Making ‘meaningful connections’
Trinity support worker lauded with statewide award for her work with disabled clients
A pandemic couldn’t keep Terra Smith away from her clients with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
After all, they also happen to be her good friends.
Smith didn’t miss a beat in spring 2020, continuing to work at group homes and staying with a group of men at two homes over six weeks as everything around her was shutting down. The Lansing resident managed to look on the bright side.
“At that time, when we didn’t know what was going on, I felt safer at work,” Smith said. “I knew we were sanitizing, cleaning and using PPE. We were isolated.”
Still, she ended up contracting the virus, as did her fiancee and family, but once recovered her first thoughts were for her wards.
The American Network of Community Options and Resources was so impressed with Smith’s dedication and skill it awarded her the 2021 Illinois Direct Support Professional of the Year Award. She was one of 50 winners statewide who were chosen from 350 nominees.
Smith received a glass plaque at a recent ceremony at Trinity Services Inc.’s New Lenox facility. She joked about the secrecy that led up to the award, showing the sense of humor that pervades her work.
“I knew they were up to something because everybody kept emailing me with questions,” said Smith. “I was like, ‘What are you all up to?’ ”
Smith takes pride in her calling, befriending the adults who frequent Trinity’s day program.
Every morning Smith connects with her group, checking out how they are dressed, if they have a proper lunch and getting their input on how they want to spend the day. She loves cooking and doesn’t hesitate to fix them a special snack if their lunch is lacking. She often includes exercises, and in nice weather they take strolls together in the park.
On a recent day, she led them in 21 questions, such as what type of friends they want in their lives, angry ones or ones who compliment them often.
Another time she asked her friends to name five important people in their lives and was pleasantly surprised to hear them choose staff and housemates.
“A lot of them don’t have that connection with their families, so they look to us to be a friend and family, so it was amazing to see most of them did mention the staff and their housemates,” said Smith.
Stephanie Behlke Leigh is just one of the staff members at Trinity awed by Smith.
Leigh, a network director, who works in the same building as Smith, said she was impressed with her willingness to stay with clients during the pandemic. Leigh also pointed out these clients have significant intellectual disabilities and benefit from Smith’s motivation to find out what each one needs.
“She is a natural leader, although she’s very humble and would hate to be described that way,” Leigh said. “She is somebody who has an excellent ability to solve problems and she’s very curious about what people’s individual interests are and always trying to take it one step further to explore the next thing that would challenge that person.”
Leigh said she recently saw Smith helping a client connect on a video chat with his fiance. Smith kept at it, helping them with their date and to dance remotely, having “these romantic meaningful connections” before the vaccine was available. But Smith gets a lot back. “Just watching people glow … There’s just some days you can feel that the smallest thing you can do or say to someone, they just glow,” Smith said.