THE HISTORY OF HANDI-CRAFTERS

Handi-Crafters, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that provides rehabilitation, vocational training and job placement services for people living in Chester County who have disabilities or face other barriers to becoming employed.

People who have disabilities are far less likely to be employed than the rest of the population. A 2000 Harris Survey Poll found that only 32 percent of working-age (18-64) people with disabilities have full- or part-time jobs compared to 81 percent of non-disabled, working-age people. This is not a new phenomenon, it has existed for decades and is the reason why Handi-Crafters came into being.

Handi-Crafters was founded back in 1961 by a group of Chester County parents to help their children who had mental retardation. They had left school without any work-related skills and seemed destined to be cut off from the opportunity of becoming employed. Their parents refused to accept this and established the first sheltered workshop in Chester County, providing a vocational rehabilitation program for 8 young adults.

From such a tiny acorn a mighty oak tree has grown. We now run one of the largest community rehabilitation programs in southeastern Pennsylvania. For more than 40 years, Handi-Crafters has been successfully helping people who want to be employed but, for one reason or another, have a difficult time entering the workplace.

In our last program year we helped 500 people in their efforts to obtain meaningful employment. Our clients include people who have mental or physical disabilities, recipients of public assistance and at-risk youth aged 14-21. Our caring staff provides a structured and personal program of rehabilitation, vocational training and job placement services. Our goal is to help our clients work to the highest level of their ability and lead as independent a life as possible.

We work closely with the community to provide meaningful job experiences for our clients. 275 individuals perform assembly and packaging services for area businesses at our industrial workshops located at 215 and 225 Barley Sheaf Road in Thorndale. Others are employed off-site by local companies on our supervised work crews. And our employment specialists place individuals in regular jobs in the competitive workplace. Last year we helped 500 people in their search for paid employment.

We may have grown out of all recognition from the organization we started in 1961, but our mission has remained the same. Our primary goal is to make a positive difference in the lives of our clients by helping them overcome their obstacles to entering the workplace so they can find their highest level of productive employment and financial independence. And perhaps most important of all, their daily acceptance into a social and work environment gives them a high sense of self-esteem and self-worth.

"Handi-Crafters gives my son Andrew the opportunity and support to lead a productive life with much improved work ethics and social interactions. This not only enhances his self-esteem but gives him a big smile every Friday, payday!" Carol Robinson - mother of one of the people with disabilities in our workshop program.