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Yachad members and staff describe person‑first approach and volunteer partnerships
Summary
Members and staff of Yachad told a community audience that the program emphasizes person‑first language and community integration, including a volunteer project that helps package Sabbath candles that serve 750 families.
Members and staff of Yachad, a community organization serving Jewish individuals with disabilities, described how the program emphasizes person‑first language, community participation and volunteer partnerships, staff said.
At a community presentation, a presenter said Yachad 'has given me that space to be able to look through a disability and see the person inside,' describing the program as reorienting how attendees perceive people with disabilities. A meeting participant added that being at Yachad encouraged her to 'see people...for kind of all of who they are' and to appreciate participants' strengths and interests.
The organization outlined its mission as supporting Jewish individuals with disabilities through participation in Jewish communal life, support services and regular social and recreational programming at a community center five days a week, a staff member said. The staff member said Yachad partners with schools, youth groups and volunteer organizations to integrate members into broader community activities.
'The word Yachad means together,' a staff member said, and described partnerships with a nearby senior‑citizen housing complex whose residents volunteer alongside Yachad members. Staff described a specific community service project with an organization called Family Table: members help package Sabbath candles, and '750 families receive Sabbath candles for a month,' the staff member said, giving participants a visible role in serving others.
Speakers emphasized language and dignity as central to the program. 'We work with people with disabilities and not disabled people,' a presenter said, urging person‑first phrasing and everyday interpersonal recognition, such as greeting someone and noting what they enjoy.
Speakers said program staff try to offer a variety of activities so participants can pursue hobbies and interests. The presentation repeatedly framed member involvement as reciprocal: participants give to the community and experience pride and belonging, the staff said.
The session was a presentation of program practices and participant testimony; there were no formal votes or policy actions recorded.
