Pathway to Independence

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Our Story

PATHWAY TO INDEPENDENCE, INC ("PTI"), a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, was formed in November of 2009 to address the desperate need for appropriate, safe, and affordable housing and support services for high functioning young adults with developmental disabilities. In other words, PTI provides permanent living solutions for high functioning young adults with developmental disabilities. Parents worry about what will happen to their son or daughter when they are gone. Who will look after them? Will they have the necessary skills to live independently? How traumatic will this be for our son or daughter and family members who may have to step in? As parents, we all know it is better to start this transition now while they are young and while we are still in good health, however, we don’t feel comfortable with the current alternatives. This is why most high-functioning young adults with special needs still live at home. Why Us? John Martin, the Director at the Ohio Department of Developmental Disabilities, stated that close to 80% of young adults with disabilities in Ohio still live at home with their parents. Why is this you ask? Group homes, although a great option for some individuals with moderate to severe disabilities, are not an appropriate option for the high-functioning young adult who can do most things for themselves, with a little support and training. On the other hand, putting a young adult out into the community at-large raises all kinds of health and safety concerns not to mention the lack of quality support providers, which generally leaves the parents holding the bag. Parents may as well have their young adults living at home, which is what generally happens. To complicate things even further, many of our high functioning young adults are deemed "too high functioning" to qualify for services with their County Board of Developmental Disabilities ("DD Board"), which locks them out of funding for jobs and transportation that would allow them to live independently, a typical catch 22. Even with DD support job most young adults can only get part-time work at minimum or sub-minimum wages a few days a week and the cost of residential living can consume most, if not all, of a young adult's Social Security, which in most instances is their primary source of income. So where do these young adults live that is appropriate, safe and affordable? Prior to the formation of PTI, the answer was "living at home with Mom and/or Dad or other family members". The 80% stat mentioned above isn't too difficult to believe, is it? Let's take this one step further and assume the young adult lives at home. What becomes of this individual (typically 50-60 years old) when mom and dad can no longer care for them? Who will look after them and where will they live? The answer to these questions is typically a brother or sister or other family member, and if there is no family member then the County DD Board will step in to find emergency placement in a strange environment. This is why PTI was formed, and as you might guess, by the parents of a high-functioning young lady with developmental disabilities, who were facing these very issues. These parents felt they needed to find a solution that would help their daughter make this transition to independent living now while she was young and could enjoy some of the benefits of living independently, while they were alive and they could help with the process, rather than leaving it to family, or worse, a County DD Board. In January of 2010, PTI kicked off its pilot program in partnership with Stow-Glen Retirement Village in which high-functioning young adults with developmental disabilities co-exist with seniors in one of two independent living apartment buildings located on the campus of Stow-Glen. Under this unique and innovative program, young adults age 22-36 have their own apartment, access to two meals per day in the Stow-Glen dining hall, easy access to friends and socialization on-site as well as off-site, and receive light support and training from PTI staff who are on-site and available 24/7, all at an affordable price. PTI staff also plan and organize many activities on and off site for the young adults and take the young adults grocery shopping once a week. Young adults wishing to participate in this program must have a job, good social skills and be capable/willing to manage all aspects of daily living with light support from PTI staff. As one might imagine the response to this program has been tremendous both by the young adults and their families, as well as the seniors.