By Dan Spalding
News Now Warsaw
WARSAW — More clients moving into jobs in the community and more people in the community visiting Cardinal Services headquarters.
That’s the idea behind the $8 million in renovations and expansion to the Cardinal’s facility on North Bay Drive in Warsaw where disabled people have been supported for 70 years.
“This is a community center. It’s no longer a facility for individuals to come and be here all day. What we want is inclusivity,” said Vickie Lootens, executive director for Cardinal Services, moments after the organization celebrated alongside Warsaw Mayor Jeff Grose and a large group of volunteers with a ribbon that was accompanied by a pleasant poof of confetti set off with hand-held cannons.
Years in the works, the new approach features an enhanced emphasis on workforce development that was funded with a $1 million gift from Milford-based CTB Inc., which has had a client-based relationship with Cardinal for decades.
The CTB Inc. Opportunity Lab, christened with a sign outside of the building, provides expanded training and certification for clients and the public to help with job placement.
“We can prepare people whether it’s individuals with disabilities, people that are at risk — there might be financial barriers — but they can come in here, gain some skills and then go out and we can refer them to various businesses,” Lootens said.
While that’s a key component, Cardinal has also rethought its approach to how they enliven and encourage clients.
A long hallway is now home to a dozen or so rooms where clients are encouraged to participate in a wide range of activities.
Available activities include a gaming room, a performing arts room, a garden room, an artisan room, the long-existing Red Bird art room, a STEM Club room, a workplace readiness club room, and a sensory room, among others.
K21 Health Foundation provided $1 million and helped provide Cardinal with an onsite Health Clinic, which makes having doctor’s visits much easier for clients.
Lootens wants the public to get involved too.
“Community members can come in, they can maybe participate in one of our club rooms, whether it’s the art room, the STEM project robotics club, culinary arts, and then they are working alongside another individual and they’re no longer looking at them with a disability — they’re looking at them as, ‘Hey, that’s a fellow chef and a fellow artist,’ ” Lootens said.
“They develop a commonality and start to develop a relationship and so next thing we see is transformative is these relationships happen and then the individuals we serve are active members of the community.”
Lootens said they’ve seen a large spike in the number of volunteers who come to work out, lead a class, and participate with the clients.
About 200 clients pass through the building each week.
Cardinal has also added a dedicated entrance on the west side of the building to accommodate clients. The main entrance has also been spruced up and a separate door is available for those entering the CTB Opportunity Lab.
