LARC – Developmental Disabilities Services

0:00This is Jan Swift and you're listening to Discover Lafayette, a podcast dedicated to the people and rich culture of Lafayette, the gateway to South Louisiana. We tape Discover Lafayette at Raider's headquarters in the oil center of Lafayette. Raider is a managed IT service provider that offers world-class service, including cybersecurity, communications, and technology support. With Raider, you have just one vendor and one number to call, allowing you to concentrate on what is most important, your business. For more information, visit RaiderSolutions.com. And while we're talking about Raider, many thanks to Jason Sacora of Raider, who records and mixes our sound, ensuring a professional podcast production.

1:00Today's episode is supported in part by HomeBank. For more than a century, they've championed local entrepreneurs with tools and resources that help small businesses thrive. Learn more about how HomeBank invests in our communities at home24bank.com. Discover Lafayette is also grateful for the support of LFT Fiber, which offers speeds from 250 megabits to one gig, and prices as low as $55 a month. Learn more at lftfiber.com or call 337-993-4237, LFT Fiber powered by community connected by Fiber. Today, we welcome Nicole Harrison, Chief Operating Officer and Interim CEO of LARC. LARC is a 501-C3 non-profit organization, and for over 60 years, they've been dedicated to serving the needs of people in a KDNS community with developmental disabilities and their families. LARC also owns and operates a KDN village.

2:02I thought of LARC recently, in fact, during Mardi Gras day, as I witnessed the incredible amount of beads and throws being tossed about. Mardi Gras beads and more is a popular enterprise run by LARC and a source of employment for LARC participants. I thought it'd be great, Nicole, to get you on the show and teach all of us more about the incredible work of LARC and also how we can help as a community to support you in all the different ways you make that possible. Thank you for joining us. You're welcome. Yeah, this is such a pleasure, Interim CEO and Chief Operating Officer. You've got your hands full. Yes, may I might? Yeah. How long have you been with LARC? 13 years. Yeah. I started off as a DSW direct support staff working in the homes with the individuals that we served. And since then, I've worn many heads. Well, tell us first about yourself before we jump into LARC. Where'd you grow up and background and that kind of stuff? So I live in Lafayette.

3:04I was born and raised in Lafayette. I am a graduate of Komohai. I'm a Spartan. I've worked a lot with individuals, not per se with intellectual disabilities. My first job was kind of in the nursing home as a sunshine aid. So I would pass like ice and water to the individuals that was in the nursing home. So I've been at LARC for 13 years now. I started off as a DSW working with the individuals in their own home because LARC does have several different programs. Okay. Well, you know, I've heard about LARC and in the intro, I said that it's dedicated to serving the needs of people with developmental disabilities in their families. That's, there's so much involved in that before you can even help people, right? If you want to talk about what LARC does basically to help individuals that need some guidance. So LARC is dedicated to empower individuals with intellectual disabilities, live a meaningful

4:08independent and fulfilling life. So normally when they graduate high school, when individuals graduate high school, we'll have a vocational program that they may want to attend. At that vocational program, they may come Monday through Friday and it's normally 8 to 2.30 and they'll learn life skills. So we have maybe 10 different classroom, well, it's not a classroom, 10 different rooms that are set up that they can choose what makes their day meaningful. So if they come and they say, you know what, today I just want to watch a movie. We have a movie room. That sounds like me. It's just, you know, I'm just re-racking. Yeah. So they say, you know what, I say it up kind of late. I just want to go into movie room, whereas the lights are kind of down, they have the choice to go there. If they say, you know what, I'm feeling like I want to do a little dancing today. We have a room, a music room where they can, I see y'all have a guitar right here. We have a guitar there. They can play music, they can listen to any type of music they would like. We have a recreation room where they have different games they can play.

5:12We have a computer room, which they can, they may learn how to work on a resume, build a resume, they may, the instructor may help them seek job opportunities because we do have a supported employment program as well. But out of all the rooms that we have, the biggest hit is the bingo room. Is it? Oh, I have fun. Everyone loves bingo, so we actually had to convert one of our other rooms into a bingo room. We have two bingo rooms. Are there prizes? Yes, ma'am. They're like prizes. Yes, ma'am. All right, we're going. I know. And we've been going. I've never been there. I've never been there. So we're always accepting donations for our prize to give away, yes, ma'am. All the kind of things to people contribute. You know, they like, the individuals, it could be a pencil. They love pencils. They love fidget, fidget items. It could be a pouch to hold a pencil, a notebook. So very simple. Very simple.

6:14Our individuals, they are not hard to please, like, they're just full of love. We were talking about that before the show started. How does somebody qualify to participate with large? Do you have to be certified? Do you have to go through, is it a state program? Yes, ma'am. Talk about that. You would go through in this area, a cadana area, it's on Dulles Street, and all of our individuals have to have a statement of approval. It's like a district office. Yes, ma'am. And that's something that you can obtain from a cadana area. So they have to do that before they can qualify? Yes, ma'am. Is there a charge for LARC for people to attend? So it just depends. We may have some individuals that may pay privately, but the services are normally like waiver, the waiver department may pay for it. It just depends. It's income based. Yes, ma'am. So, like, if we have anyone from the group homes that attend normally that group home pays

7:16the bill. Okay. So people that come, I read on your website, it's over 150 individuals, I guess, on any given day. Are they typically younger or are they, are they all ages? I know you said they have to be 18 to be able to, we have 18, we have some individuals at a day program that might even be in their 70s. I think our oldest one is probably 77. Because LARC has been around for over 60 years. Yes, ma'am. So you have some long term. Yes, ma'am. And we also have, we just recently opened some group homes in the Zachary location. Oh, okay. Yeah. Yeah. Well, I don't even know where to start. You do so much, and I recommend people go. It's LARC. Lafayette. Lafayette.org. Right. There's so much that you do. If you want to kind of break down, let's talk about the services first and then like the support things that generate income for you. But, so the people come, let's say you have 150 people on any day, some may be out working. I know some may be doing other things.

8:18But this is a day program for the average attendee. And you feed people. You're training them. Talk about a typical day, you know. So a typical day, they'll arrive. We provide transportation to and from the location, we'll pick them up at their home. Wow. And we'll bring them back to their home. They'll get there. They'll normally go to their home room. We call it home room just so that we can account for everyone that is on campus. But after that, they have the freedom to roam around, to whatever, whatever is meaningful for them. But they're tired, go to the movie room, you know, whatever makes their day meaningful. And the way we have it set up is we'll have like two or three different lunches and then they get to choose which lunch they want to go to. So they may orchestrate with their friend, hey, I'm going to first lunch or hey, I'm going to second lunch. So that they can all like meet together to have lunch together.

9:18And throughout the day, they just kind of go to whatever room makes them, makes their day meaningful. Yeah. I read that it's like $3.50. For lunch? For lunch. Is that still accurate? This is from your website. I don't know. Yes, ma'am. So we do have the Saint Anne's cafeteria and they will get our dietitians, they provide, they cook hot meal, some individuals, they do bring their own lunch, but if they do choose to eat in a cafeteria, it's normally $3.50, but that covers the overhead cost. Yeah. Right. I'm sure that doesn't cover everything involved. Yeah. Yeah. And then after lunch, they have a full day. Yes, ma'am. They go to whatever room they want to go to again. All of the rooms that we have, one of the popular spots is outside under the gazebo, they'll bring their own radio and you'll hear some Elvis Presley playing, they be having a ball. More dancing. Yes, they dance as well.

10:19We have a couple of individuals, like a withdrawal party, they will not get off the dance floor there, sweating, they will not, they will dance the entire time. So is there a spectrum of, you know, the level of disability, I don't know if you can talk about that, but, you know, what type of individuals are you seeing? So we have, we have individuals with mild intellectual disabilities that those individuals, they may hold a job in the community. The levels is like normally mild, moderate, severe and profound. So we have a range of all of the individuals. When you get to individuals that have a profound intellectual disability, they may not be able to complete their own ADLs. So that's activities of daily living, so it may be brushing their hair, combing their hair, brushing their teeth, even choosing clothing for them to wear.

11:21They may not understand, hey, it's kind of cold outside today, I need a jacket. So that's where our staff is, our staff helps them with choices, but then we have, we promote independence, though. So if it's something that they have a goal, like, let's just say you have someone that is unable to brush their teeth independently, we may set a goal for them. And that first goal may just be a reminder, hey, I got to brush my teeth today, that they can accomplish, or it can be, let's just say that was one of the goals, and they have, they remember that now, I got that down pack. So the next one may be that they get the toothbrush, and they put toothpaste on it. And once they complete that task, they may work on that for like three months. Once they complete it at 100%, that's like a huge milestone, but I guess it's a satisfaction for them. So all of them have a different cognitive level.

12:24You may have someone that can't tell you, they may not know their name, but if you put a song on, the date that song came out, like, the year it came out, and know everything about that song, you can be one of our individuals today and tell them that you have a son or daughter in their name. Whenever you come to the program, hey, how such and such, like, they are so genuine, genuine, they're going to ask you, hey, how such and such doing, maybe, like, you remember that, and they do. Yeah. Very fulfilling job. I can only imagine. This must be a big help for the families. It is. Yeah. I know you do. You have support services for family members, right? So we have community supports and services. That department is where the individual may live in their own home, and we provide services to them in their home. So they may live alone or we'll provide PCA services where they may live in the home

13:29with their family member, and we may go for a lot of amount of hours to help that person. It may be to help them to get them to their doctor's appointments and maybe to take them shopping. It may be just to take them community engagement, community inclusion. Right. Right. Okay. Residential services. I know that you have some homes where people can live, and I know you can't fill all the needs for that, but can you talk about that, please? So we have 10 group homes total. We have four in Lafayette and six in the Zachary location. Some of them are two in Zachary, two in Baker, and two in Jackson, Louisiana. I didn't realize you were in two different parts of the state. That's a lot. Yes, ma'am. So what are the group homes like? How many people can reside? So most of our group homes are where eight individuals reside, but we do have our biggest group home, which is our civil-tanned group home, and that's a cohorts group home. So we have 16 individuals reside in that home.

14:33And in the group home, we have staff 24 hours, and they are there to assist individuals and whatever needs they may have. And again, it may be someone may have a mild intellectual disability that can do everything for themselves, or is someone that we have to provide all assistance for them. I'm assuming that physicians and other support professionals will advise families if they have a child with developmental disabilities. I'm assuming that they tell them that Laura is a resource. Is that how do people find out about you besides this podcast, you know? So normally a KDN area, they will find out through a KDN area, and normally what happens is it depends on the department. So like our community support and services department, the family or the individual will get a freedom of choice. And on the freedom of choice, they will have a list of all the provider agencies alike for them to choose from.

15:34So it's a KDN area, or you have MRG, or Kaden switches, support coordinate agencies. That'll assist in that as well. Right. Right. I want to hear more about some of the activities that you guys do and how you support your services. And I guess since I brought up the Barnagrab beads and more, you know, it's a wonderful thing for people not to just hoard their beads if they're not going to use them, but to donate, right? To Laura. Yes, ma'am. So can you talk about that? So when the parade goers, they don't eat their beads back. It provides our individuals with the opportunity for employment. So once the beads are donated back, we have individuals that work, and it will sort the beads, and we will resell them. So by doing so, it gives them employment and empowerment and independence because they can get their own paycheck. So people just come to Lark before Mardi Gras and like just order beads.

16:35So before the season starts, we'll start promoting our Mardi Gras beads store. So they will come. They will buy beads. Sometimes you have people that are calling, we'll have it ready for them. Hey, I need a couple of dozens of beads. They'll tell us what color. We'll have it ready for them, and they will come and pick it up. And then after the parades, we'll have a float that rides saying throw us your beads back. Oh, that was what that was. Yes, ma'am. Okay. Yeah, we were throwing beads back. Yes, ma'am. Because you get so many. Yeah. But if you ever miss the opportunity to throw the beads back, you can always come to Lark. And we have a white bin outside of the KTM Village where they can put it in there or they can actually go to the store itself if it's open and donated, and they'll drop it up there. Yes, ma'am. What kind of price does JL charge for you? You have that information about the beads. I saw on your website the bags. You can buy like bags of beads and like you said, specify the color, huh?

17:36Yes, ma'am. Yeah. But I do not know the price. That's all right. People can call. Yeah, the listeners don't forget that. And then the general store, I was looking on your Facebook page, just precious baby clothes that are beautiful, Louisiana t-shirts and sweatshirts and is a bourbon royalty. I know it was one of the candles and all the different scents for the home. Right. There's local artists that come, um, we buy from them. This is Karen Davis speaking with some marketing director. I mean, you take the marketing person quite, um, there's, there's, my favorite room is the Christmas room we have, um, it's, you know, is that your round, uh-huh, people love to buy that. I mean, it's great. Like, I have a lot of expats that live in other states, like relatives, and I just send them a box. We have seasonings, pots, cast iron pots, um, mixes, gumbo mix. I never thought about that. I mean, I've been out. We're going to talk about the, um, Christmas, you know, the Katie village, but that's

18:37a place to go shop for guests. Oh, yes. You, our t-shirts, just like in French, you know, Ted, but there's just, and the kids clothing, I just picked up a bunch of, I mean, the kids things that we have, like, a, um, a fishing kid, a fishing kid, who would, you know, um, just the stuffed animals, but the gossoles, the little hats, um, the dolls, you know, it's all, and then we have old time candy. Oh, you do. I mean, you just, yeah, like, root beer, candy, and things like that, um, but the craft work, our artists, the paints, the paintings, um, the ornaments made from Okra. Like, if you've not a dried Okra and paint it red, like a santa, oh, yeah, oyster shells. Wow. It's just great to opt for a shop. I want to come shop. I was just going shopping after this. No, I mean, look at the Facebook page. It's just beautiful. Well, and I want to, like, the village, you know, not, people come to our Christmas program, they have no idea, Lark owns a Canadian village. Right.

19:38And the beautiful part of all this is all just, we donated out of love. The Alamos, it used to be called the Alamo Center, the old folks, uh, say the Alamo Center, but the Alamos were a couple who had no children of their own. They were raising a special needs niece. And where the village is located, it was all farmland. They donated the land, and people started donating homes prior to that, because this is the 50th year of a Canadian village. Lark was located by the airport. So we, um, and it was started, you know, we talk about our programs. We have basically four programs under the Lark umbrella. But at the core of this is parents that, back over 60 years ago, the only option they had was to institutionalize their child. They got together, formed a group, and one of our founders, Dr. Norman Hurr, was a history professor at U.L., sweet man. Um, him and his wife had three special needs children. And we have those, those adults at Lark, they've outlived their parents.

20:40So that is the core of what we do, why we do it, and who we do it for. These parents wanted to make sure their children are taken care of. Um, so we have some of the residents in the group homes, where they're family now, they've outlived their families. Um, so the Alamos donated the land, the houses were brought in, and we have all original homes. Deadly LeBlanc, they had to call me. We have the home, I'm from Young'sville, so I'm all about two, and Young'sville is more. The home he was born in. Really? Is the LeBlanc house? Yes. So, um, I mean, it's just a beautiful place. It's a beautiful place with a beautiful mission. We take care of people that can't take care of themselves. So the group homes, Nicole, it, it sounds like a lot of them are people that they really need. They need a base, right? We're yet. So it's going to be your older population. No, they, they'll come in at the age of 18, um, just recently, um, I've seen a spike in individuals that are coming in from child services, children services.

21:42I think they're Asian out at the age of 18, and they're, they're being put in a group home. I see. So, um, just recently, over the past couple of months, I've had an, um, an influx of individuals that are just making 18, yeah, transition in from child services to the group home. And they are so happy. Like, our group home individuals, they go to wrestling, they go to concerts, there's, they have a bowling league, they do special Olympics. So when the parents do come and want to maybe pick them up for the weekend, they don't want to go. Because they're with their friends, they are with their friends, and they don't want to miss them. They sleep over, you know, like they'll live it on their own, they'll live in the best life. Why would they want to go home? Yeah. Like, we have something like that, you don't want to come. And when I tell you, there is so vocal, um, I don't like the way this staff cooks. Now we're getting into it. The way this staff cooks. I don't like the way that they are very vocal, like they have a lot to say. They will tell you the way they feel, you will know, they won't make it known if they're

22:42unhappy with something. There's no filter. There is no filter. We have a, which is kind of a good thing, you know, yeah, yeah, there is no filter. You know where you say it. You just don't ask. Well, you said they don't really care what you look like. They don't care, but they will tell you, like, that shirt doesn't look good on you, Miss Kim. Don't, don't, don't wear that. You're like, well, what am I going to do, you know, but we have like, we have the best volunteers also because we have the master coordiners, um, that when, when, uh, gentlemen, Mr. Charles came in one day and said, look, I'm a tard. I'm going to maybe have a planet Gordon, show them how to plan a Gordon. So he did the flowers. And then we had someone else that I happened to Mr. Bobby Dornale that was just retired. And he's like, I've always wanted to start a community garden. I'm like, why don't you come to Lord and see beautiful setting. So now they have flowers and the most beautiful vegetable garden. They come around every Monday, Wednesday, Friday, ring and a bell when they harvest the crops. And we buy from them. And it's good food, good vegetables. And then some of it goes into the cafeteria.

23:44Right. Well, so what do they do now? And you eat and that I grew it. You better wake up. Eat all that. Don't waste it. But it's just the pride. I mean, they, they've learned how to store it, the seed, they're even drawing herbs now. The cabbages are just beautiful. Um, and so they're having fulfilling lives. They're doing, they're with their friends during the day. They get to go to all kind of events on the weekend, you know, they're living their best life. Yeah. Y'all were saying before we started recording that really, if you're having a bad day, you, you know, you guys, it's really the place to be. Oh, it is. Because you're uplifted. They, they, yes, because everything is beautiful to them. It's truly unconditional love. Um, they don't, they just don't care what you, what you look like, you know, unless they don't like the shirt. Sure. You know, I'll walk around campus and they don't care if I'm sweaty. How you doing there? What's going on, Miss Karen? You know, come see this. We grew this today. The artwork is beautiful. Um, some of them do wonderful artwork.

24:46The instructors are just, these are not people that have been trained, you know, uh, their volunteers that come in. No, they're pay, but, but they, they are just loving them. Uh-huh. They're doing arts and crafts with them. They're taking them outside to exercise. Um, they don't know like maybe technical things they need to know like a psychiatrist psychologist. They just know that they're there to love them and, and, and keep them happy. And they do. Right. Um, that's another level of unconditional love. We've had some instructors that have been with us for a long time, over 20 years. Over 20 years. We've had some individuals that have been with us since they were out of high school. So, you know, this is, um, it's just a different place. It's the most of us don't know anything about this. I, you know, I knew about the beads and then we'd go to Katie and Village of Christmas when our girls were younger. It sounds like I'd need to get back out there and put it to, you know, because the bead store is located in the village. So when they want to snack, they're marching with their wallet, going to the store and

25:49getting their chips, getting their little bit of candy, and if they want to buy something for one of their friends, and it's always thank you best manners, the best, and then you want to come see what we're doing in the bead shop. So when the visitors come, tourists come to the village, that's one of the stops and they get to see that. These people are thriving. They have a job, don't mess with their coins, they have a job, they want their paycheck, and they're going, they're going and enjoying life on the weekends with their friends. Some of them shoot, we have like basketball goals, the different, and they're out there shooting, playing basketball, and I'm like, didn't make that rebound, use the rim, you know, you can get it in the backboard, not the rim. They just, and they walk, they exercise, and so what if they're limited? They don't know they're limited. Is that the way it is? Maybe the higher functioning may now, or I don't know, we pull from their abilities, not their disabilities. That's the focus, what they can do. Yes, ma'am, what they can do. If it's something that they can't do, we will set goals for them, it's for them to reach

26:50that goal. You know, I think you should come by, Ms. Janne, come get a tour, come get a tour. Because the limits are in our mind, it's not in their mind. Yeah, yeah. You know, that's the thing. And you know, it's all, we're all God's children, and maybe we're the ones, I don't mean this facetiously, maybe we're the ones with limits. Oh, we are. We're the ones with the disability, because think about it, I mean, if somebody is just going to love you for who you were all supposed to take care of each other. And that's what they're doing. They just, like I said earlier, and I needed to get back to work, and that was the first thing. So in the mornings, I'm out there, when they come off the van, you're always a smile. I mentioned to you, my birthday was just recently, and they coordinated for me to come outside. And when I walked outside, everyone was outside, they all sang Happy Birthday to me. I got at least 70, 75 hugs. That is the most hugs I got in one day.

27:51Yeah, one year. One year. In a year, like, and when they would hug me, Ms. Nicole, like we love you, you know, it's just like, I love y'all too, like it was just so fulfilling. I actually said, I shared some tears, because it was, it was rewarding, you know, are there a lot of tourists that come throughout the year, or is it more Christmas? So we'll have over 50,000 people for Christmas. Whoa. We would love to have that many, we have, you know, people that come to the village and tour. Yes. We have European, we have best tours, school groups, local people when they have people in town. Is there a charge for admission? Yes. So the village is the fundraising arm of Lork. And so that's how it was set up, and it was in 1976, is when it opened. So yes, so it's open every day, except Sunday. And what is the admission? I think $10 is the admission. Also the village is great for corporate functions. We have number of weddings, showers, birthday parties, the special events.

28:53Like, I think rooms, so people can have girlfriends. We have numerous rooms. You know, you can have your bridal shower. We have a log cabin where it's a bridal suite where you can spend the night. We have a groom's area. You can do the whole, the wedding, complete wedding. And they just bring their caterers in, or do you offer? Right. Oh, daily music. We have a volunteer, Mr. John, that comes, he's retired. He just wants to come and sit and visit with people. So if you visit your entertain, you can walk the grounds. Right. You can walk. I didn't realize about conferences. That's a great site for business. We have so many crawfish balls. It's a perfect place because we have an outdoor pavilion. We convert it for Christmas, but it's closed. You're covered. The stutes building is a great, Nicole's getting married soon. Congratulations. Birthday and getting married. Yes. It's a big year. Yes. It was modeled. The stutes building, Mr. Ferdinand suits was a barber. He had a general store and he can marry people.

29:53So we have a replica that is family-donated items. So showers, birthday parties, receptions. We have special events there as well. And we have events. Try to have quarterly events for the village, because again, it's a tourist center, but it's also our fundraising sector. How many people, can you accommodate for these larger events? 500 people. Really? A real-offish ball. Yeah. I mean, we have ten acres. So we can accommodate a lot of people. I'm so glad you brought this up. I knew about the weddings being out there and all. The chapels think about other events. Right. We have the most beautiful chapel. And the whole place is beautiful with the flowers and then at night time, it's just beautiful as well. We let up. Well. Some parts are. Some parts are. Some parts. Now, we do have the lights. We start installing in July. Takes a while to get those lights up. You can. If you want to get married with Christmas lights, we have that ability to open prior to opening to the general public. A few people have wanted, got married, but you got six or seven thousand of your closest

30:56friends at your wedding. Yeah. It just depends. For the Christmas program, I mean, ten acres is a real scattered. So, you know, it's crowded on certain nights, but it's still you can still. Yeah, just remember walking around the chapel and the, you know, the homes and all that stuff. Right. It's so much fun. And it's, you know, remember our culture over here is different than any other place in the world. The Canadian culture, I mean, it's just, it's beautiful. When we say how you do and we really wait to see how you're doing, we want to, you know, so that's what we try to encompass over there, you know, you're greeted with local people, with local things in the store. And then, you know, we do like people to come see us. If you'd like to take a tour of Laura to see what we do, we just ask that you contact us. I have a time. Yeah. So, have somebody walk around with you. I like to do it because I get to visit with. Yeah. Well, please talk about Christmas time at a Canadian village, either one of you that want

31:56to share why we need to get out there. Noelle Acadia O'Village is our largest fundraiser. And it's December 1st through the 23rd every night, 5.30 to 9, unless we have to shut down for the weather. But the beautiful part is it's about 40 to 50 volunteers a night. If paid staff really, you know, I've been doing it. I've been associated with the village for 25 years. So I've been a glorified volunteer. But every, every night, I need about 40 to 50 volunteers. What did I do? So I have parkers the night to Columbus Park. We have people that need, I need in concession. We need people walking around, screwing the lights back on because little fingers sometimes like to twist them off. People in the gift shop just walk around helping people, but the majority of the people we need. And the other thing is, we have pictures with Santa. We have entertainment every night, local school groups. We don't pay anyone to perform. We have groups in the chapel that play acoustic, the Bayouharp circles, my favorite, it's just

33:02cause. And then we have Lauren Baker. She. Violinist. Yeah. So talented. Dance schools come out, bands come out, individual singing schools come out. So it's just all a combined group effort of volunteers. But the problem is we can have to let people know we've been doing this. This is the 40, the fifth year, 40, 40, the 2026 this year. For the Christmas program, but people still come and buy tickets, what's this for? You know, and when you're in line, after your kids have been screaming and I want to go in, I want to go in and we like just when some of our individuals come in, that's who we do it for. We had one this year and I'm just like, he's just great. He's been with us forever. His sister's been a avid supporter, but he lives in one of our group homes. So we had a performer that they were trying to get the feel of the chapel, you know, so they wanted to keep the door closed. So one of the group homes came and our eight guys and they said, well, we want to go in and so the singer, her help, or said, well, she's just practicing right now.

34:05He said, we are lark. We are going in. And you know what though? But he was absolutely right. Yeah. Because that's who we do it for. He got in. They all went in. Because who's going to tell him, no, Jay, you can't come in right now. He was all, it was great. And they sing and I'll pull them on stage if I see that some of them, because people that are paying to come in need to see where their money's going. And that's, every dollar goes to help those individuals. 50,000 people. 50,000 people. That is a lot. And that's coming from all around. Coming from all around. Yeah. Now into Texas, yeah, because people are coming in for the holidays. Now we do shut down on the 23rd. We will never open on the 24th or after, because all our people, we have a core group that have been in there every night. We have staff. Oh, I see what you're saying. We have long term volunteers and they're there every night. And they need to have their own holiday. So, you know, we've been so many calls, well, please have family coming in.

35:08We've just got the first through the 23rd. They just have to be home with their families, because they, you know, it's the same local banks, credit unions, businesses. They just, they're avid supporters. I just have to give them 20 minutes notice them, I'm like, I'm shorthanded, you'd come in, I'm coming, I'm on the way. And they believe in what we're doing. We have a raffle every year, we give away cash instead of, you know, we used to do cars and different things, but people, you know, they want that money now. How much cash? $15,000. Oh. So you buy tickets in addition to your own? You buy tickets, right. You can buy them online. And we, you know, we had to change with progress and we can buy tickets online. You can buy the raffle tickets online. You can buy them at the gate. You know, we start, I start promoting this, I do it all year long, but, you know, come September, you'll start seeing commercials and on the Facebook page, but it's all a volunteer effort. So, if you, if your listeners want to volunteer, you can even sign up online. Yeah. How fun.

36:09How old do you have to be to volunteer? It's 17. Okay. We do have some families that have come. It's just, you know, we're a concession area. There's hot food and we just need to, you know, make sure that there's certain age so they can handle that, but we have better groups that come out. We have large families, a lot of companies in the area that come and volunteer their time. They might not be able to donate money, but they'll come volunteer their time. Well, it all adds up. Oh, yeah. Every, every bit. You can donate online, also, right? Absolutely. Can you talk about that? Our chief operating officer over here, Nicole, you know. So if you want to donate, you can go to LafayetteLark.org. Largy. There's a drop down. You see, donate at the top and yeah, you can, I'm sure you take mail and checks too, but you can, you want to come by and bring us money and you come check it out. Come check it out. Yeah. In the day program, like bingo prizes, just different things like that that helps. The cafeteria, we get our food from second harvest, but we don't turn anyone away.

37:13Some individuals do not have the ability to pay for the operate, the $3.50, but that's okay. They're still going to eat. So we have people that have chosen to donate to the cafeteria. Different things, the day program, because the components are the village, the day program, yes, yes, which is community supports and services and SIL supervise independent living, the residential program. So we take, like, if you have org supplies, if you're cleaning out your attic, things like that, they love org supplies. I mean, just crayons, crayons, cardboard, cardboard, we have a long time staff, maybe 25 years. She makes anything out of cardboard. She made mortigraph loads with the tractors pulling. How fun. But they do it in their classroom. And so they might not be able to do it all the way, but she'll help them and they're all

38:13going home, but every holiday, she's focusing on... And you can get those at Costco. You know, I get my daughters and daughters sometimes. She boxes. She boxes. She boxes. She boxes. Any type of cardboard. Wow. They make it beautiful. They'll color it, they'll paint it, they'll cut it out and just, I think we won, you will paint the town red. We won, like, four years ago and so paint the town red when she told that second place. Oh, second. Well, that's hard too. But that's still... Yes. But she, to them, paint the town red, well, they made some towns. But she actually used the camera film, the little plastic, the black with the gray. And that was what she used on the utility poles. Oh, cute. It was a whole town. Then they had a separate village. They made a... The K-DM village. Then they made a separate village, but they named each building after one of their friends

39:14that have passed away. So the judges came in and when they started explaining what they were doing, there was not a dry eye. I was thinking that. The village took the whole room and just it was... We should have won first place. We should have. I know. File an objection four years later. Jan said, so, do you just love your jobs? I mean, it sounds like you'll love what you do. I love you. There's no other place. There's no other place like it. I love what I do. I love what I do. I can be having a bad day and just walking any room and they're always excited to see and meet people. Right. They're nosy. They're nosy. They're nosy. Oh, yes. It's like the soap operas. What are you doing here? Where are you from? What are you doing here? What's that paper in your hand? It's like the soap operas. Mm-hmm. Hey, do you know that this one and this one is dating and I'm like, oh, yes. Oh, yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. They know everything. It gives you hope.

40:15I mean, it's just all about hope. Being all that they can be and just us learning from it. So I know you guys have more than just, you know, we've talked about the big event, like Christmas at a Katie and Village, but I was looking at your Facebook page which is beautiful and not only seeing what's in the general store, but there's also upcoming events. Is that kind of the best place for people to look on your, is it your Facebook page? Yes, ma'am. That is the best way for people to stay updated on the events that, the upcoming events that we have. If they want to come support you. Yes, ma'am. We have a shop and stroll market at the village on Saturday, March 14th from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. It's opportunity. It's not going to be vendors like can come sell things, right? I saw there's a, yes, ma'am, a booth fee, but that's going to be fun. Yes, ma'am. It should be really fun. And we have a lot of new merchandise in the store, so it's the perfect opportunity to shop. We also have the golf tournament coming up, May 8th in Abbeyville at Southern Oaks Country

41:15Club. I think if people want to see things, really, it's worth checking out. Yes, ma'am. Is it just Facebook or do you have other social media? The Village has a website as well. Right now is just Facebook, but we are working on a TikTok account. Yes. Well, you can get there by your dance. Sounds like that'd be a great, you know, to showcase how much fun people have. Yes, ma'am. Yeah. Anything y'all wanted to get in, we're going to be asking Jason Sikora, Jason, thank you for recording us today. Was there anything that you wanted to get in that we haven't asked yet? No, ma'am. I think that we have ever seen that. There's some points. Yes, ma'am. She's hung the big mouth. She's not so quiet. Yeah. Having a microphone in front of your face can be intimidating. Very. Yeah. And sometimes I forget I have it, but some days it's just when you're thinking you want to get everything across. Sometimes it's easy to forget. So that's why I asked it, I covered things. Jason, you've been listening.

42:16Yeah. You got some questions? I do have some notes here. Nicole and Karen, thank you guys for coming down here. Karen, I knew you were going to need a microphone. I know. So when we put it in front of you, it just looks like I'm going to want to talk. Yeah. Especially when it comes to Christmas. Yeah, yeah. I mean, is everything Christmas? Well, I think when you come into a podcast room and you sit down as a microphone, you're going to talk. Yeah. That's how it goes. So thank you guys for coming down. I love this. I just want to recap the website really quick. It's LafayetteLark.org. That's L-A-R-C dot org. And then you said there's a Facebook for LafayetteLark in one for the village. And the Welacariana Village. Oh, okay. Okay. Just the event. The Christmas event. But yes. So Katie and Village has a Facebook page. LafayetteLark has a Facebook page. Okay. Excellent. So yeah, all you listeners out there definitely go hit the follow button on those. And then donations can all be done through the website or in person. And then volunteers you set are also through the website. Right. So to probably around September, I'll put up a link. Okay. I do sign up genius that helps because they can pick their date and time because I have

43:17all the slots. Yeah. But if they have any questions before, just please give me a call. And I will speak to any group, um, have no problem. I'm in a row to read Youngsville Road, yeah, I was there this morning, but I'll speak to rotary groups, koanas, um, anybody that wants to hear what we're about and everybody should want to hear what we're about because we do great things. Excellent. Donations, what you guys were talking and, you know, we just moved into this office. We were talking ahead of time and rearrange and so all you businesses out there as you're moving offices or moving around, there's going to be a lot of office supplies and pans and paper and colored markers that would be great donations. So don't throw those out. Go donate instead. Donate. And also, you know, our individuals like to take field trips. They go on outings every day. So they would love to come take a tour. Oh, okay. You know, any, they're just, they love it. They love to go out and see what other businesses do. So that's think about having them. That's fantastic. All right. Question for both of you guys. What's the most fulfilling part of your job and it can be very specific or very general like whatever that is to you as a parent.

44:20I think I would, I would like to know that my children would be taken care of and I think that's the most important part of our mission, um, caring for people that can't take care of themselves, but also giving those parents peace of mind that they're going to be okay and we love them. I mean, they, they, what they give us is much more than we give them, but they're, they're well taken care of and they're well loved. Excellent. Nicole, how about you? What's the most fulfilling part of what you do? The most fulfilling part of what I do is being an advocate for them, um, because when they can't speak or depend themselves, I can. Oh, yeah. Um, not just myself, I have a team of people, um, and that's what we're there for. We're there. Excellent. All right. So I always have like the wishless question. You know, is there something out there that's been in the back of your mind that you would love to have a resource out there or whether it be more volunteers, more money, obviously, more land, more donations like what do you, what do you guys really need right

45:23now that you would love to get your hands on? I think I would love for, um, more community engagement for individuals, um, be open minded and receptive, um, welcoming, um, them to take a tour, um, take a tour of an establishment or just community inclusion. Yeah. Yeah. Um, that's, that's what I would like. That makes sense. Can I ask a question on that line? Yes. So for people that are over 18, um, I don't know how many assets some of your residents have or your attendees, but they still need legal documents, right? Like a power of, healthcare, power of attorney, um, other things that lawyers could do to volunteer to help on those lines, you know what I'm saying? Like I'm, I guess it's a selfish me asking, but they still have needs. Yes, ma'am. Um, so just recently, um, we made sometimes run into an issue because even though an individual

46:27has an intellectual disability, um, and they may have a profound intellectual disability where they do not understand finances, medical, um, they're still considered competent major. They can still sign documents, so legally, they can still sign documents, but do they understand what they're signing? They do not. No. Um, so that's when, um, the family normally comes in and since they are over the age of 18, they would have to be interdicted or continue in tutorship. Um, so we do run into, um, times where we will have someone that doesn't have a family member at all, and so we are seeking, um, legal guardianship for them, and sometimes it may have to be, uh, like a legal guardianship service, but it's, they can't afford it at times. Um, so sometimes we do need legal advice or need, um, an attorney to step in and help

47:32because that person may not have family members. So hospitals will treat them if they're over 18 and, um, that don't have anyone has the health care power of attorney for them? Yes, ma'am, um, because we'll have like an ID team. Um, so normally, um, we'll have like a team of people, so you might have like a QIDP, um, like if they're in the residential department, we have an, um, I'm Budsman, um, that I'm Budsman. She is the spokesperson. She's the advocate for that person. So there's some, in some instances where we might have to include her, um, in some of the decision-making, but for the most part, we are the decision-making. Yeah, thank you for explaining that. And I'm sure, once you go through Akadiana, the service district, I'm sure if they're qualified for that, then that kind of speaks for them being able to get treatment, you know, get help for whatever it is. But I just was curious listening because interdiction is, it's tough, but not if you've got a documented, you know, mental health issue.

48:33So they still, um, we still have to go through a lot just because, um, you have to go through the courts. Mm-hmm. Yeah. And, um, it'll come where they actually want to visit with the person like, um, just recently went through it where the, we were trying to get, um, one of the individuals interdicted because they had no family members and, um, I don't know if y'all want to hear all this. No, I got a very good question, yeah. So, and the individuals, if you receive some type of assistance, like social security, you cannot have over $2,000 in your bank account. So let's just say you have a family member and you're on a bank account with your mom, your dad, your mom, dad passed away and that account has over $2,000 in that account. They will cut off your Medicaid, um, your, your Medicaid eligibility. Wow. So that leaves you in a position where, okay, they're not able to get Medicaid eligibility because the parent thought that they were doing something good, but it wasn't, it wasn't,

49:36it didn't help the situation because now you have this person that cannot make decisions for themselves. Um, but in the course of eyes, at the beginning, they're competent major. So it, it, it, it, wow, it can be a lot. Yeah. So that's kind of been your belly, wick, I guess, on the operations end. Yes, ma'am. Yeah. Yes, ma'am. Yeah, that was interesting. Well, you, and you mentioned, you know, from, from your own background, you need maybe some lawyers to volunteer, but, um, UIT guys with a volunteer PTO out there, go down there and help them in the computer lab and let's run some updates, right? Yes, yes. Take one of those computers from the back that's going to be recycled and just repurpose it, right? It sounds like every business out there could help in some way. Absolutely. Absolutely. We need help even cleaning the pond, advocating and village. Oh, yeah. Um, you know, community service projects. Um, anything is appreciated. Uh, we just, you know, close. Oh. Some individuals, you know, every now, there might be a tragedy every now and, you know, we had one that lost his home.

50:37Um, just close, we'll take close donations. Um, we do not take Christmas lights anymore, although we appreciate the thought we need to have a certain type of light. Yeah. So, um, so, you know, boxes of, like, lights that you used to decorate your house are not necessarily what we use at the village. It has to be, um, a little bit different. I didn't think about clothing. So all sizes, all adult sizes. It's actually perfect because I have a box of button-down shirts in the back of my truck going to Salvation Army. I'll just give them to you guys. Yes. If you want to take them. Yes. Perfect. It helps me. It helps you. Perfect. Any business owners that are listed on it, um, contract, um, contract, we can talk about that. If you have, um, paper, like the, the boxes that the paper coming because we all use the printer. Yep. Um, donate that to us. Yeah. You know, donate the, those boxes to us because Miss, Miss Diane can use it. Yeah. What's contracts? You don't want to talk about it. So we have, uh, we're talking about it.

51:38Come on. Supported employment. So, um, we have supported employment contracts. We have one with Lafayette General, um, the Brandy Wine Building, D-O-T-D, um, and what happens is we have a janitorial services, uh, so our individuals will have a job and they'll go and clean, um, they might, um, yes, yes, ma'am. Is during the day? Is during the day. Yeah. From, um, they have the transportation that picks them up from their home. They go to the day program and they get on another van and they, and they go to work and they come back. So they clean in the floors and dusting or whatever they do. In general, they're in the cafeteria. Uh-huh. Wipe in the tables. That is the best cafeteria down the street in Oxford. Putting the cutlery together. Yeah. Wow. Lafayette General. Are they charging like a professional rate or is it a, um, all of our individuals, um, state minimum wage, uh, start off at minimum wage, um, so they have, uh, that's a good deal for businesses. That's a great deal for businesses. Yeah. Uh, so my last question is hobbies.

52:39So nothing to do with work or the village, but about you and your, your free time. So, Nicole, when you go home at the end of the day, what are you doing with your free time? Um, I have a grand baby. Okay. So there's time. Um, yes. And, uh, she's terrible too, so, um, I'll spend the time telling her to get out of the cabinet. Okay. But, um, I tend to, I tend to, um, spend a lot of time at work. Okay. Um, I, I, I don't know, I tend, I like being at work. I don't know why, but I like, uh, I don't know. I just, I don't know what if you love what you do. It's not work. It's a hobby. It's not. Right. It's not because Miss Karen will be like, it's time to go. I'd be like, well, Miss Karen, I'm just going to stay back. And I really do be working. But it just be so peaceful. It's like something about being at the office is peaceful, but I do have my, my time at home. My grandbaby, and I think I might be a little behind on planning my wedding. Yeah. Okay. I'm literally just starting. So it's like maybe three months. I'm going to have to plan it. And I've been knowing since last year. You have a dress?

53:40Yeah. That's the only thing I want. Well, that's all you need, you know? And I think I don't repeat that around Christmas. I've kind of been stress eating. And I can't get in it, but I'm going to get in it though. All right. I kind of gained some weight there. Christmas does that too. Yes. Yeah. Karen, what about you? What kind of hobbies you got? I have a grand dog. Two grand dogs and two grandcats. Okay. We have two grandcats. They're easy, huh? They don't talk about it. They don't. Well, mine is... Show me how it's like. This cat is not like a cat. It's very... He's very needy. Very needy. So yeah, I'll play with him. I don't have any grandkids per se. Uh, borrow some. I like to read. And I'm... I do... I'm in a bunch of civic things, so we always have... You said rotary, huh? Rotary, um... Young's little chamber of commerce. It crudes on me. So the way I always have something we're doing, um... And just speaking a lot to people, because...

54:42When I... Can hear someone say, what? Who owns this place? It's like, I'm not speaking enough, you know? Or are you not listening? So... Probably not listening. Not listening. But no. And I love social media, because I can post... Oh, by the way, y'all do this, but yeah. Yeah. Oh, fantastic. Can you all kind of give us a picture of where the kicking village is for people that... Maybe haven't been. We're between Rudabalye and W. Broussord. And W. Broussord is not West Broussord. Or... E. Broussord is not East Broussord. Westly Broussord. W. Broussord. I didn't know that either. Yeah. So Ridge Road, you can get to us from Ridge and then, uh, Rudabalye, or you can, um, Ridge to W. Broussord. But yeah, we're... It's like, it's really cool, because it's like we are our own little city block. Two laps is a mile. Oh, okay. So, you know, and then we can go walk to the village and walk to the classrooms. So, yeah, we're like tucked in. And that's where all of your operations are. It's on that site. Well, we have two group homes on that site too.

55:43I mean, like your operations. Yeah, central... Yeah. Where the day habit is, where the... What excitement happens? Well, the excitement happens. Yeah. It's just, uh, hobbies are... Lark is our hobby. We just... No, that's great. That's fantastic. I love to hear it when, yeah, you're so... You love what you do so much that it eats up all your time. You know... That's awesome. We were just talking about that. I was talking... It's one of my Rotarians. And I have... Sometimes when you work at a place and I work to those places... I went, you know, I don't... I wish I was six, so I didn't have to go beyond. Mm-hmm. Yeah, like you're not looking at your watch. I wonder... We don't look at our... We don't... Well, I forced myself to look at the watch... To go home to... To the Grand Kittie and Randolph. But it goes by so fast. Because it's not like you're stuck in a office. Or... Or have to do this repetition. There's always something. And then... You... Open my windows and my blinds and everything on them... You see a little...

56:43And hey, Miss Karen! How you doing? You know, and it's just... It's just... It's beautiful. Yeah. It's a beautiful place. No, this is fantastic. Well, thank you guys for coming down here. Thanks for having us. Thank you for your first podcast. I hope you guys enjoyed it. Yeah, this is awesome. And yeah, and thank you for bringing attention to the Lark. And Jan, thanks for having us down here. Thank you. Jason makes it so easy. We're available for any other podcast. Okay, perfect. Anybody else out there listening? Yeah. I know. Thank you both. We've had Nicole Harrison. And Karen Davis of Lark. You're wonderful spokespersons and advocates for what you do. Thank you. Thank you so much. And I want to thank you for listening, and for our listeners' loyal support. If you haven't yet, please consider subscribing to Discover Lafayette, wherever you get your podcast. You can also visit discoverlafayette.net, where you can find this interview along with over 430 others, which is very proud of the people that we've been able to interview. And you too are among the top. Thank you. And thanks to our sponsors who, of course, make the show possible,

57:43Raider, Home Bank, and LFT Fiber. We could do this without you. Thank you for listening today. This is Jan Swift. Thank you so much.