ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. — July 26 is National Disability Independence Day, celebrating the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990.
Several St. Louis-area businesses are taking note of the occasion, while at the same time, helping Americans thrive.
At Twin Oaks Schnucks on Big Bend, Chase Burnside regularly monitors and restocks the inventory of Smiley Face Cookies. Burnside has autism and participates in a program known as Waigand Wheels.
Joshua Aasgaard is a Burnside family volunteer.
“In Waigand Wheels, (Burnside) gets to interact with people,” Aasgaard said. “He loves that. And then when someone will let him write down their contact information, he loves that, too. He just loves the interaction back and forth with people, and the opportunity to say 'hi.'”
Janell Schleeper is the Twin Oaks Schnucks bakery manager.
“It's a local community effort,” Schleeper said. “So, we're not just nourishing people's lives through food, but we're nourishing the communities that we work and live in by helping people, like MacArthur's bakery.”
McArthur’s Bakery employs Waigand Wheel participants, and they produce enough of the Smiley Face Cookie Company cookies to supply 77 Schnucks stores.
“For them, it gives them a sense of meaning and self-purpose,” McArthur's Bakery owner Scott Rinaberger said. “They get a decent income. We’re competitively employing them above minimum wage. And what a great opportunity for them to demonstrate to others that this is such a great model.”
Waigand Wheels connects McArthur’s to Schnucks – providing an opportunity for people with developmental disabilities to deliver.
“Not only are they given a platform to succeed and to be recognized and valued within the community they serve,” Waigand Wheels Program Director Samantha Waigand said, “but they have a chance to practice valuable job skills and social skills in a setting that they're comfortable in.”
Besides Smiley Face cookies, Schnucks stores have an entire section dedicated to local products.
Schleeper said, “Whether it's a distributor or a manufacturer, we know that if the community that we're in thrives, we thrive; and we want to be good corporate citizens and do everything that we can to help our customers and our communities.”
Clearly, value comes in many forms.
The Waigand Wheels program currently serves 75 people who have developmental disabilities.