Achieving Independence: Goldie's Story
Story by Service Coordinator, Jessica
Bauers
Goldie, age 67, is the youngest of
10 children. It wasn’t an easy
decision in 1977 when Goldie’s
family enrolled her at Achieve (then
Sioux Vocational Services) when she
was 36 years old. Before Achieve,
Goldie lived with her family and
attended Hollister and Hope Schools.
She used basic sounds and
expressions to communicate with
others.
Since her arrival 32 years ago, Goldie
has blossomed. She talks in full
sentences, lives in her own apartment, and takes Paratransit
to her part-time job at Achieve four
days a week.
Achieve staff admire
what Goldie has accomplished. “She
lives pretty independently, has a
great sense of humor and is a lot of
fun to be around,” says Nancy. Ruth
says, “Goldie and I like to do word
finds with each other. We will have
matching word finds, and she finds
the words before I do a lot of the
time!”
By far, Goldie’s favorite day of the
week is Friday. In 1995, Goldie and
her five older sisters started a
tradition to get together every
Friday for lunch and to play cards.
“We seldom miss,” boasts her sister
Betty. “Goldie keeps her winnings,
but the rest of the money is saved
up, and at the end of the year,
we donate it all to Achieve,” says
Betty.
Goldie is just one of the sisters
as she plays cards and sings along
with the music on her sister’s
stereo. She smiles big as she wins
yet another hand at cards. “Goldie
is the glue that holds this family
together,” says her sister Loretta,
“I don’t know what we would have
ever done without Achieve.”
