Ron & Denny

Ron and Denny live together now, but each lived in a state institution; Ron for 14 years and Denny for 21. Both men have a history of behavioral problems, and officials doubted whether they could adapt to a community setting. With specialized support and encouragement, both are doing better than ever.

Denny is an artist who seeks out specific words and phrases in magazines to create his art. His art therapist believes that Denny’s art is an extension of himself and the way he can clearly express himself. She enjoys working side-by-side with Denny as he creates, which also gets him to open up about the important people in his past. Denny has learned to trust people through living in the community.

Ron loves crossword puzzles and his favorite thing to do is head to the store to pick up a crossword puzzle book and a pop. His support staff say that he has completely transformed since moving into a community-base setting and he truly benefits from having choices about how he spends his time.

Both Denny and Ron enjoy the freedom of personal choices about what they want to learn, when they want to learn it, and what outings to go on, which is completely different from the institution environment they previously lived in. 

They are pleased to be home.