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SERV consumer’s artwork displayed
at museum for people with disabilities
By Ida Furente Doolan
Director of Communications
Christian R. views his neighborhood as one with
colorful houses surrounded by neatly trimmed green lawns nourished by bright
sun rays.
Therefore, when the 18-year-old consumer with SERV
Achievement Centers was asked by his teacher at The Academy Learning Center in
Monroe
Township
to draw “My Neighborhood,” that is how Christian accurately depicted the SERV
group home where he lives in
East
Windsor,
N.J.
Rachel Stern, the teacher at Christian Displays his crayon-and-pencil
the school for students
with drawing, "My Neighborhood," which was
autism or autistic-like behavior, selected for an exhibit at the Arts
saw something special in Christian’s Unbound museum in Orange for artists
crayon-and-pencil
artwork and with disabilities. His artwork is a
submitted it to the Arts Unbound depiction of the SERV Achievement
museum in
Orange, where it was group home where he lives in East
selected to be on
exhibit for a Windsor.
month in March.
The opening art reception at
the museum “was just wonderful,” says Dr. Erik Solberg, principal of the school. “Christian was just beaming from ear to
ear. He is a very shy, young man … and I
think it was a wonderful boost to his self-esteem that his work was accepted
and exhibited.”
According to Dr. Solberg,
Christian’s teacher encouraged him to do several drafts until he created the
final submission. “It’s an educational technique of revising what you are
doing,” says Dr. Solberg, who noted that the drawing is now framed and hanging
in the school.
Christian, who is developmentally delayed and has autism,
was delighted to have his artwork on view with others in the gallery at Arts
Unbound, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the artistic achievement of
youth, adults and senior citizens with disabilities. According to the Arts Unbound website, the organization is “committed to
unleashing the artistic expression of persons living with developmental disabilities, mental illness and physical challenges.”
Christian and his brother Jose (“Joey”), 19, who has
the same diagnosis as his sibling, have been with SERV Achievement Centers
since 2006. Their association with SERV
Behavioral Health System began when they transferred from the state Division of
Youth and Family Services to SERV’s Supervised Apartment Program with 24/7
support in Middlesex County. In 2008,
they moved Christian and Nicole at the art exhibit
into a 4-bedroom SERV group opening in March at the Arts Unbound
home in
East
Windsor, which museum in Orange.
they share with two other consumers with
developmental disabilities, Terrance, 14, and Ivan, 17, all of whom have their
own bedroom and get around-the-clock support from SERV staff.
That support includes encouraging the consumers’
interests and helping them to build on their Activities of Daily Living (ADL)
skills, with the goal of greater independence. “I believe Christian and Joey could one day live alone, with occasional
support,” says house manager Nicole Rafalowitz. “We are trying to build their
skills, so they eventually can do it on their own. Those skills include cooking, laundry,
washing dishes, cleaning their room, and of course, communicating,” she says.
The hallmark
feature of autism is impaired social interaction, therefore, encouraging the
consumers to communicate spontaneously, without prompts, is paramount, says
Nicole. “We say to them, ‘Use your words to explain,’
and then we give positive reinforcement (when they do).” To that end, the siblings have frequent
correspondence with their mother in northern
New Jersey
through handwritten letters and
phone calls. (For more information on autism spectrum disorders, visit
the National Institute for Neurological Disorders website at http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/autism/detail_autism.htm )
In addition to
communicating verbally, Christian expresses himself through his art. Using crayons, markers, colored pencils and
paper supplied by SERV, he often draws his favorite Nickelodeon cartoon
character, SpongeBob SquarePants. One
such drawing hangs on the wall in Nicole’s office at the group home.
Joey, a student
at The Academy Learning Center, also has an interest in drawing, but his clear
love is music. ”Christian and Joey both are into music,” says Nicole, who notes
that they are usually carrying around their personal CD players. The brothers use
some of the wages they earn from area stores and restaurants through the work
study program at their school to purchase their favorite music. Buying CDs recorded by Nickelback (rock) or
Chris Brown (R&B) is the reason they relish their outings to the mall.
Nicole says
Christian and Joey are bound together not only by their familial relationship
but also by their common interests. They
do nearly everything together and are usually game for any activity as well,
she says. The brothers and their roommates are members of Club Hero at The Arc
Mercer, which sponsors monthly activities, such as dances, for individuals with
developmental disabilities. Their membership
fees are paid by SERV.
Last spring,
Nicole introduced the young men to the all-American game of baseball through
the Special Olympics organization. The
brothers each played in the outfield during the season and then enjoyed a closing
ceremony with all team members at The College of New Jersey in
Ewing.
When they are
not involved in outdoor Brothers Joey, left, and Christian sit in the living
activities
or building on room of the SERV Achievement Center group
their daily living skills,
the where they live in East Windsor.
brothers and their roommates enjoy playing race car video games and Wii
bowling and tennis in the spacious, first-floor living room of the group
home.
It is, indeed, a
home for these young men who are gradually building a more independent and
meaningful life outside the walls of an institution.
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At SERV we share our experience, support and guidance with children, adults and families as they work to
recover from and cope with mental illness, addictions,
challenging behaviors, and developmental disabilities.