Opportunity Enterprises keeps working, adapting to new rules
Agency continues to transform how it administers day programs
Mary has worked at the Simply Amazing Market at Opportunity Enterprises for around nine years.
“I like working here,” she said on a recent morning, adding her specialty is making cheddar popcorn for the market, “my mom’s favorite.”
Despite the pandemic, clients at Opportunity Enterprises, which provides a wide array of services for people with disabilities in Lake and Porter counties, have been able to continue working in production for the market, with the exception of a brief shutdown to reconfigure workstations to maintain social distancing.
The retail hours of the market at Meijer, 405 Porters Vale Blvd., were truncated by the pandemic while the location at OE’s main facility, at 2801 Evans Ave., closed in March and reopened shortly after Thanksgiving.
The market, which sells gourmet popcorn, fudge and other treats, as well as ceramics and other artwork made by OE clients, has had to adapt with the pandemic as have the other programs at OE in an effort to still provide crucial services to people with disabilities while also protecting their health and safety and that of the agency’s staff.
“Everyone was still working production,” said Kacie Ensign, OE’s chief development and communications officer, adding treats were sold at Meijer or online while the main shop was closed.
Five clients work in production at any given time, said Liz Metts, the agency’s senior
director of business operations.
“I think it’s the same for any of us. There’s a sense of purpose, goals, pride in producing something and then selling it,” she said.
Because of a spike in COVID-19 cases in the fall, OE shut down much of its programming most recently on Nov. 11 and reopened Jan. 18, said Neil Samahon, the agency’s CEO. Previously, programs closed at the start of the pandemic and started back up as the number of cases dropped and stabilized last year.
“We experienced the same thing (as other businesses and agencies) so we reacted to that and shut down,” he said, adding it didn’t make sense to open programming around the holidays because of possible travel by clients and staff, so the agency decided to hold off until two weeks after New Year’s.
While the opportunity to participate in day programs is available for clients, Samahon said the agency has seen its census drop because of the virus and is now at 51% of capacity for most programs.
Group home clients are getting vaccinated, as are staff, and he expects the number of participating client to go up over time.
“I’m sure as more and more folks get vaccinated, the confidence level will increase,” he said, adding that includes both clients and the general public. “To gain the confidence to move about again — (the virus is) a scary thing.”
The agency continues to modify how it administers day programs since they reopened, Samahon said, and takes extra measures to limit client movement to some extent, creating groups for programs, for example.
Clients also receive temperature checks when they arrive, he added, and anyone showing symptoms of the virus receives a rapid test to determine if further testing is needed, similar to other establishments.
“When a positive case of COVID-19 is discovered from a staff or client of Opportunity Enterprises, our response plan is implemented immediately,” Ensign said in an email.
The agency performs its own contract tracing to identify those who may have been potentially exposed to the individual from 48 hours before their first symptoms until the positive test result was discovered, she said.
Those who are identified as potentially being in contact with the individual who are affiliated or known by OE are personally notified and asked to quarantine for 14 days from the most recent date of possible exposure.
“Written communication is then sent to our entire employee and family email list so they are aware of the active case,” she said.
Back at the market, David put “Simply Amazing Market” stickers on plastic bins that would soon hold different popcorn flavors. He’s worked at the market for more than five years and been an OE client since 1996.
He enjoys getting market products ready for sale and while he had some time off because of the pandemic, he preferred to come back to work.