Rebecca Anderson of Lincoln honored for assisting individuals with disabilities

Rebecca Anderson of Lincoln has received the Community Excellence Award from the Ability Network of Delaware, a nonprofit association that represents community service providers. Anderson is a direct support professional at the Sussex County office of POW&R, Autism Delaware’s adult vocational program. She was selected from among 500 nominees statewide for her outstanding service to people with disabilities, and her role in building partnerships and supports that help these individuals achieve success within the community.        

She was honored Aug. 30 at DSP Day, an annual celebration hosted by AND to recognize the work done by DSPs. POW&R Assistant Director Melissa Martin, who presented the award, praised Anderson for her tireless work in helping Jacob Sipple, a POW&R participant with significant autism and challenging behaviors, to successfully transition from living at home with his mother to moving into a group home with roommates. She also transitioned him to a new work site, Old Paths Church of Christ in Georgetown, where she taught him several new tasks, and through sign language has been helping him learn to speak, a significant accomplishment for someone who has been nonverbal for most of his 29 years.

Herself the mom of a 19-year old son with autism, Anderson said she is fueled by a personal passion and motivation to help other parents’ hopes and dreams for their children come true, noted Martin. “Rebecca has been integral in not just allowing Jacob to live in the community, but to work and socialize as well,” said Martin. In addition to his job, Jacob volunteers at the Milford library, the Sussex Academy Aquatics Center, and the home of a fellow POW&R participant, where he does light housecleaning chores.

Anderson said the most meaningful aspect of her work as a DSP is developing relationships with her participants and seeing them move to the next independent level. “There are so many opportunities to shape the neurotypical community’s behaviors around autism, and to help adults on the spectrum become active participants in that community,” she said.

She has come up with her own definition for the acronym DSP: “Doing Something Promising – that is, putting your feet into action and coming up with a plan for success.”

For more information about Autism Delaware, visit www.autismdelaware.org.