SAPULPA, OKLA. -- Sapulpa residents Nancy Rose and James Coke received commendations from Governor Brad Henry and Lt. Governor Jari Askins Oct. 22 during the Governor’s Disability Employment Awards at the Governor’s Mansion in Oklahoma City. October is national Disability Employment Awareness Month.

Rose has worked for St. John Sapulpa Hospital for the past nine years.  She started out as an hourly dishwasher but her perseverance was rewarded with a full-time job that has developed over the years. Today, Rose serves as a kitchen assistant and food line server. Her friends at Central Tech Supported Employment have seen a remarkable change in Nancy and her outlook on life primarily due to her having a steady job.  She has been able to purchase a home and a car and has become the center of support for her children and grandchildren. The manager of St. John’s Dietary Unit said she has seen turnover of staff throughout the years and has witnessed the lack of work ethic among many employees. She says Rose is different in that she views St. John’s as a career and not just a job which changes the determination and goals of an employee.

Coke is a maintenance assistant at the Zeledyne Glass Plant in Tulsa where he has worked for the past five months. Although he has not been at this job very long, his friends at Bios Supported Employment say Coke has had a long history of successful work, always striving for better hours and higher pay with each job. Coke works very hard at a sometimes difficult job sweeping out the soda ash from manufacturing glass. He rarely misses work and no matter how hot the glass plant gets during the summer, he never complains. Coke works hard and lives independently. He is also a big Nascar fan and every year enjoys spending his vacation at the races.

“It is employees and businesses like these that have put Oklahoma ahead of every state in the nation at employing people with disabilities,” said Howard Hendrick, Director of the Oklahoma Department of Human Services.

“For the past three years, Oklahoma has led the nation in assisting people with developmental disabilities to find competitive jobs and become working taxpayers, “said Hendrick. “Today, 60 percent of individuals with developmental disabilities served by the OKDHS Developmental Disabilities Services Division participate in supported employment services.”

The Governor’s Disability Employment Awards are co sponsored by Governor Brad Henry and Lt. Governor Jari Askins, along with OKDHS/DDSD, the Department of Rehabilitation Services, and the Oklahoma Association of Persons in Supported Employment.

Editors Note: To see Oklahoma’s ranking as compared to other states in regard to the numbers of persons with developmental disabilities in competitive jobs (supported employment) go to, www.statedata.info (Link opens in new window).  This Web site is a project of the Institute for Community Inclusion at UMass Boston, supported in part by the Administration on Developmental Disabilities, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under cooperative agreement with additional support from the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research of the U.S. Department of Education.

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• Nancy Rose Photo - Nancy Rose (right) receives a Governor’s Commendation from Lt. Governor Jari Askins for her outstanding work at St. John Sapulpa Hospital. The award was presented during the Governor’s Disability Employment Awards of Excellence at the Governor’s Mansion Oct. 22.
• James Coke Photo - James Coke (right) receives a Governor’s Commendation from Lt. Governor Jari Askins for his outstanding work at the Zeledyne Glass Plant. The award was presented during the Governor’s Disability Employment Awards of Excellence at the Governor’s Mansion Oct. 22.