
fun like.
Speaker 4 (19:13):
It's It's really interesting though to think. I mean, we
think about thirty five years of this golf outing and
fifty years of Citizen Care. There are not a lot
of organizations or companies or places that can really say,
you know that they've been along around for this that long,
and that's really about thusands.
Speaker 2 (19:29):
Of people that you've helped and staff.
Speaker 4 (19:32):
I think it's important to bring up that we have
staff at Citizen Care who have been there for more
than forty years, who were there when they moved the
initial folks from the Polk Institution into Robinson Development Center,
and they're still there, and they're still there, and they
are still working so hard, and they are making sure
that the people we support so they devoted.
Speaker 2 (19:49):
The vision of the organs.
Speaker 3 (19:51):
They could have.
Speaker 4 (19:51):
Gone somewhere and made a lot more money a long
time ago, but they are still because they care.
Speaker 3 (19:57):
We make a difference every day.
Speaker 1 (19:58):
All right, let's go to reset the Partners for Quality
kind of like explaining exactly what the organization does.
Speaker 3 (20:05):
Parris for Quality is a parent organization of five subsidiaries
that provide supports to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities
along with behavioral health needs. And we do that for
children all the way to we'll call them our seniors
for lack of a better word, and we do all
lines of business in between. And our subsidiaries are the
(20:27):
Partners for Quality Foundation, the Exceptional Adventures, which is our
traveling company. We just got a new giant van, a
party party bus. We get a party bus. You got
to go on I know we haven't talked about it,
but you get to go online and see this party bus.
It has fifteen seats and a table for cards and
(20:48):
party lighting. It's unbelievable. The actually the Foundation was able
to secure grants for this particular party bus, so that
that was a huge donor event as well. Very happy
about that. So that's Exceptional Adventures, Milestone Services or Centers,
which is also behavioral health and intellectual and developmental disabilities,
(21:09):
Citizen Care, which is turning fifty this year. And I
believe that's all five of them. Okay, well, oh an
Allegheny Children's Initiative, which is our our children's department. That
are our children's agency that serves people under the age
of twenty one.
Speaker 1 (21:24):
All right, you just mentioned that the Citizen Care is
turning fifty and the big gala on November fifth at
the Hind's History.
Speaker 3 (21:31):
Set correct with disco duck, with disco what disco duck?
Speaker 2 (21:34):
Oh, disco duck. No, now, just you.
Speaker 3 (21:36):
And your disco suit and we'll give you a duck.
Speaker 1 (21:39):
If it's going to be formal, I'm going to look
at Okay, I look good?
Speaker 3 (21:42):
Oh good?
Speaker 1 (21:43):
So all right, and so the information Johanna to tell
us everything we need to know about gay everything.
Speaker 4 (21:48):
Everything's on the website. You can get their easiest at
PFQ dot org. It'll link you right from the top banner.
The event starts at six pm. Tickets are one hundred
and fifty dollars for individual attendees. That but that includes drinks, dinner, dancing,
lots of fun. We promise it to be lots of fun.
And we have had a number of donors and also
(22:08):
Citizen Care, which should just be called out for the
fact that they are discounting and underwriting the cost of
tickets for staff and people supported it. Citizen Care. We
really want this to be about and for them.
Speaker 1 (22:19):
Why did you start thinking up this idea to do
the celebrate the fifty years.
Speaker 3 (22:24):
I think we put together the committee in March, March
or April, and so it was a little later than
we had originally anticipated. However, it's worked out very well.
But the committee is also, like I said, we're going
to be unveiling a citizen care video talking about the
history as well as little vignettes or little reels that
we'll be able to post online.
Speaker 1 (22:45):
And there's a little connection between the Hinz History Center
and that's right.
Speaker 3 (22:49):
So when we started out in March and started looking
for some documentation, early documents to be part of our
historical committee. So our historical committee actually consists of all
employees who have been there longer than forty years. It's
a mandated committee.
Speaker 1 (23:06):
Subsidiaries, Yeah, you have you milestone, the jild Care, now the.
Speaker 3 (23:12):
Historical Yeah, the Historical Committee consists of all of our
employees who are are have been there longer than forty years.
They didn't really have a choice, and they have done
a tremendous job of pulling a lot of the old
information and the beginnings of everything so that we're able
to capture and really celebrate the history of the agency.
(23:33):
And then the other thing that's really awesome is that
Jen Dayton, who's our executive director of Citizen Care and
her crew have put together this is what we're looking
at for the future. So that's going to be really
special as well.
Speaker 1 (23:46):
Do me a favor, Maggie, Yes, you obviously, this is
an organization that's been serving the community, Pittsburgh community for decades. Yes,
but put a face kind of what are who are
the people that you are helping and how many local
people are are you assisting? So tell us, tell us,
you know, give us a face behind the organ.
Speaker 4 (24:07):
You mind if I jump in, Maggie a couple of stories.
So Maggie mentioned Johnny in the beginning that the foundation
does a program called Difference mak or grants, and that's
just we give some money back to folks who are
in our services or in programs for the things that
that they want. And recently a person supported by Citizen
Kara's name is David, you know, really wanted to live
on his own. He was living with family, didn't love
(24:29):
that situation. Is absolutely capable of living independently, just needed
a few extra supports, you know, some folks to help
him get to his job and some folks to you know,
check on his his his lifestyle, to make sure, he's
taking care of himself and things like that, but you
know what he didn't have was he didn't have furniture
to move into an apartment. He didn't have a couch,
he didn't have a kitchen table.
Speaker 2 (24:50):
So the foundation so many things that we take for
granted that.
Speaker 3 (24:53):
We can just go somewhere and buy.
Speaker 4 (24:55):
I mean we really And you know what's so important
about that is that we get to choose it. I
get to go to a furniture store and pick out
what my living room looks like. And David got to
do that too. You know, some really special staff at
Citizen Care made sure that he got to go shopping
and pick out his couch and pick out his table
in chairs and move into his apartment. And he just
couldn't be more thrilled. And we couldn't do that without donors.
(25:16):
We can't do that without folks who support our organization.
Speaker 3 (25:19):
And I don't mean to interrupt jo him, but how
old is heave it. He's in his fifties. He's in
his fifties, So imagine that I can still remember as
you're telling the story, I got goosebumps because I can
remember going out with my first apartment in college. Imagine
that you're living with your parents and that this is
a dream of yours that you had since your twenties. Absolutely,
(25:39):
and you're going out to pick out your couch for
the first time in your fifties. I mean, these are
the things that make life worthwhile. And I can still
remember all the member the funky stuff you got, and
you know, you're looking for this, and you're looking for that,
and you're at thrift stores and all of that, but
you picked it out yourself. Absolutely, So you got to
choose what's in his home. He gets to choose where
(26:00):
watches TV every night, and and and there are people
out there listening, going, what do you mean that's how
everybody does it? Well, sometimes they don't. You know, if
you come to a community home, the furniture is kind
of already there. So how are we helping people make
choices in their life? And that's that's really the face
of all of this is we want everybody to have
(26:20):
an everyday life like you and I period, And that's
what we strive for every single day.
Speaker 2 (26:25):
Strive, but you also make them.
Speaker 3 (26:27):
Thrive absolutely absolutely, look at look at about their happiness.
Oh god, yes, nobody talks about so when you come
into work on Monday, they say, how was your weekend?
Did you say, oh, well, you know, I paid the
bills and went to the grocery store. I mean, you
do that. That's part of your life. You talk about
all those things, those connections, the relationships. So I went
to the game, or I saw my friend, or I
(26:47):
visited my family. Those are the things we remember. We
don't necessarily care that we paid our rent. You know,
we know that it has to happen, but that isn't
the special thing that happened over the weekend. And that's
what we do every single day.
Speaker 4 (27:00):
Every day citizn't care is taking people to volunteer at
the library, or they're delivering meals on wheels. They're they're
becoming part of our community rather than being segregated as
in some ways that you know, doesn't allow folks to
really feel their own worth and their own value. We
want the folks we support to know that our community
wouldn't be what it is if they weren't a part
(27:21):
of it.
Speaker 1 (27:21):
That's all right, all right, we only have a couple
of minutes left, so let's let's encourage people to get involved,
to get to know your organizations. Yes, and to possibly,
you know, help support some of these courses that you go.
Speaker 3 (27:33):
Of course, aside for money, we we would love you
to give a call. Johannah will talk to anybody and
let you know about our agencies. Yes, exactly, we have.
You know, we have several events throughout the year. This
year they're a little different because of the gala. So
the gala again or a gala. I don't know is
a gala or gala? I think both are acceptable. Both
(27:55):
are acceptable. There you go, so November.
Speaker 2 (27:59):
I think gala is just for gals, isn't it?
Speaker 3 (28:01):
Is that what it is? You might be right, I
don't know, so gala.
Speaker 2 (28:04):
I do not know what I'm talking about.
Speaker 3 (28:06):
We have one minute, yes, so it'll be fun regardless, Yes, yes,
PFQ dot org for more information to donate. We also
have the duc Derby coming up, a Steel City Duck
Derby on May ninth, and then our Bob Pompiani Golf
Spectacular outing I think is what June eighth, ninth, tenth
in there that.
Speaker 2 (28:25):
It's twenty twenty six. I'm just trying to get through twenty.
Speaker 3 (28:27):
Twenty Well, aren't we all? Hides History Center really wonderful
to part partner with them this year and looking forward
to everything. What did I miss? You got it all
all right? No.
Speaker 1 (28:37):
If you want tickets or more information, go to CITIZENCAREPA
dot org or PFQ dot org for information and tickets.
Speaker 2 (28:45):
Maggot's always great to see you.
Speaker 3 (28:46):
Oh, it's such a pleasure. Thank you so much for
your time.
Speaker 2 (28:48):
Joanna was really nice to me.
Speaker 3 (28:50):
Oh fun. Thanks for having us as always.
Speaker 1 (28:52):
If you have any comments, concerns, or an idea for
a future program, please email us from this radio station's website.
Speaker 2 (28:58):
I'm Johnny Hartwell, thank you so much for listening.
Speaker 6 (29:14):
We ask parents who adopted teens to share their journey.
Speaker 7 (29:17):
I think my biggest challenge was getting through to him
to understand that love is real, and you have goals
of mind, You have things that want to happen, and
I want to help you get there.
Speaker 3 (29:27):
Sometimes people tend to shy away from wanting to adopt
teenagers because they feel like they've lost so much, but
there's still so much to gain.
Speaker 5 (29:37):
Just knowing that there's just that other person that cares
and loves me out there, it feels great and they've
done so much for me and I can only be
appreciative every single day for just having them in my life.
Speaker 7 (29:51):
I think it's been the best decision because I gained
a son and he's the best son ever. If I
was down and out, he'd be there.
Speaker 6 (29:59):
Learn about it. Adopting a teen from foster care. You
can't imagine the reward. Visit adopt us kids dot org
to learn more. A message brought to you by adopt
Us Kids, the US Department of Health and Human Services,
and the ad Council
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