| Founding
Executive Director Joyce Thompson |
 Rotary
(Don Valley) Cheshire Homes Inc. (RCH) would like to pay
tribute on her retirement to our Founding Executive Director,
Joyce Thompson — an extraordinary woman who has devoted
over 25 years of her life to the field of Deaf-Blindness.
Not only is Joyce a teacher, consultant, administrator,
public speaker, advocate, presenter, trainer, planner, fund
raiser, and volunteer — she is also a wife, mother, grandmother,
great grandmother, friend, and a mentor who should be proud
of all her successes.
Joyce began her career as a volunteer at the Canadian National
Institute for the Blind - Deaf-Blind Services, where she later
 became
a Case Manager. During that time she specialized in technical
devices for persons who are Deaf-Blind and became the Author
of the "1st Canadian Catalogue of Assistive Devices for Deaf-Blind
Persons" which was distributed worldwide. Later
Joyce expanded her career and became an Orientation and
Mobility Instructor, which led to her involvement on the founding
Board of Directors for BALANCE.
In 1987, after spearheading a successful presentation
to the Toronto-Don Valley Rotary Club, Joyce became a founding
member of the Rotary (Don
 Valley)
Cheshire Homes Inc., Board of Directors where she played a key
role in the development and design of both the apartments and
the services provided. When the apartments opened in 1992, Joyce
became the Executive Director where she remained until she retired
in July of 2001.
Once the apartments were opened, and after chairing
a Provincial Task Force Review of Intervenor Services for Deaf-Blind
Persons, Joyce recognized a need to develop training programs
that would enable persons who are Deaf-Blind to become active
members in their communities.
Her hard work finally paid off in 2001 when her dreams,
and the dreams of many Deaf-Blind Canadians, became a reality
with the opening of the Canadian Helen Keller Centre (CHKC).
Joyce's drive to develop and provide quality services for persons
who are Deaf-Blind enabled RCH and CHKC to become first class
organizations which are admired around the world.
During Joyce's career at RCH she also devoted much of
her time to many other projects and initiatives. Here are a
few highlights:
-
Developed
and taught "Introduction to Intervenor Services," a
60-hour part-time program at George Brown College (GBC).
-
Founding
member of the George Brown College Intervenor Program Advisory
Committee.
-
Active
member of the Rotary Club of Toronto-Don Valley from 1991-2001.
-
Received
2 Paul Harris Fellowship Awards
(1996,
2001) for her contributions to the field of Deaf-Blindness.
-
Contributed
to the revival of Cheshire Homes Foundation Canada
and served as Treasurer from 1997-2000.
-
Represented
Canada at the Helen Keller World Conference in Bahrain
and spoke at the first conference/symposium on Deaf-Blindness
in both New Zealand and Croatia.
-
Partner
for the development and implementation of the National
Registry of Deafblind Persons in Canada.
In June 2001, a well-deserved retirement celebration was held
at RCH. There w as
a full house with over 100 in attendance. Guest speakers included
David Young, MPP, Jim Peterson, MP, as well as presentations from
Board Members, Staff, and Tenants. Many Rotarians, partners, service
providers, friends, and family members were also in attendance.
This was a true display of how much Joyce is loved, respected
and admired. The evening turned out to be a great success with
a lot of laughs and a lot of tears.
Joyce still remains active in the field today. She currently
sits on the National Board of the Canadian Deafblind and Rubella
Association (CDBRA) where she provides insight to the other members
about the acquired deaf-blindness population, and is involved
in the preparations for the DbI conference in 2003. In addition,
Joyce is also the Treasurer of the Canadian National Society of
the Deaf-Blind (CNSDB) - Joan Mactavish Fund, sits on the board
of the Canadian Foundation for Physically Disabled Persons, is
a member of the Terry Fox Hall of Fame Selection Committee, and
remains an active and faithful volunteer member of the CNSDB and
Deaf-Blind Association of Toronto (DBAT).
Most importantly she is still there for us! Her experience,
expertise, and desire to fulfill the needs of the Deaf-Blind community
will remain valuable assets for RCH, CHKC, and all other organizations
she is involved with in the future.
Thanks to Joyce, her desire to advocate for services for
persons who are Deaf-Blind will remain instilled in the hearts
of everyone at RCH and CHKC.
On behalf of all of us at RCH and CHKC we wish Joyce well
in her retirement and all her endeavours.
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