Jerry Powers, Director of Residential Services, Celebrated for 26 Years of Service
Citizens Options Unlimited is known for its dedicated employees, many of whom have been with the organization for decades. A shining example of this commitment is Gerald (“Jerry”) Powers, Director of Residential Services. Jerry’s journey began 26 years ago when he first walked into an AHRC Nassau office in Brookville in July of 1998, and has been with Citizens Options Unlimited since January 2019.
“A friend of mine told me there was a good part time job that they thought I’d be good at, which is a Community Habilitation worker, assisting people who live at home,” Jerry said. “It was for weekends and evenings.”
Initially, Jerry did not think in terms of a long-term career with the agency. His perspective changed when he attended a dance with the people he supported.
“I walked into the dance, and I saw everything that was happening, and I thought, ‘Oh, this is what I’m supposed to do.’ This experience gave me a direction.”
Jerry’s part-time job soon became full time when an opportunity opened in human resources as an employee’s benefits coordinator, and his career just kept growing from there.
“I’ve been with the family or organizations for 26 years, but I’ve had so many different jobs in that time period,” Jerry said. “I think a great part of this agency is the ability to move around. If you see something you really like, work hard, and show people you’re interested, you can do different things and get a broad range of experience.”
In addition to experiencing many of the job opportunities the family of organizations had to offer, Jerry was able to take advantage of the tuition reimbursement program, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in Psychology.
Jerry said that he also admires the agency’s commitment to diversity training, which began approximately 20 years ago before it became standard in professional settings.
“The whole family of organizations is a really good place for personal and professional growth,” Jerry said. “There’s great stuff that happens here. It’s been a great 26 years.”
Among the many people Jerry has made a lasting impression on is Matthew Hofele, a self-advocate and a Certified Quality Leadership (CQL) Personal Outcome Measures Interviewer for AHRC Nassau. He resides in the Citizens Options Unlimited Greenlawn residence.
“He has shown me that he is willing to help us as much as he can and any way that he’s able to,” Matthew said. “He seems to be not only a great person, but open to helping us and open to new possibilities.”
For example, Matthew said, Jerry helps him organize opportunities to advocate.
“He helps me organize staff for me to attend places that I need to,” Matthew, who travels to places like Albany and Washington D.C. to advocate for more funding and support for disability services.
As the Director of Residential Services, it’s Jerry’s job to provide support to all the residents of Citizens Options Unlimited across Long Island. Jerry oversees central functions such as payroll, training, incident reports, time sheets, among many other tasks. Part of Jerry’s success in the role is developing great relationships with managers.
“He just has this tremendous amount of respect for the managers and works really well with them to make sure they have everything they need for the people supported,” said Sallyanne Burgess, Vice President of Operations for Citizens Options Unlimited. “He’s always willing to spend the time to meet with the people supported and the managers, and to talk with them and make sure they have everything they need. He makes sure the managers are well supported.”
Sallyanne added that his positivity and ability to empower people also serves him well in the role, which also includes communicating with the family members of residents. As an agency that centers the people it supports, as well as all their wants and needs, Jerry embodies this mission through his support of managers and Direct Support Professionals and collaboration with families.
“The words that might embody Jerry Powers is ‘I totally got this,’” Sallyanne said. His unwavering dedication and compassionate leadership make him a valued member of the Citizens Options Unlimited team. Thank you Jerry!