Things you did not know about David:
He and his wife live in Wharton.  He graduated from William Paterson University.  Originally he planned to work in law enforcement because of his deep desire to help. After 2 ½ years of study in Criminal Justice he realized this was just not what he felt called to do after all.  His first job on a new career route was working in a day program for adults with mental illness.  Next came vocational rehab for people with developmental disabilities and mental illness.  And finally he found his way to the DPD where his original desire to help is realized every day as he assists families who are seeking nothing but the best for their son or daughter within a system that is both complicated and exhausting.

Since starting at DPD in June 2015, David has learned a great deal regarding the ever changing adult system of care in NJ through DDD.  He handles situations that arise calmly and professionally and has endless amounts of patience with the families and individuals he comes in contact with.  David is always upbeat, thinks positively and always hopes for the best.  He’s reliable and has really flourished in the Support Coordinator position. 



One of the individuals on his caseload has been facing imminent homelessness for several months.  She (with her mother’s assistance) has been in the processing of applying to live in a DDD group home since before she was 21 but was unsuccessful in doing so.  With DPD’s assistance and advocacy, she was placed on the emergency list, but still faced several challengers with becoming approved for the Community Care Waiver.  She has continued living with her mother (despite orders from the landlord for her to leave), as her mother was unable to afford her apartment and moved to a single person residence.   She has been sleeping in her mother’s one bedroom cabin for approximately four months because she has been waiting for her emergency CCW application to be reviewed and approved by Medicaid.  There have been numerous obstacles, the most difficult being Jennifer’s physician, who had not appropriately completed the medical form in full on more than one occasion, which resulted in Medicaid returning the application and delaying the process by weeks each time.  With David’s regular follow up and guidance, working closely with an interim case manager at DDD, the young woman was encouraged to continue the process making calls and following up with Medicaid.  David further assisted by shopping with Kris for groceries to assist the family during this time of crisis and continuing to offer any support he could suggest.  She found out recently that she has finally been approved for placement!  She had already been accepted into a group home in the area a couple of months ago, but was unable to move in as she needed CCW approval.  Now, she will likely be moving into the group home within the next couple of weeks.