Bridgewell Community Members Honored by ADDP: Skip Marshall
Published: March 26, 2013
Categories: Events
Skip Marshall: ADDP Self Determination Award Recipient
Nominated by: Andrea Tascon, Residential Program Director, Kelli Hyland, Assistant Director of Quality Assurance and Bonnie Hungler, Director of Residential Services
Elmer ‘Skip’ Marshall is a sincere, intelligent, independent and dedicated man. His enthusiasm, kind nature and sense of humor make Skip a joy to be around thus working with him is always a pleasure. He has become a stronger person having learned from the trials and tribulations and passionately moved forward because he knows who he is and how he wants to live.
Skip has been an active member of the MA Advocates Standing Strong (MASS) Northeast Region Group since October 2010. Skip was instrumental in starting local self-advocacy groups at both his residential provider, Bridgewell and his day service provider, NuPath. His goal is to educate and energize his peers to become empowered self-advocates.
Over the course of the last year, Skip was voted unanimously by his peers as Treasurer of the MASS Northeast Region Group. He became a member of the Northeast Region’s Diversity Committee, graduated from the Self-Advocacy Leadership Series (developed by the Developmental Disabilities Council and MASS), helped coordinate, participated in and raised money for an Ability Walk-A-Thon fundraiser to raise money to attend the National Self Advocates Becoming Empowered (SABE) Conference in Minnesota. He was a presenter for Abuse Prevention at the 9th Annual MASS West Region Self-Advocacy Conference, and met with DDS Northeast Regional Director Mandy Chalmers to provide an update on the work being done by MASS. He participated in The IMPACT: Ability Self Defense Class, where he was offered a volunteer position instructing others how to physically defend themselves against abuse. He also has attended several conferences across Massachusetts and legislative events at the State House.
