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November 2006 Business of the Month | |||
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Sheltered workshops for persons with disabilities have a long history. Tracing the first back to Boston’s Perkins Institution for the Blind in 1840, it was almost 120 years before the first opened in Missouri. In 1972, the Cass County Sheltered Workshop Association organized as a non-profit corporation to transport 11 workers to Grandview to work, and in 1973 the workshop opened in Harrisonville at 2001 North Commercial. Today, at the 1800 Vine location opened in 1978, the company continues to provide employment for mentally and physically handicapped and disabled adults—and much more. “We have a dual mission,” said Executive director Peggy Kutchback. “We exist to provide meaningful experience to people with disabilities, and we also exist to serve our business customers with a quality product and on-time service.” Global economic changes has greatly effected the type of products traditionally associated with sheltered workshop manufacture. Today the company’s 195 production employees are producing long underwear for the U.S. Army, smoke blankets and curtains for the U.S. Navy and NASA, field kit liners and bandoliers for the U.S. Army, and vests for rest area workers. They also do shrink wrapping, assembly, sorting, quality checks, bagging and sealing, silk screening and manufacturing according to precise customer specifications. In 1991, Casco added the Supported Employment program to provide assistance in job readiness, coaching and personalized support for job placement at local businesses. After working for over 10 years at Casco, one employee moved through the Supported Employment Department to work with Wal-Mart Super Center, and recently received his 10 years of service badge from that company. The third aspect of Casco is the Day Habilitation Program, which now has 11 participants receiving experience in the areas of home management, personal care, vocational skills, communication, leisure activities and other areas to encourage socialization within the community. Kutchback, who is celebrating her 22nd year as Executive Director of Casco this month, became personally interested in the field very early on. “I had a best friend in childhood who was mentally challenged. I became interested in working with people with disabilities at that time,” she said. Kutchback looks to the future of Casco Area Workshop with great optimism. The company recently purchased an additional 15,000 square foot space that they will use for expansion in the near future. “We have good support through the community and we are frugal,” Kutchback said.
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