Nonotuck’s Neighborhood ANUARY
We were devastated by the recent passing of our longtime attorney, Kathy Moore
or more than
35 years, Kathy worked closely with Nonotuck as a trusted advisor, helping guide the organization with care, integrity, and deep commitment to the people we support Read staff remembrances honoring her life and legacy in this month s enewsletter
Letter ro eischner
eorge
D ar r n This month s newsletter brings together stories that speak to the heart of Nonotuck s mission our commitment to love, belonging, and authentic relationships, and to standing alongside people with disabilities in community, in history, and in everyday life We begin by reflecting on the history and impact of the on nt on on t t o P o t D a t , a reminder that the rights so many continue to advocate for today were shaped through persistence, courage, and the belief that people with disabilities must be seen, heard, and included as full participants in our communities This history continues to guide our work, grounding our services in self determination We also share an o c ro o our Ea t am ton t am, offering a glimpse into the people and technologies that make our work possible These local stories highlight how Nonotuck s values come to life behind the scenes through collaboration, care, and connections to the communities we serve At the center of this issue, we pause to remember at y Moor , whose life and work left a lasting imprint on Nonotuck and on the people who had the privilege of knowing her Kathy embodied in Nonotuck s values love, respect, and a commitment to people with disabilities Her legacy is felt in the relationships she nurtured and the compassion she brought to her work Remembering Kathy is also a reminder of why this work matters and how one person s dedication can strengthen an entire community In December, we also held a att n nt r ct n u on t conc t o P r ona ar . Members of the Nonotuck community came to reflect on how truly personalized care begins with listening honoring each person s preferences, needs, and daily rhythms The conversation highlighted the importance of supporting people with disabilities in ways that respect choice, dignity, and the realities of home and family life This event reflects Nonotuck s ongoing commitment to authenticity, mutuality, and interdependence, reminding us that meaningful care is built through relationships, trust, and a deep respect for what matters most to each person we support Together, these stories reflect who we are as an agency rooted in history, guided by values, and sustained by the people past and present who believe deeply in shared lives and mutual love and respect We are grateful to everyone who continues this work with us, and we invite you to read, reflect, and stay connected With gratitude, Nonotuck ourc A
oc at
n e e oore
brance o
athy
This collection is shared with deep love and gratitude, in remembrance of Kathy Moore, Nonotuck s longtime attorney, trusted partner, and cherished friend, who passed away earlier last week or more than 35 years, Kathy worked side by side with Nonotuck ver time, she became far more than our legal counsel She was our advocate, our protector, our advisor, our teacher, and often our last line of legal defense Her guidance helped shape Nonotuck in lasting ways Kathy believed deeply in Nonotuck and in our mission She loved this agency At times, she was more than our lawyer, she was our moral guide She helped us navigate not only what the law re uired, but what integrity, fairness, and care demanded Her counsel was grounded in values, wisdom, and a commitment to the people we serve Those who knew Kathy remember her as kind, thoughtful, and genuinely funny She had a gift for storytelling and a way of bringing humanity into even the most difficult conversations She made space for connection and laughter Kathy left an incredible impression of values and ethics even though her interactions were brief No one left an encounter with Kathy without an embedded opinion of her which most all were deeply positive n a personal level, I worked closely with Kathy for more than three decades She was my advocate, my confidant, and my good friend Her steady presence and thoughtful counsel were a source of strength for me, and for Nonotuck as a whole The remembrances that follow reflect the e traordinary legacy Kathy leaves behind, one of professionalism, integrity, and care Through these memories, we honor the many ways she shaped our organization and touched our lives Please oin me in holding Kathy s family, especially her children, in your thoughts during this difficult time With love and remembrance, George H leischner, President/CE , Nonotuck Resource Associates
n e e oore ur y ortman
brance o
athy
N ua ty oor nator Au urn
May she rest in peace, and may her family, friends, colleagues, and all the people she has touched through her kindness and courage receive the strength and comfort, and continue sharing her legacy
n
o
c Pr
nt o Nur n an A
r c
I still can t believe Kathy s passing I remember the first time I met her in person, it was during a difficult situation, and I was very nervous because I wasn t sure what steps we were going to take rom the moment I met her, her communication made me feel comfortable and supported She had a special way of e pressing things and was always willing to help I will continue to keep her and her family in my prayers
ar a anc
c Pr
nt o
nt a
r c
ntra
on
I ve had to sit with the news of Kathy it s truly saddening for me it s a continued reminder to share gratitude in real time That s something I m holding closely right now I regret that I didn t thank Kathy more directly for how much I learned from her over the time we worked together While I didn t have years of close day to day contact with Kathy, I had the genuine pleasure of working with her more over time through my roles She always offered more than pearls of wisdom Never wavered to be clear but kind, it always held respect for the other person on the opposite end of any conversation While I m sure it could be intimidating to some, I found it grounding because I know it came from care I m grateful for what I learned through her trainings, phone calls, meetings, uick te ts and even emergencies I also admired her work ethic and the way she carried herself with purpose It wasn t ust a ob it was part of who she was If I could choose any advocate, Attorney Moore would be my first pick every time
n e e oore an t Tr a ka Pro ram D r ctor
c a Pro ct
brance o
athy
Au urn
Kat hy s impact on Nonotuck is reflected not only in the organization we ve become, but in the values, compassion, and integrity that continue to guide our work every day I didn t have many opportunities to work with Kathy directly (and when I did, it usually meant something had gone wrong), but in those brief interactions, she always came across as a kind, grounded, and a deeply committed person Her dedication to Nonotuck and the work she carried forward over the years was tremendous My thoughts are with Kathy s family, especially her children, as they navigate this incredibly difficult time She will be deeply missed Dy an uko
k Pro ram D r ctor Au urn
I am immensely sorry to hear of the passing of Kathy Losing someone is always painful, and it feels especially heavy during the holidays This also brings up many emotions for me, as I lost my mother in 2018 I can only imagine how deeply her family and those closest to her are feeling this loss Moments like this remind us of how fragile life truly is, and how our work e ists within that fragility So many people have been able to live fuller, safer, more dignified lives because of the support we provide, and because of people like Kathy, who stood so firmly for what was right While we may feel fragile right now, we are also strengthened by what she taught us and the legacy she leaves behind That strength will continue to guide us in our mission and in our care for one another Kathy was truly one of a kind Although I did not have the chance to work with her as closely or as often as others, one e perience with her left a lasting impression on me As a newer employee at the time, I found myself in a difficult situation created by a former staff member At previous agencies, situations like this were often minimized or ignored, so I felt an ious and unsure about bringing it forward When Deb Schnare, Vice President of perations consulted with Kathy, I remember feeling a pit in my stomach, worried about how it would be handled, how I would be perceived, and what the outcome might be When I met with Kathy and Angela Procopio Rahilly, E ecutive Vice President of perations , I immediately recognized that Kathy was no nonsense, deeply principled, and e ceptionally dedicated to her work She asked thoughtful, direct uestions with honesty and respect She maintained professionalism while also creating a sense of safety After our conversation, she told me she could feel the honesty in my responses and that she had no doubt I was being truthful That reassurance meant a great deal to me, but even more meaningful was the way she carried herself Kathy had a gift for balancing compassion with strength She could sit beside you in hard conversations without udgment, dramatics, or dismissal She modeled how to honor seriousness when needed, while still allowing space for warmth and humanity That is something I will always remember about her, and something I have carried into how I support my own staff She was not only e traordinary at what she did, she was an e traordinary woman We were incredibly fortunate to have her as part of our agency for so many years The strength, wisdom, and integrity she offered all of us will continue forward in the work we do My deepest condolences go out to you, to everyone at the agency who knew and loved her, and especially to her family I hope that in the midst of grief, there is some comfort in knowing the profound and lasting impact she had on us all, and that the e ample she set will keep guiding us toward the greater good ar Your
m m ranc
o
at y
t
o
ua Murray.
ice ro i e
astha
ton
Walking into Nonotuck Resource Associates erry Street office in Easthampton, you might not be impressed at first (e cept by the view of Mount Tom ) n the far wall, you ll see Nonotuck s familiar logo symbolizing an embrace with our mission statement displayed close by Vice President of Information Technology (and Easthampton resident) Paul Laprade is probably working in the office space closest to the door on the left Vice President of Quality Enhancement, Central/Western MA Grayson leischner might be taking in a meeting in the building s spacious conference room While Grayson and Paul are working in person, Director of Marketing Joshua Murray and Marketing content specialist Justus Perry are meeting virtually and discussing edits to a video whose script was sharpened by AI Technology Support Specialist Joshua Gustafson might be resolving a help desk ticket submitted virtually Vice President for Information Technologies Ron Barnes based in Rhode Island might be working via TEAMS with AI Data Analytics Manager Rob Bowen on a suite of custom AI tools designed to support staff across the organization initiatives that help enhance care, produce more mission aligned content, and provide easy access to organizational knowledge and training As the home base for our IT department, the Easthampton office has also become a hub for Nonotuck s growing AI initiative All three Nonotuck departments that are represented in the office IT, Marketing, and Quality Enhancement rely heavily on AI to complete their work The result in Easthampton and in every Nonotuck location throughout Massachusetts is a more efficient staff better able to carry out Nonotuck s mission of providing support for people with disabilities, as well as those who support them The hiring of Rob Bowen this summer represented an e plicit embrace of AI in Nonotuck s work Rob says he was attracted to the opportunity to apply cutting edge AI and data automation in service of our mission to help people with disabilities to live their best lives when applying for the ob, adding Nonotuck s emphasis on values of authenticity, mutual love and respect, interdependence, and vulnerability is important to me personally and vital to the well being of our communities Rob s hiring represents our belief that innovation and compassion can and must coe ist, said George H leischner, CE and President His work helps us harness AI not as a replacement for human connection, but as a tool that empowers our staff to spend more time building meaningful relationships with the people we support
ood or hought ersona i ed are Nonotuck recently reflected on the importance of personalized care during a ood for Thought program open to staff across the state The event featured Michael Lund uist, CE of t Po u nt r or oc a an Econom c D o m nt, who oined Nonotuck leadership and staff in a thoughtful conversation about values, power, and what it truly means to support people in ways that honor dignity and autonomy Nonotuck CE and President George H leischner opened the session by welcoming participants and highlighting Michael s decades of e perience advancing the rights, inclusion, and economic opportunity of people with disabilities and other marginalized groups across more than 20 countries Michael emphasized that personalized work is fre uently undermined by imbalances of power, particularly during planning meetings He noted that these dynamics are often unconscious, yet deeply impactful People are unbelievably unconscious of this power dynamic, he said, observing that when autonomy is offered without ade uate support, people who are vulnerable don t always know how to use that power This, he argued, places a responsibility on supporters to be more self aware, relational, and intentional in their roles Drawing on the work of Wolf Wolfensberger a psychologist and influential disability rights thinker known for Social Role Valorization Michael underscored the importance of naming these dynamics honestly Wolfensberger argued that many of the harms e perienced by people with disabilities are socially created through devaluation and une ual power, rather than disability itself Quoting Wolfensberger, Michael noted that truth is calling things by their true name, and urged participants to recognize and interrupt moments when people are being overpowered or sidelined in the name of efficiency or professionalism As the conversation concluded, George leischner reflected on the session as a nice e clamation point to broader discussions about values and people Michael closed by returning to the roots of personalized practice, cautioning against focusing solely on language while losing meaning How do we not lose the intent the genuineness, the e uality in our relationships he asked, framing the work not ust as a professional skill, but as a human obligation We need to get better at this As human beings, we need to get better In reflecting on these conversations more broadly, Nonotuck has also been e amining the language we use to describe our work The agency is intentionally moving away from the term person centered and toward personalized, recognizing that personalized more clearly conveys a deeper, more active commitment to understanding and responding to each person s uni ue needs, choices, and lived e perience When we talk about personalized support, we re talking about something deeper than a framework or a set of words, said George H leischner, CE and President of Nonotuck Personalized means taking the time to truly know each person their history, their relationships, their hopes and allowing that understanding to guide how we show up every day It s an active commitment to honoring people s choices, dignity, and lived e perience, not ust in principle, but in practice n Out Mor A out Nonotuck
r c
hort History o the on ention on the ights o eo e ith isabi ities n the 13th of December, 2006, the N adopted the te t of the Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities, an international human rights treaty to protect the rights and dignity of persons with disabilities n March 30th, 2007 the Convention and ptional Protocol opened for signatures at the N Head uarters in New York, with a record number 82 opening signatories It came into force on May 3rd, 2008, after it had been ratified by 20 member states As of this writing, the CRPD has 164 signatories amongst 193 parties, meaning much of the world has pledged to abide by the CRPD, with a few notable e ceptions Prior to the CRPD, the model of treatment of people with disabilities for many nations was what was known as the medical model physiotherapy and rehab, and segregated services such as special education, if such services were offered at all orced institutionalization was common The CRPD aimed to promote the social or human rights model rights that aimed to uplift and integrate people with disabilities through non discrimination and respect for the dignity and autonomy of people with disabilities The CRPD was not the first treaty regarding people with disabilities passed by the N The N adopted the 1971 Declaration on the Rights of Mentally Retarded Persons followed by the Declaration on the Rights of Disabled Persons on December 9th, 1975 These declarations were not binding rules, but rather a framework for future laws What made the CRPD different from these previous treaties was not ust the rights it provided, but how it came to be The CRPD was developed by people with disabilities, for people with disabilities, embodying the rallying cry of nothing about us without us The treaty has 50 articles, mostly focused on the rights of people with disabilities and the obligations of ratifying states Article 3 of the convention shares the convention s 8 guiding principles 1 Respect for inherent dignity, individual autonomy including the freedom to make one s own choices, and independence of persons 2 Non discrimination 3
ull and effective participation and inclusion in society
4 Respect for difference and acceptance of persons with disabilities as part of human diversity and humanity 5 E uality of opportunity 6 Accessibility 7 E uality between men and women 8 Respect for the evolving capacities of children with disabilities and respect for the right of children with
hort History o the on ention on the ights o eo e ith isabi ities Articles following this go into specific rights and responsibilities, then e plains the role of the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, a body of 18 human rights e perts who monitor implementation of the convention They meet twice a year to discuss reports made by member states Member states must submit a report two years after ratifying the convention, with follow up reports every 4 years An optional protocol can also be signed by member states, allowing those states to recognise the competence of the Committee to consider complaints from individuals
The S is one of few countries that has N T ratified the CRPD, despite being viewed as having relatively good social and legal protections for people with disabilities The CRPD was partially inspired by the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990, another pioneering legislation Barack bama became a signatory of the CRPD during his first term as president, but the senate failed to ratify the treaty It has not been brought forth for a vote since
ork
nni ersaries Y ar o
r c
Wanda Hogan – Care Manager, Northampton (01/31/2022) Y ar o
r c
Sarah Burridge – Direct Support Professional, Plymouth (01/29/2025) Katherine Paolini – Direct Support Professional, Plymouth (01/29/2025) Justus Perry – Marketing Content Specialist, Easthampton (01/13/2025) Cassidy Litvak – Care Manager, Brockton (01/07/2025) Joyce Katantazi – Care Manager, Harvard (01/06/2025) Christine Landais – Care Manager, Brockton (01/06/2025)
Janet Yurko – VP of Residential Services West, Northampton (01/31/2022) Theresa Anderson – Direct Support Professional, Brockton (01/27/2022) Dylan Zukowski – Program Director, Auburn (01/17/2022) Adwoa Amoako – Registered Nurse, Auburn (01/03/2022)
Y ar o
r c
Glorimer Gomez – Program Administrative Assistant, Lowell (01/27/2020) Lori George – Direct Support Professional, Northampton (01/20/2020)
Y ar o
r c
Wynde Rose – Lead RN, Northampton (01/06/2020)
Stacie Beland – Care Manager, Auburn (01/22/2024) Yezenia Torres – Direct Support Professional, Northampton (01/12/2024)
Y ar o
r c
Sokphearum Toch – Care Manager, Lowell (01/22/2019) Y ar o
r c
Tiffany Michel Acosta – Care Manager, Lynn (01/30/2023) Va Son – Care Manager, Lowell (01/18/2023) Lauren Webb – Care Manager, Harvard (01/17/2023)
Y ar o
r c
Phear Ban – Registered Nurse, Lowell (01/21/2015) Kenny Seng – Care Manager / Intake CM, Lowell (01/21/2015) Kari Barschdorf – Quality Enhancement Specialist, Lee (01/20/2015) Samantha Chhrech – Program Director, Lowell (01/20/2015) Johnny Chavez – Care Manager, Auburn (01/07/2015)
Nonotuck’s Neighborhood Now Hiring We’re hiring across Massachusetts! Human resources, shared living caregivers, direct support professionals, registered nurses, and more! APPLY TODAY!
Like what you read? Email Murray@nonotuck.com with your favorite story this month and you could win a gift card!
FOLLOW US ON: FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM | YOUTUBE | LINKEDIN DONATE TODAY
nonotuck.com