Disability Support Services

Andy and JFCS from Ken Klein on Vimeo.

Partners for Independence provides adults and youth with intellectual and developmental disabilities resources and options to make informed choices about living, learning, and working. As part of our clients’ support team, our qualified skills trainers and behavior consultants offer state-certified services, collaborating with families, schools, employers, social networks, volunteer sites, and other disability support providers to help people achieve self-determination, become engaged community members, and reach their goals.

Partners contracts with established local Support Service Brokerages and Developmental Disabilities Services of Multnomah, Clackamas, and Washington Counties. Contact us for rates and more information.

Via safe and respectful one-to-one and group support environments, our trained staff of Qualified Mental Health Associates (QMHAs) help clients successfully engage in:

• learning daily living skills such as meal preparation and arranging transportation
• budgeting and maintaining appropriate benefits and entitlements
• cultivating a social network through community involvement
• preparing for and maintaining independent living, including time management, communications with landlords, financial management, and health and safety needs
• developing job readiness and volunteering opportunities
• making choices for healthy and budget-friendly lifestyles
• fostering interpersonal and social skills

For more information, contact Janet Menashe, our TASK Program Inclusion Specialist and Skills Trainer,
at 503-226-7079, ext. 122 or by email at janetmenashe@jfcs-portland.org.

TASK—Treasuring, Accepting, & Supporting Kehillah (Community)—is your Jewish connection to disability awareness, providing culturally competent expertise and guidance to individuals and families about disabilities issues spanning the life cycle. This often overlooked guidance includes parent support groups for opportunities to connect and network, workshops at local schools and synagogues to inform teachers and religious leaders about promoting acceptance and inclusion of Jewish children and adults with disabilities, and other comfortable forums for students, families, and congregants to learn and share.

TASK helps individuals experiencing disabilities and their families in many ways, including:

• providing family and individual consultations on disabilities and available resources;
• hosting trainings on critical topics—child development, communication, guardianship, conservatorship, job support, government benefits, and teaching children with special needs;
• assisting TASK youth, adults, and their families in planning for transitions;
• engaging TASK adults in our popular social-recreational group (Tikvah);
• teaching people with disabilities how to advocate for themselves;
• offering an array of community information and referrals as the co-founder of the Interfaith Disabilities Network of Oregon.

For more information, or to receive a printed copy of the bi-monthly TASK newsletter,
please contact Janet Menashe, Disabilities Inclusion Specialist,
by email or by phone at 503-226-7079, ext. 122.