Disability Service Professionals Recognized for Critical Role

FOR THE THIRD YEAR, THE MINISTRY OF SOCIAL SERVICES PROCLAIMED THE LAST WEEK OF MAY, DISABILITY SERVICE PROFESSIONALS (DSP) WEEK!

We are always excited to celebrate DSP Week with our Members, and typically our main event for this is our annual Spring Conference, where hundreds of Disability Service Professionals come together to learn, network, and celebrate the sector. Unfortunately, COVID-19 put a halt to that plan, as it put a halt to almost everything else in our communities. What COVID-19 didn’t put a stop to, however, was SARC Members’ sense of community and acts of generosity.

Through this time, we saw so many examples of CBOs helping out others in their communities: dropping off activity packages at people’s homes, drive-by parades, using technology to help people stay connected to their friends and family, the sharing of resources between SARC Member Agencies, and the overall determination to do what it takes while keeping spirits high and everyone safe, even though circumstances were particularly challenging. This is what needed to be recognized and celebrated; we just needed to find a way to do it.

We decided to engage with a broadcaster to create a commercial to showcase what SARC Members do each and every day, and particularly in response to COVID-19, to support people experiencing disability to lead healthy, safe, and fulfilling lives. However, there was a catch. We knew that we couldn’t create a commercial without the help of our Members, but visiting them in their communities in April wasn’t possible, so we needed a different strategy. We reached out to SARC Members to ask them to send us videos or images to share how they’ve adapted to the challenges that COVID-19 presented. And wow did they ever deliver!

We received so many images and videos from so many different Members that we had a hard time fitting everything into the 30-second spot. The end result certainly depicts the diversity, resilience, and strength of the sector, and we are grateful to our Members for their support of this initiative. If you would like to view the commercial, please visit our Facebook page or contact SARC Communications Coordinator, Amy Janzen, at ajanzen@sarcan. sk.ca for a link.

The commercial that we created for DSP Week was just the beginning. Because of the overwhelming response we received after requesting videos and images from SARC Members, we decided to use the additional content to promote the sector throughout DSP Week in a social media contest. Each day, SARC Member employees were encouraged to comment on a photo collage that depicted a “Day in the Life of a Disability Service Professional” for a chance to win a $100 Visa gift certificate, and they were encouraged to post their own image/video as well. Once again, the response was more than we anticipated, with hundreds of entries. Our lucky winner was from West Central Abilities in Kindersley. Congratulations, Alyssa! Social media was also quite busy throughout the week, with thank you videos and messages from Boards and Executive Directors to their staff, special messages from SARC’s Board President and Executive Director, and greetings from the Honourable Paul Merriman, Minister of Social Services, on behalf of the Government of Saskatchewan to recognize the critical nature of the work and supports provided in the disability service sector. Thank you to everyone for getting involved!

This year was truly one for the books, in so many ways. While we hope to have more in-person components to our celebration again next year, regardless of how we celebrate, we always know WHAT we’ll be celebrating: the joy, resilience, and perseverance of the thousands of Disability Service Professionals that make our sector truly great.