The significant contributions of an individual and an organization whose dedicated efforts are benefiting individuals with disabilities across St. Charles County will be in the spotlight Saturday, March 2nd at Community Living Inc.’s 19th Annual Legacy Ball. During the gala event, Community Living supporter Denise Gould of F.A.C.T. will receive Community Living’s Legacy Award, while The St. Charles County Ambulance District will be presented with the organization’s Community Volunteer of the Year Award. Taking place at the St. Charles Convention Center, the evening’s festivities will kick off at 5:30 p.m. and feature a four-course wine dinner, live and silent auctions, and conclude with dancing to live music provided by My Friend Mike. Proceeds from the Legacy Ball, which is one of St. Charles County’s premier gala events, will benefit the more than 1,100 individuals and their families who are served by Community Living.
Denise Gould of F.A.C.T. has been selected to receive Community Living’s Legacy Award based on her integral support of people with disabilities in the greater St. Charles County community. Denise first began to learn about the world of disabilities after she and her husband, Richard, welcomed their son, David. In her efforts to find the support he needed, she discovered F.A.C.T. (Family Advocacy and Community Training). Denise joined Audrey Yarbrough, founder of F.A.C.T., in helping to support other families who also had children with disabilities. After a few years of volunteering with Audrey, Denise joined the SSM Corporate Human Resources team full-time for ten years. In 2003, she came back to F.A.C.T. as Executive Director where she spent the last 15 years of her professional career.
During her time at F.A.C.T., Denise served on several local and state committees related to the disability field. She presented at the local, state and national level on the family driven, family centered, strength-based model of family support. Denise played a vital role in changing the state system of providing expensive and outdated communication devices for people who are non-verbal by appealing that decision for her son at the state level. Due to her advocacy efforts, all people with developmental disabilities can receive an iPad when needed in order to communicate.
Denise values the experiences that each of her career choices has brought to her life but believes her life experiences with her children have been the most valuable. She is now enjoying the thrills of retirement by camping, traveling and spending time with her family.
The St. Charles County Ambulance District will receive Community Living’s Community Volunteer of the Year Award in recognition of their efforts to support the St. Charles community. A seven-time recipient of the Missouri Emergency Medical Services Association’s Emergency Medical Service of the Year Award, the Ambulance District has established itself as a forward-thinking organization that develops innovative programs to serve its residents. Examples include a Mobile Integrated Health partnership with BJC, and the immensely successful Substance Use Recovery Response Team, which links those affected by the opiate epidemic with treatment. The latter initiative earned SCCAD the American Ambulance Association’s 2017 Community Impact Program award.
In addition to providing expert treatment in emergency and non-emergency settings, SCCAD offers a robust array of safety programming for individuals, families and businesses. The District continually seeks to develop mission-driven programming and, whenever possible, SCCAD partners with other agencies to deliver these programs across the county. By frequently partnering with business leaders, non-profits, fellow emergency response agencies and others both inside and outside the region, SCCAD is able to develop and promote best practices to integrated, community healthcare providers that exceed expectations. More than 250 paramedics and support staff of SCCAD consider themselves lucky to serve a community that is so wholly supportive of its first responders.
“Legacy Ball is always a highly anticipated event that plays an important role in helping our organization continue to enrich the lives of people with disabilities in St. Charles County,” said Barb Griffith, President and CEO of Community Living, Inc. “We look forward to celebrating the remarkable contributions of Denise and The St. Charles County Ambulance District, who through their leadership and advocacy are making a tremendous impact on our community.”
Legacy Ball tickets, sponsorships and advertising opportunities are available at http://bidpal.net/legacyball2019. Tickets can be purchased for $125 through January 31st. Tickets purchased after January 31st will be $150. Tables seat ten. For more information or questions about the Legacy Ball, please contact Molly Renken, Special Events Coordinator, at 636-387-5530 or mrenken@communitylivingmo.org.
Community Living, Inc.
Community Living works to enrich the lives of people with disabilities so they can achieve their highest potential. We do this this by providing children and adults with services and programs that allow them to live, learn and work in our community. In turn, they make our community inclusive, diverse and a better place to live.
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For more information, contact:
Julie Hauser
(314) 436-9090
julie@hausergrouppr.com