Finding the Joy

Venture Together Opens New Day Hab

Venture Together recently held a ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the grand opening of their state-of-the-art day habilitation facility in Valley Cottage. Venture Together, a non-profit that strives to support people with intellectual/developmental disabilities (I/DD) across Rockland, is excited to elevate and expand their services with this new facility. 

A day habilitation program, or day hab, is a program that works to support I/DD individuals with independence, community integration, and job skills in an inclusive environment. 

Venture Together’s new facility has been meticulously designed to accommodate  individuals with mobility needs. Each floor is equipped with multiple rooms that can be sectioned off for different activities and spacious rest rooms intended for low mobility residents. Two floors sounding not very accessible? This new facility is built on a hill, allowing for egress on both the ground and upper level, as well as a wheelchair friendly elevator.

Outside the building, which resides on the 303, is what Venture Together jokingly calls their own personal stoplight. A stoplight might seem silly to mention, but anyone who has driven on the 303 can attest to the importance of a red light. It forces cars to slow down and allow the number of buses and cars exiting the facility to easily come out onto the main road, rather than buses trying to take off while cars race down the road. 

Dario Mazurek, the Chairman of the Board of Directors for Venture Together, spoke with the RCT about what puts Venture Together in a league of their own when it comes to day hab. “What’s nice about these day hab programs is we purposefully make them very person-centric for the particular needs of the constituents…We try to make sure that the day hab sites we have are organized, constructed and aligned [with] respective constituent needs,” said Mazurek. 

Previously, Venture Together had a larger, more centralized facility for their constituents, but that facility was beginning to age. The Venture Together team believed that it would be more beneficial for Rockland to have several smaller, more advanced day habs around the county rather than one large campus. Having several smaller facilities allows each day hab to tailor their programming to their specific population. For example, one day hab could have more young adults who are more active and eager to participate in the community. Another day hab can cater to an elderly population who are looking for a relaxed environment, and focus on crafts or different kinds of media activities. These new facilities with multiple rooms allow for this kind of flexibility necessary to best support the needs of the individuals in the day hab programs. 

According to Mazurek, the Valley Cottage population is highly verbal and loves to have raucous town hall meetings. “I got slammed really hard at the last one because I’m not a Yankee’s fan and everybody had Yankee hats on,” chuckled Mazurek. 

Directly across from the new facility is the headquarters of The Arc of Rockland, a “sister agency” of Venture Together. Mazurek said that having them as neighbors helps to streamline services that many of the constituents receive from both programs, such as physical or occupational therapy.

Walking around the facility, one is struck by how spacious and clean it is. The space boasts large windows, multiple bathrooms, (“You can play pickleball in here!” joked Mazurek; the space is definitely large enough), cupboards, sinks, and closets with games and supplies. The walls are covered with art of all sorts, every piece made by Venture constituents. 

Mazurek spoke on the importance of variety in all Venture programs, with one of their main missions being to “create joy in the life of our constituents.” Whether it’s art, horseback riding, technology, sports or playing in a band, joy comes first and foremost when looking at the wellbeing of their community. Mazurek speaks from the heart when discussing joy – his own son is a proud member of the Venture Together family. Mazurek shared that his son, who he describes as an “active guy”, finds his joy with the equestrian program at Venture. 

For less mobile members, such as those who are wheelchair bound, the Valley Cottage facility has implemented sensory rooms. These rooms are filled with activities to stimulate the senses such as colored lights, fun music and robots. 

Currently, the space supports 40 individuals. Venture Together is excited to have recently purchased a space just off of Main Street in Pearl River where they plan to be implementing a new facility by the end of the year. Mazurek stated that he was excited for these new facilities to help continue integrating the constituents into their communities, and with a new Pearl River site right off Main Street, that will be easier than ever.