A Chance Was All She Needed

HOPKINS – All Amber Adair’s parents wanted was for her to have a chance.

As Amber approached high school graduation, her learning disability – particularly with math and reasoning skills – seemed to severely limit the forecast for her future. Some teachers expected her to go no further than a sheltered workshop.

But her vocational rehabilitation counselor recognized in her several traits that employers would find valuable: friendliness, initiative and determination.

“Once she gets on to something, she wants to do it right. She’s very willing to work. She doesn’t stand around. When she finishes what she’s doing, she looks for something else that needs to be done,” says Debbie Fannon, senior counselor in the St. Joseph office of the Missouri Division of Vocational Rehabilitation.

Amber’s parents became hopeful.

“We just wanted the opportunity to see what she could do,” says her mother, Kim Adair. “I have pushed her through her whole life to get beyond that label they gave her when she was 3 years old. I said, ‘You don’t know her. You don’t live with her.’ She’s come a long way.”

However, finding a job in rural northwest Missouri was almost a bigger challenge than Amber’s disability, Debbie says.

When Amber mentioned that she enjoys elderly people, things began falling into place.

A nursing home in Bedford, Iowa, just across the state line from her home near Hopkins, was willing – even eager – to give Amber a chance. Today, she works there as a dietary aide, making drinks, setting and clearing tables and performing other kitchen tasks as needed.

“Everybody has a job they can do if encouraged and praised,” says her supervisor, Rhonda Siefering, dietary services manager. “I want to give everybody a chance. If you believe in them, they can believe in themselves, and you can work with them.”

Perhaps Rhonda was more open to working with an employee with a learning disability because she once had a vision problem that caused her to read words backwards. She overcame that disability by going to summer school during elementary school.

She adds that Amber has had “rough patches” on the job, but nothing that could not be corrected by talking it through with her. For example, she was forgetting to make the pitchers of juice drink until she was reminded. “Then, we had enough for the U.S. Army!” Rhonda laughed.
A manager for 23 years, she points out that employees come in all varieties, abilities and needs. “Each individual you hire is different in personality.”

A job coach initially helped Amber learn her responsibilities. Because math is especially difficult for her, Amber practiced measuring at home so she could make juice and add the correct amount of thickening according to each resident’s requirements. With repetition, she became more adept.

“I’m wired differently, apparently,” Amber says, explaining the difficulty in comprehending numbers. She reads at a much higher level, enjoying books about the Civil War and Native Americans.

She saves most of her paycheck, but buys her own food to make lunches. She calls herself a “microwave chef.”

She lives in a farmhouse with her parents. They tend a large garden with cucumbers, squash, zucchini, tomatoes, peas, grapes and watermelon. Together they make tomato juice, salsa and grape jelly.

Amber also likes to sing. Ever since singing “Achy, Breaky Heart” as a little girl, she has shared her love of song. She has performed at a local talent show and county fair.

But, she was extremely shy on the job initially.

“At first, she wouldn’t keep eye contact, she held her head down, and she wouldn’t speak up,” Rhonda says. “We have hard-of-hearing clients. I said, ‘You have to speak up!’”

Today, she’s a social asset to the nursing home. “She’s really come out of her shell,” notes Rhonda. “The residents love her. She’s a sweet gal.”

When Amber has to wait for a ride home from work, she often joins the residents in their recreational activities, such as making window decorations that change with the season.

As a child, Amber visited her grandparents daily at a nursing home. Now, she says, “it’s like having lots of grandparents.” They notice when her work schedule changes.

Other staff members of the nursing home also like having Amber around. “She’s special to us,” Rhonda says. “We care about her. We help her learn and improve herself.”

Amber says, “I feel like I have a family here.”