Posted by Doreen Cummings

Ribbon CuttingOn December 16 JF&CS and New England Communities, Inc. hosted a ribbon cutting to celebrate the opening of a new Collaborative Living Support home that opened in June to support 12 young men with disabilities. This project has been in progress for five years and bringing all of the key players together to celebrate with the new residents and families was wonderful.

We were fortunate to have all of our supporters from the city of Malden present at the event to see our success fully unfold!

  • Mayor Gary Christenson
  • Senator Jason Lewis
  • Representative Christopher G. Fallon
  • Representative Jason Ultrino
  • City Councilor John Matheson
  • Deborah Burke, Executive Director, Malden Redevelopment Authority
  • Stephen Finn, Executive Director, Malden Housing Authority
  • Noah Koretz, HOME Program Director, North Suburban Consortium
  • Lawrence Weiner, President, Beth Israel Senior Citizens Housing, Inc.
  • Stephen J. De Cesare, Vice President, East Cambridge Savings Bank

The families and residents were thrilled to show off their new rooms and to give tours to the guests as everyone enjoyed refreshments and the festivities.

A special thanks to Marc Slotnik, President of New England Communities, and his assistant, Carole Collins, who worked tirelessly over the years to make this dream a reality for our families and residents.

Our Collaborative Living Support model is designed to serve adults 22 years and older who have mild to moderate disabilities in a large house setting. This setting allows for built-in friendships, social opportunities and development, and the chance to integrate with a community of their peers.

Doreen Cummings has been with JF&CS Services for People with Disabilities & Mental Illness since 2005. After receiving a psychology degree from Wheaton College, she worked at the Charles River Center from 1994-2004. During her time in the field, Doreen has been heavily involved in developing family support, day, creative living, and community programming. Doreen enjoys playing softball, singing, being a fan of all Boston teams, web development, iPad-ing, and time with family.