One of the biggest challenges our youth with
FASD face is becoming productive and contributing members of our society as
adults. While school can be very
challenging, it can provide structure and strategies for success when informed
educators and medical personnel are working in collaboration. During that transition into adulthood,
though, the individual with FASD experiences huge changes to their routines and
structure. For an adult with FASD, we
have seen when a community with housing and employment opportunities, positive
outcomes can be achieved . Amongst the
seven adults with FASD within our membership, we have confirmed what the
research says. When someone with FASD
has a stable home with external support and a steady occupation, positive
outcomes can be achieved. When one of
these three elements are missing, life can become very challenging.
Just like any adult, most adults with FASD
want to live somewhere else besides their parent’s home. However, it must be an interdependent model
as explained by CanFASD’s paper on housing and homelessness. This model exists in various places including
360 Kids and Participation
House in Markham. It
basically consists of having people with disabilities living in an open and
inclusive community consisting of their service providers and other members of
the public. This is why the Rural FASD
Support Network is supporting the endeavor that Cornerstone
Landing and Redwood Homes are proposing in terms of a rural housing
model. Cornerstone Landing is proposing
a tiny home village where homeless youth, seniors, members of the public, a
community hall and an administrative office are all located together. Within this village, a supporting municipality
is key. Current codes make this model
impossible and require changes at the municipal level. Having a gathering place for the residents
which is ran by the municipality for insurance and maintenance purposes is also
key for building the village into a community.
One of the big advantages a tiny home provides over an apartment is cost
and sensory processing. For someone with
FASD, these are huge considerations.
Instead of having a huge lump sum cost at the beginning for all funding
partners, it could be done in small increments.
However, there are challenges to this model based on current
legislature. This is why we have
partnered with Yuergen Beck of Redwood Homes and Cornerstone
Landing to lend an additional voice in exploring these challenges and finding
solutions. These challenges include no
specific code related to tiny homes or any regulation related to how they are
built.
Having a home and supportive community is not
enough. In the three earlier examples,
work opportunities are also provided.
Work provides that same self-esteem, structure and purpose that people
with FASD crave. However, our current
system is creating obstacles. There are
limited incentives for employers to invest in hiring people with FASD. As a result, it is not encouraged to even
state the existence of FASD during the hiring process which leaves both the
employer and individual at a disadvantage.
Finally, when you consider that someone with FASD has a 74% likelihood of being
unemployed compared to the national average of 6%, we need to build
a system that encourages hiring people with FASD rather than sending them to
social assistance. As our adults with
FASD will tell you, they have unique strengths that can benefit our
economy. Within the adults of the Rural
FASD Support Network, we have a baker, a horse trainer, a dishwasher, a tent
installer, a homemaker, a musician, and a computer programmer. However, we also have several unemployed
individuals looking for work that is sustainable for them and youth who can’t
get into college because of the theory requirements. While hands-on work is a strength for them,
the lack of apprenticeship opportunities removes that possibility.
In our pursuit of inclusivity within our
society, when adults with FASD have support, structure and purpose, they too
become valuable contributors to our society.
We are thrilled to have Yuergen Beck, Shelley
More, Karen Huber, Cassie More, and Rick Graham come with us on Feb 24 and share
their expertise. If you have any
questions, please feel free to contact us at ruralfasd@gmail.com.
