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Citizens Development Center Honors David Charles "Buddy" McKee as 2012 Dash for Dignity Hero
Buddy McKee, 2012 Dash for Dignity Hero
By Molly Brockenbush
IRVING/LAS COLINAS- On September 22, 2012, Citizens Development Center (CDC) will be hosting the 2012 Dash for Dignity, their annual fundraising event. The Dash for Dignity is a 5k run and 1 mile fun run/walk/roll to raise funds for and awareness of the programs offered by Citizens Development Center. CDC is pleased to announce that David Charles “Buddy” McKee will serve as the 2012 Dash for Dignity Hero!
Each year, CDC chooses a Dash hero to serve as the face of the event. This person is a member of the CDC community who has been an exemplary volunteer or client of the organization. The hero will be honored throughout the year as well as at the event.
Buddy has been coming to Citizen Development Center’s Work Center for two years. He volunteered at the 2011 Dash, greeting runners at the finish line with bottled water. When Buddy graduated from high school, his parents began researching his options, and he enrolled in the Work Center Program at CDC in 2010. They wanted a program that would continue to bring out the best in Buddy’s work abilities, that would encourage him to strive for more, and that would be a safe, friendly environment in which he could thrive and continue to grow as a person. After reviewing several options, CDC was hands-down their first choice.
More than 160 people with severe disabilities who are unable to find work in the community or who choose to work in a protective environment participate in the Work Center Program at CDC every day. Participants fulfill work orders for area businesses in a 30,000 square foot warehouse on Ambassador Row, which also serves as the organization’s offices for their other primary initiative: the Employment Placement Program which offers hands-on support for people with disabilities who choose to work at companies in the community, and also provides life skills training. In the warehouse, Production Supervisors train workers (also known as clients) how to properly perform the work and provide assistance whenever needed. The clients are able to take pride in their work and always look forward to receiving their paychecks for a job well done. Clients are paid per piece completed in the Work Center and are considered valued employees by the various businesses that collaborate with CDC’s Work Center Program. At CDC, the clients feel like they have a purpose and genuinely look forward to coming to work every day.
Buddy is succeeding at CDC, where he receives life skills training and socialization opportunities from interacting with peers and friends at work. When asked why Buddy participated in the Dash, his mother, Kimberly, stated “to help ensure Citizens Development Center will continue to be there”. She also goes on to describe it was “A relief, discovering there is a wonderful learning, work and social environment for Buddy”. It is so important for differently abled people to have an opportunity to meet new friends, continue to learn new work skills, and hold a job in which their hard work is rewarded, which is something everyone wants.
Congratulations Buddy! Join Buddy and his team for the 2012 Dash for Dignity on Sept. 22, and visit the event website to donate, register, and/or start a team online at: https://secure.getmeregistered.com/doocydash
For more information about Citizens Development Center, please visit their website: https://www.citizensdevelopmentcenter.org. We gladly welcome visitors to our Work Center by appointment only. To set up a time to visit or for additional information about the organization, please contact: Virginia Lockwood Development Director at Citizens Development Center at 214.637.2911, Ext. 180 or vlockwood@cdcdallas.org.
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