CareVote success stories from our members

Lifelinks Inc.

"Pick a topic!” said a frustrated Gail Bartlett of Lifelinks, Inc.- a Lowell, MA agency serving 550 citizens with developmental disabilities - in 1997 to her evening education class. Back then, the class consisted of 10 developmentally disabled adult students who were “snoozin’ and sleepin’.”

They picked voting.

Since then, Lifelinks’ grant-funded class on elections and government has grown to include 83 students and 2 instructors, which meets in 2 parts for two hours every Wednesday at Middlesex Community College (the school donates the weekly use of a room for the Lifelinks, Inc. class).

“It was all their idea,” said Gail. “They approved the topic selections, they gave me feedback on what they wanted to learn. My job was just to put it into place.”

Gail knew she had to create some kind of draw to get the seats filled; for many, attending an evening class meant missing out on Lowell’s weekly bingo night, a genuine sacrifice for a constituency with limited socializing opportunities.

The best way to get the word out? “Feed people!” Gail advises. She began by planning a social; she sent her 10 students home with event flyers advertising both the party and the class, which they brought to their group homes, friends and day programs. If the students brought a friend to the event, they would have the chance to win a prize. The party itself was a success, but more than that, it began the process of getting the word out about the class, which traveled quickly through group homes and activity programs. “Someone brought someone, who brought someone else,” said Gail, who also shopped the class to community members outside Lifelinks’ constituency and created a scholarship for those who couldn’t afford the $5 monthly registration fee. “People just started showing up.”

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Work, Inc.

Work, Inc. recently registered 31 people! Above is a photo of their CareVote area all set up and ready to go.