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MCBDDS recognizes Jessica Zimmerman for outstanding employment
The qualities of loyalty and longevity make Jessica Zimmerman a valuable member of the staff at St. Leonard Living Community in Centerville. Employed by St. Leonard for nearly 18 years as a Laundry Aide, Jessica has advanced from learning to fold clothes to operating all the laundry equipment. She picks up dirty laundry throughout the facility, and then sorts, washes, dries and folds it, returning it to the appropriate destination.
Jackie Wells-Dross, Jessica’s Employment Service and Support administrator,
says Jessica’s success in the job provides her with self-confidence and opportunities
to train others. “Besides gaining knowledge of how to run a laundry department, Jessica is dependable and reliable, and always arrives to work on time. She has blossomed into a caring team member and colleague.”
Due to her longevity and outstanding work ethic, Jessica has earned free
lunches and received a $500 bonus. Her name is also engraved on a plaque at St.
Leonard’s that recognizes outstanding employees.
Jessica participates in the Miami Valley Down Syndrome Association’s “Everybody Counts” program, which seeks to educate elementary school-age children about disabilities of all sorts. For the last three years she has spoken to third graders about her work, her schedule, and how she maintains a calendar to keep track of her employment obligations, appointments and social and athletic activities. Her advocacy reinforces that people with disabilities are responsible,
valuable employees.
Jessica was recently inducted into the Montgomery County Board of Developmental Disabilities' Hall of Fame for her accomplishments in Employment.