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I have worked at OU for close to 7 years. While working here, OU has given me the opportunity to explore my interests and expand my career path. The leadership philosophy and culture are one of positivity and encouragement for staff members, as well as our persons served, to reach their highest potential. This is the first company I have worked for that really treats its employee as if they are family. Many members of my own family have stated if they chose to change career paths to the healthcare field, OU would be where they would want to work because of how much I tell them I enjoy being here.
I began my career in 2011 at Opportunities Unlimited hoping to impact persons lives. I quickly learned that the people here would be impacting my life as well. I began my career at OU in 2011 as a direct care staff caring for persons who sustained a brain injury. I have witnessed some truly amazing people achieve goals that was originally thought unachievable. After being a direct care staff for only a year, I set my sights on becoming a nurse at Opportunities Unlimited where I felt I could do even more good for these deserving persons. OU was very supportive of this endeavor and allowed me to adjust my work schedule to achieve MY OWN goals. I am now a Registered Nurse, Certified Brain Injury Specialist and a CPR Instructor at Opportunities Unlimited and I have been with my “OU Family for 6 years and counting.” Every day is a new day with a new “Opportunity” to work together to achieve anything that you set your mind to. All of us at Opportunities Unlimited live the mission to “Maximize Personal Potential through dignified and purposeful living.” And doing so “One Step at a time.” I am thankful for our persons that continue to challenge me and impact MY life!
I have worked at Opportunities Unlimited for almost 14 years now, in a variety of roles. OU is a great place to work, I honestly believe there is nowhere else I could work that would impact my life the way Opportunities Unlimited has. Just like any other job there are definitely good days and rough days but the good days are amazing, I get to see miracle happen. Miracles happen all around OU, it may be something such as someone speaking for the first time, taking a first step, being able to shop for their own groceries or even just telling me what day of the week it is. There are days when I come to work not knowing what to expect and I am surprised to hear about what progress has been made or what goals have been accomplished, I get to leave work with a smile on my face knowing we are making a difference. I tell people all the time when they ask me about my job that there isn’t anywhere else I would want to work, OU has become my second home and I will forever be grateful for the opportunities it has given me to grow in my personal and professional life.
I started at Opportunities Unlimited because my brother told me about the place. I had just left college as I did not know what I wanted to do. I just expected this to be a job while I figured out what I wanted to do. Soon after starting I quickly fell in love with the atmosphere and the persons served. Now I have been here for three years and have continued my education in the Human Services field because of OU.
In early 2016, I evaluated my HR career and really thought about what type of organization I wanted to be a part of going forward. I found what I was missing was working for an organization that truly lived their mission, their core values aligned with mine, and provided me with a sense of purpose and perspective. In the fall of 2016, I saw that OU had an opening for a HR Manager position and I applied immediately. I recall coming into OU for the first time for my interview and the mission, culture, clients, and OU team were all so remarkable that I instantly felt at home and knew I wanted to be part of the team. There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t consider myself fortunate to be working for OU, with the clients, and team. At times, I may think I am having a “bad day” and when I come into OU to start my work day, it truly puts my “bad day” into perspective, specifically when I see what our persons served go through on a daily basis. Since I began working at OU, I have found an even bigger passion for working in HR and helping others. I know at the end of the day, no matter if it is big or small I am making a difference.
When I joined the Opportunities Unlimited Nursing Department my plan was to work here for a while, get some experience then move on to a “real” nursing job. Eight years later I am still here and have progressed in my career from staff nurse to leading the department. Being part of the Opportunities Unlimited Nursing Department has been a wonderful experience and is truly a “real” nursing job. At OU I have been exposed to so many opportunities to use different aspects of Nursing. From wound care to flu immunizations and everything in between; I have seen a little bit of everything here in the OU Nursing department. I have been given the opportunity to develop relationships with the people I am caring for and the doctors that care for them. Every day is different and I love it that way.
We always say “Happy people, happy place” and that is exactly how I feel each and every day that I get to come to work. Not only do I get the privilege to assist individuals with maximizing their personal potential in various activities of their lives, but I also get to be part of a professional family that cares and encourages my personal growth as well. This job has taught me more than I could have ever imagined. It has taught me what patience and persistence can become. It has taught me that success can be seen and written in many different ways, but most of all it has taught me that if you as staff work together as a team, you can literally change individual’s lives one step at a time.
18 years ago, I was hired, I was giving it 6 months and I was moving on to other endeavors (grad school) never would I have thought I would still be here (18 years and forever counting). The mission of OU “Maximizing Personal Potential through Dignified and Purposeful Living” is my mainstay. OU has truly allowed me to do new things and be able to balance work and my family, while making a difference in others. I will always be thankful to the MANY persons that I have encountered on this professional journey and look forward to meeting new people that will keep the passion alive.
Here’s to continuing my career with my OU family!
Working with persons served at OU has taught me the power of progress. Big or small, progress is progress. OU has prepared me for my profession as a special educator by assisting individuals in reaching goals. Every day is different, and I look forward to seeing persons served, their families, and co-workers each shift I work.
I was given an amazing opportunity to work at Opportunities Unlimited for 3 years during high school and college. The life lessons and experiences OU taught me are something I will always be thankful for. Working with children and young adults with disabilities opened my eyes to so many things. The imagination and creative abilities of so many of the kids was wonderful to see, and I enjoyed helping those children use their unique abilities to their full potential. Some days were filled with joy and other were filled with hardships, but most importantly I learned from those days both easy and hard. Seeing the progress towards independence and self-growth of the young kids is a truly inspiring and infectious environment to be around!
When I moved to Sioux City for college and was looking for a job, I knew that with going into education I would want to do something with kids. I applied for a job at the Children's Center through Opportunities Unlimited in 2003 and started a journey that has shaped my life in so many ways. Working at Opportunities Unlimited gave me so much experience that has helped in my career as an elementary teacher and also in my personal life with my own children. The children and adults that receive services through Opportunities Unlimited face challenges everyday that most people take for granted. The amazing thing, though, is that everyone still had big smiles and positive attitudes everyday despite some of those challenges.
The staff may be the ones teaching their clients certain skills, but overall I think the staff is learning so much more. Each individual receiving services at OU has their own unique personalities and special talents, and it was so much fun watching them grow and find those talents. I learned that not one person is the same and that's okay; everyone "shines" in their own particular way. Knowing that every single individual has a special skill and uniqueness has helped a lot in my teaching. It has made it a lot easier to find the potential in every one of the students I teach now.
I have gained an entirely different outlook on life after working at OU, and I am so thankful to have been a part of the Opportunities Unlimited family.
I like Waiver Services because I like spending time with all of the Waiver staff. I love telling them how well I am doing in school. I like going to movies, out to eat, and talking to them. All the Waiver staff like hanging out with me. They are always nice, and I love all of their advice about how to grow up in the future.
Opportunities Unlimited means family to me. It is a family oriented organization - always someone to lean on. When I was in my time of need with my father having his stroke, I was told to "Just go, don't worry about work and call with updates." During this time, I also talked to OT/PT and Speech and learned more information about Traumatic Brain Injuries. The insight I learned gave me ideas in how to help my dad get better. Two years after his stroke, I believe he is 80% closer to what he was before he had his stroke.
Opportunities Unlimited is a place for people who have been impacted by a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) or spinal injury to work towards rehabilitation needs and transition to another part of their life. Opportunities Unlimited helps clients achieve their maximum amount of progress with great support from the community, families and staff.
What I would like everyone to know regarding Opportunities Unlimited is that it is a great place for your loved ones to receive their rehabilitation and great care until their maximum potential is achieved. The staff and therapists work hard with the client's to achieve success and to have them reach all their goals.
Opportunities Unlimited to me means having the satisfaction of helping others and observing progression of individuals we serve. I have been working with one young boy for three years and I have been able to see first hand how his speech has developed. I get to help them build skills for a quality life with opportunities they might not other wise have at another organization.
Working at Opportunities Unlimited over the past three years I have had the opportunity to mature, I started here as an 18 year old kid then progress into a 21 year old adult. I have been able to view disabilities as uniqueness as opposed to a handicap with the help of the individuals we work with. My employment has helped to open my eyes to see the potential for growth for all individuals we serve.
For parents looking to get services for their loved one I would say Opportunities Unlimited is a great place for individuals to grow and pursue independence.
Over the years I have seen phenomenal changes take place in our company. I have seen physical changes, such as a new playground for our clients' and our clients' children and a brand new fully accessible kitchen for our clients' to learn vocational skills. I have seen our Waiver program grow from 15 children in 2004 to 145 children in 2009. I have seen our Waiver program and Residential program learn to work together to make our clients the most independent person they can be and ensure they remain active in our community. But more importantly I have seen the changes and progress with our clients. I love to be a person who can be a part of our clients "firsts". I have seen people talk and walk for the first time (either in their lifetime or after an accident), I have seen a child affected by autism look at their parent and say "mom" for the first time, I have seen a teenager who gets made fun of at school make their first true friend in the OU commons. Being a part of our clients' "firsts" is the best part about our job here at OU.
For me, when I think about what my job at OU means and how it has impacted my life I think of the old phase, "To whom much is given, much is expected." God has blessed so many of us with health, happiness and being surrounded by those we love. Many of our clients are not nearly as fortunate; as many of our adults have limited time with their loved ones and many of our children lack friendships and participating in activities with their peer group. I feel so very blessed everyday, and myself and the other staff of OU see it as our personal mission to make our clients' lives better than our own and to make sure they are given as many opportunities as possible; not only the things that you or I would have access to, but the individual wants and needs that each client has. Our organization will continue to be successful as we serve our clients with the excellence that they deserve.
If I could tell you one thing that I love about OU it would be our work culture. While serving our clients' and making an impact on their lives is the most important thing, the second is the type of environment I get to work in. Opportunities Unlimited expects an environment where we all treat each other with dignity and respect. As we treat each other with dignity and respect we become better people. OU treats their employees incredibly well with the benefits we have access to and all the extras we are given along the way. Our positive work culture also includes the word "family." When I have had tuff times in my life, the staff of OU have been there to support me and my family by whatever means possible. We care about each other and treat each other better than we would want to be treated. OU is the most fantastic experience of my life and I cannot wait to see where our company takes us in our future endeavors!
