To provide directly and/or to ensure through observation and monitoring, that the health care services necessary to meet the needs of the individuals in an assigned residence are provided in a timely and effective manner. To assist in the provision of personal care and direct support services for the individuals in an assigned residence.

Apply Here!

To participate as an active member of the program planning team in the assessment, development, implementation, and provision of plans of nursing service, directed toward the achievement of individual healthcare goals and objectives; To provide the supervision, guidance, and support necessary to ensure the competency of professional and paraprofessional staff to skillfully and safely provide nursing service to individuals with diverse and complex medical histories; To provide clinical care to individuals who require varying degrees of nursing intervention and support; To ensure consistent compliance with established treatment plans; To promote a life of hope, dignity, and purposeful living for all.

Apply Here!

On May 22, the House of Representatives approved a budget bill that would slash $715 billion from Medicaid and $300 billion from SNAP. This bill now moves to the Senate.

If this bill becomes law:

• States simply won’t have the money to fund the care and services people with disabilities NEED.
• Nearly 14 million people could lose their health insurance.
• More people will go hungry, including millions of kids.

Any cuts to Medicaid and SNAP will hurt people with disabilities. 

Medicaid:

• Provides essential health care to millions of children and adults with disabilities, so they can live healthier, fuller lives.
• Helps infants with disabilities get a strong start in life through vital developmental support.
• Allows children with disabilities to live at home instead of in an institution.
• Pays for people with disabilities to get assistance from home care workers for daily tasks, ensuring independence and dignity.

SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program):

• Helps low-income families, including people with disabilities, afford groceries and put food on the table.

This isn’t over—ACT NOW to tell Congress to reverse course and act to protect Medicaid and SNAP. No one should go without the food or health care they need!

ADVOCATE NOW!

In accordance with its by-laws, The Resource Center announces its General Membership Meeting and Election will be held Monday, June 9, at The Resource Center, 200 Dunham Avenue, Jamestown.

Attendees may arrive at 5:30 p.m. to enjoy light refreshments. The meeting is scheduled to run from 6:00 to 7:00. All Active Members of The Resource Center who are in good standing (those who are Lifetime Members or are current in their Annual Membership dues) are invited to participate in the meeting and to vote in the election and on any business items that may arise. People who re3ceive supports from The Resource Center, and their families, also are invited to attend the meeting

All Active Members in good standing who are unable to attend the meeting are encouraged to vote in the election online. Click here to read about the candidates and cast your vote. Online voting will remain open until 6:00 p.m. Monday, June 9.

The tentative meeting agenda is as follows:

1. Call to Order – 6:00
2. Presentation – “The Resource Center’s Health Homes Programs”
3. Approval of the minutes of the 2024 General Membership Meeting
4. Board Chair’s Report – Richard Erickson
5. Board Treasurer’s Report – Marie Carrubba, Esq
6. Executive Director’s Report – Denise Jones
7. Election (see nominating slates below)
8. Recognition of immediate Past Board Chair Richard Erickson
9. Recognition of outgoing Director R. Michael Goldman, Esq.
10. Adjournment by 7:00

The Nominating Committee — composed of Kathy Field, Chair; Laurie Goold, Mary Jo Hamilton, Carole Johnson, and Gregory Krauza — has proposed the following candidates for Officers and Directors of the Board of The Resource Center, as well as candidates to serve on the Nominating Committee for the 2025 Election:

Officers (one-year term)
Chair — Dawn Columbare, DNP
Vice Chair — Todd Jacobson, MD
Secretary — Lisa Goodell
Treasurer — Marie Carrubba, Esq.

Directors (two-year term)
Mary Alison Burt
Richard Erickson
Scott James
Kristie Peppy

Nominating Committee
Kathy Field
Laurie Goold
Jessica Gugino, Ph.D.
Mary Jo Hamilton
Rebecca Hamlet Kapple

For more information or to indicate you plan to attend the meeting, phone 716-483-2344, extension 90135.

If you have not paid your 2025-26 TRC Membership dues, click here to make a secure, online payment. Your membership demonstrates your commitment to The Resource Center’s mission. In these challenging times, your support of TRC is extremely important. People who pay the $10 Annual membership dues, or the $100 Lifetime membership dues, receive a Membership Card entitling them to discounts at more than 30 local businesses.

A new fund created in memory of a former TRC dentist will support the provision of dental services to people with disabilities.

The Resource Center and Filling the Gap, Inc., have established the Dr. John Vona “Smile” Fund thanks to a $15,000 donation from Dr. Vona’s children (Linda Hart, Dr. David Vona, Sandy Stewart, and Daniel Vona).

The fund is named in memory of Dr. John Vona, who worked in TRC Community Health Center’s Dunkirk Dental Office for 20 years before retiring in 2022. He passed away in Match 2024.

Several months ago, Dr. Vona’s children contacted The Resource Center with the idea of creating the Smile Fund to carry on their father’s legacy of providing compassionate dental care to people with disabilities.

“My dad always believed in treating everyone with dignity and kindness, and his dental practice truly reflected that,” said Linda Hart. “He had such a deep love for this community and was always looking for ways to give back. This fund is a way to carry on his spirit of compassion and make sure his legacy of helping others continues, especially for those who need it most.”

Filling the Gap will use the Smile Fund to help close the gap in oral health services for people with disabilities. “We are incredibly grateful for this new fund and the opportunity it presents to expand vital services to those who need them most,” said Greg Krauza, President of FTG’s Board of Directors.

Dr. Vona’s former colleagues at TRC Community Health Center remember him fondly, and they are thankful for the creation of the Smile Fund and the opportunity to serve more people with disabilities.

“We were so fortunate to work with Dr. Vona at our dental office in Dunkirk for so many years. He was a bright spot in everyone’s day and treated each patient with genuine kindness,” said Heather C. Brown, Vice President for Clinical Operations at The Resource Center and Community Inclusion, Inc., which operates TRC Community Health Center.

“It is an honor that his family has elected to continue his legacy and support of individuals in need of dental care in our community.”

“For those who had the pleasure of knowing Dr. Vona, his unwavering passion for serving people with disabilities left a permanent mark on us all. His kind and compassionate nature that he brought to our practice sets the standard for our continued mission to provide the best healthcare we can to our community,” said Lindsay VandeVelde, Community Inclusion’s Executive Director.

“Our gratitude goes out to the Vona family for their generous establishment of the Smile Fund. Their commitment and supportive gesture foster our mission to meet the oral healthcare needs of individuals with disabilities,” Lindsay added.

Taking part in the contract signing to formally establish The Resource Center Dr. John Vona Smile Fund are, from left, Linda Hart and Dr. David Vona, children of Dr. John Vona; Greg Krauza, President of Filling the Gap’s Board; Cindy Hitchcock, Filling the Gap’s Chief Executive Officer; and Tina Downey, Development Officer at Chautauqua Region Community Foundation.

Dr. Vona, fondly called “Doc” within the community, completed school at the University of Buffalo’s Dental School in 1961 and immediately entered the U.S. Army Reserve Dental division at Ft. Riley, KS. After an honorable discharge, he set down roots in Silver Creek, NY. He had a thriving dental practice for more than 45 years and continued to work well into his mid-80s for The Resource Center at TRC Community Health Center in Dunkirk, NY, where he retired after working 61 years as an area dentist.

He prided himself on building relationships and patient care with a splash of humor. Dr. Vona was a compassionate and highly respected local dentist whose career was defined by kindness, dedication and a heartfelt commitment to serving others — especially individuals with special needs. The “Smile” Fund pays tribute to both his professional legacy and the joy he brought to his patients, co-workers and community.

The Vona family plans to raise money for the fund via the Laurel Memorial Run and Walk, which celebrates people with disabling conditions. The Laurel Run/Walk was created in 1997 by longtime TRC volunteers Wayne and Elaine Hotelling in honor of their daughter Laurel, who had Down syndrome. Dr. Vona regularly attended the event.

“The Laurel Run meant a lot to him,” Linda Hart said of her father, “not just for the cause, but for how it brought people together.”

In addition, Dr. Vona was the dentist for Laurel and her siblings, which enhances the connection between the Vona and Hotelling families.

The Smile Fund joins six other TRC funds that are managed by the Chautauqua Region Community Foundation.

“The Dr. John Vona ‘Smile’ Fund is a beautiful tribute and a meaningful investment in our region’s well-being,” said Tory Irgang, CRCF’s Executive Director. “We are proud to continue our partnership with The Resource Center and grateful to the Vona family for choosing the Foundation as a steward of their father’s legacy.”

People can donate to the Smile Fund at https://fillingthegap.net/donate. Applications for assistance from the Smile Fund are available at Filling the Gap, 716-661-1519.

Posing together at TRC Community Health Center in Dunkirk to announce the creation of the Smile Fund are, from left are, front row, Gladys Alverio, Dr. John Vona’s Dental Assistant during his time at TRC Community Health Center; Linda Hart, Dr. Vona’s daughter; Kelly Dimitri, TRC’s Chief Operating Officer; Lindsay VandeVelde, Executive Director of Community Inclusion, Inc.; and Heather C. Brown, Vice President for Clinical Operations; and, back row, Dr. David Vona; Greg Krauza, President of Filling the Gap’s Board; Elaine and Wayne Hotelling, co-founders of the Laurel Memorial Run & Walk; Cindy Hitchcock, FTG’s Chief Executive Officer; and Tina Downey, Development Officer at Chautauqua Region Community Foundation.

A local library came up with a wonderful way to acknowledge the financial contributions of a person The Resource Center supports.

Matt S. visits the Falconer Public Library on a regular basis with his Life Coach, Jennifer Herron. When he checks out books and movies, Matt donates a few dollars.

Whenever Matt makes a donation Sandy Thies, Senior Library Clerk, places the money in an envelope with Matt’s name on it. The amount of money in the envelope has grown over time, and recently Sandy used Matt’s contributions to buy a book filled with Dr. Seuss stories.

Sandy put an acknowledgment in the book stating that Matt had donated it. (Matt’s pictured here holding the book alongside Sandy.) Dr. Seuss books are among Matt’s favorites, and he hopes many library visitors will enjoy the book.

We thank Sandy and the Falconer Public Library for celebrating Matt’s contributions in a way that meant a lot to him.

TRC’s SAFER Program and Pearl City Cycle teamed up to assist a person whose bicycle was stolen.

Josh Johnson, Staff Assistance Specialist, shared that on a recent Monday, the person briefly left their bicycle unattended outside their home, and when they returned the bike was gone. The bike was the person’s primary mode of transportation.

“This forced the employee to walk the 2 miles to and from their work each day,” Josh said. By the following Thursday, the person was struggling. Knowing the lack of transportation was going to negatively affect their ability to work, the person sought assistance from their company’s Human Resources Department. At the HR representative’s recommendation, the person contacted SAFER about their dilemma.

SAFER (which stands for Supporting and Facilitating Employee Retention) supports people in overcoming barriers to successful employment. Local businesses contract with TRC to operate SAFER at their work sites in order to address issues that could affect a person’s ability to successfully maintain employment.

After speaking with the person whose bike was stolen, SAFER representatives went to work checking with its contacts, some of which provided reduced-cost solutions, Josh said. Pearl City Cycle, located on Fairmount Avenue in West Ellicott, had a bicycle that recently had been donated. Josh said Pearl City supports local programs aimed at getting bicycles to people who need them for work and day-to-day living. He said a Pearl City representative indicated, “That’s part of our mission, giving back.”

“Pearl City Cycle inspected, cleaned and tuned the bike, and had it ready by Friday afternoon,” Josh said. “This was in time to deliver the bike, free of charge, to its new owner, the employee in need, at their home, after walking what would hopefully be the last walk home from work for a long time.”

Josh said the person was excited to receive the bike and amazed to get it so quickly and to have it delivered, exclaiming admiringly, “You guys don’t play!”

Based on this happy ending, SAFER encourages owners of unused bikes to consider donating them to Pearl City Cycle. By doing so, you will contribute to the initiative to support people who need reliable transportation to work. We thank SAFER and Pearl City for collaborating to preserve the employee’s ability to get to and from their job.

NOTE: Local businesses interested in bringing SAFER to their worksites may contact the program at 716-640-5151 or at safer@resourcecenter.org.

Members of The Resource Center’s Make A Mark self-advocacy group shared their personal experiences and spoke about the importance of accepting people with disabilities during presentations at Silver Creek Central School.

The invitation to speak resulted from a connection that was developed between our Make A Mark group and Janet Decker, a Silver Creek special education teacher. Inspired by publicity surrounding past successful efforts of our Make A Mark group to have the City of Dunkirk declare March as “Spread the Word: Inclusion” Month, Janet, the Silver Creek Youth Advisory Committee and Forestville Central School students successfully advocated for the Hanover Town Board to do something similar this year.

TRC employee Beth Ray, who facilitates the Make A Mark group, contacted Janet. This led to an invitation to have Make A Mark representatives address assemblies at the high school, the middle school and for fourth- and fifth-graders at the elementary school. Make A Mark members Jennifer Meyers and Michael Ostrye told the young people about the importance of including people with special needs in all aspects of community life and treating them with respect, with each sharing how they had been bullied and excluded when they were children.

“This bullying made me feel like the stupidest person alive. Can you imagine feeling like that every day?” Jen told the audience. “Just because someone is a little different than you, it never gives you the right to treat them badly.”

“The ultimate goal is to think twice about treating someone with a disability differently or excluding them, and maybe take time to encourage people that may need a little extra help,” Mike said. “I always like to say, ‘Hey, get to know us before you judge us.’”

A third Male A Mark member, Mary Hayes, wasn’t able to attend the assemblies, so Mike read her comments to the audiences.

Beth also spoke. “They are all success stories,” she said of Jen, Mike and Mary. “They have jobs, homes; they vote, just like everyone else; and they are valued members of the communities where they live and work.”

Pictured from left are Beth; Janet; Lynne Newman, TRC Employment Services Administrator; Mike; Sandy Korzeniewski, TRC Production Coordinator; and Jen.

We thank Jen, Mike and Mary for sharing their personal stories and spreading the word about inclusion! They did such a good job, they were invited to come back to do a similar presentation for second- and third-graders.

Several TRC staff were on hand to support Jen and Mike, as were retired Silver Creek Teacher and Laurel Memorial Run/Walk founders Wayne Hotelling and his wife, Elaine.

Jen, Beth and Mike stand in front of a wall containing hundreds of Inclusion Pledges signed by pupils, teachers and staff.

We are in the final stretch of NYS and Congressional Budget Season and it’s time to REALLY advocate fast and furious!

Please use all six links to ensure supports and service are protected.

THREE New York Links to ‘one click’ budget advocacy:

New York Alliance for Inclusion & Innovation – NY Alliance Government Action Center

New York Disability Advocates – Fighting for Equity for New Yorkers with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

Tell NYS Legislators and Governor: Include 7.8% in the Enacted Budget to Supports for People with IDD

THREE links for Federal Medicaid protection:

Preserve I/DD Services—Tell Congress Protect Medicaid! | ANCOR

Advocate – Developmental Disabilities Alliance – DDAWNY

Tell Congress: Medicaid Is a Lifeline for People With Disabilities!

Your advocacy is key!   Thank-you!!

Alliance Alert: Earlier today, Congress passed a federal budget framework that threatens to bring the largest Medicaid cuts in U.S. history—up to $880 billion in slashed funding that millions of Americans rely on for essential healthcare services. These cuts aren’t just numbers on a spreadsheet—they’re a direct threat to the health, stability, and lives of children, older adults, people with disabilities, and working families across the country.

If allowed to move forward, these proposals will force states like New York to make impossible choices: reduce services, cut provider rates, or limit access for people who need these services. That means more people falling through the cracks, longer wait times for care, reduced mental health and substance use supports, and even more strain on hospitals, community providers, and local governments already stretched thin. We must not let this happen.

Now is the time for states to push back, and for people to speak out. Congress needs to hear that slashing Medicaid will have dangerous effects on all of us. We must demand that our federal representatives preserve the programs that protect our wellbeing.

The Alliance for Rights and Recovery urges all New Yorkers to contact their representatives and call for the protection of Medicaid and healthcare funding. This isn’t about politics—it’s about people. Our health and our communities are on the line.

You don’t have to start from scratch. Here are tools you can use to make your voice heard:

• Take Action Now: Use the Alliance’s Action Alert tool to quickly send a message to your representative.
• Share Your Story: Tell your Medicaid story through this SurveyMonkey form—add your name, location, photo, and why Medicaid matters to you.
• Use & Share the Facts: Medicaid Matters NY has created district-specific fact sheets for all 26 NY House districts. Print them, post them, bring them to meetings, or use them in emails and newsletters.
• Stay Informed: Visit the Medicaid Matters federal issues page for updates, articles, and advocacy resources.