Creating Opportunities for People with Disabilities



Born of Cantonese decent, Danny Chan moved to Buffalo from Hong Kong in 2000. Before then, he was never thrilled about going to school. That coupled with multiple issues- a language barrier, lack of working experience and minimal interaction with others- Danny's family was especially worried as he started his job at Allentown Industries.

When Danny first started in our workshop, he had great difficulty communicating with others; which also made it difficult for him to form friendships. He appeared to be unaware of his surroundings and primarily remained to himself.

But the friendly staff at Allentown Industries did their best to daily include him as part of the "team" and carefully introduce him to various physical and occupational therapy programs.

As Danny progressed with his habilitation programming with Allentown, staff noticed marked changes in his behavior. He started interacting with his co-workers- even joking and laughing when others gently teased him. His family even noticed marked changes in Danny at home- especially in his ability to start communicating his feelings and emotions.

Danny also began to share his artistic talents with us. He loves to draw and was recently honored by the "Exceptional Artworks" council for a unique drawing of an architectural floor plan design. Many of his drawings now adorn the walls of our workshop.

Danny loves his job at Allentown. He seldom misses a day and each morning he enthusiastically skips into our cafeteria where he enjoys visiting with his friends and listening to music. He takes great pride in the work he does and going to work every morning has become a very important part of his daily life.


Lillian Gabel, is a 73-year-old lady, who, in her own words- "feels like a 20-year-old!"
She has lived at Heritage Centers Sunset IRA for twenty years and before that lived in another Heritage Centers residence, also located in Hamburg, NY. Lillian has worked with Allentown Industries for just over 20 years as well. When asked if she would like to retire soon, Lillian answers: "What would I do with all my time?"

Lillian loves to spend time with her family, who come each year to celebrate her birthday at the IRA. Friends and staff enjoy hearing Lillian tell the stories about how she helped her mom and dad keep her nine siblings on their best behavior while growing up on the family's farm in the Southern Tier. Lillian writes her family and friends weekly and receives many invitations to social functions from her large extended family, which always keeps her calendar full. She also participates in the many functions hosted by Allentown Industries, which includes dances, recreational outings and various events.

Lillian's accomplishments are displayed in the many awards that she has received from her 20 years of service at Allentown; as well as having her knitting projects that she has worked on throughout the years are on display at her home. She always has a warm smile and a helping hand to give to her many friends at the Sunset IRA and at her work place.

Lillian is the "youngest" 73-year-old member of the Heritage Centers family who not only displays a great deal of dignity and zest for life, but also keeps us all feeling young at heart!


In 1988 John Heary was an 11-year-old child living on a rural farm in Springville, NY with his father and disabled mother. The family was living in poverty and in poor conditions. Unable to care for John, his parents had no choice but to place him into the custody of the department of social services.

John was diagnosed with mental retardation and on January 31, 1988 immediately was placed with Heritage Centers at the East Aurora Cazenovia Community Residence. John lived there and began to adjust over the next couple of years, eventually moving into the Orchard Park Community Residence where the children who lived there were in his age range. It was there where John began to grow, mature and develop into a young adult, full of hopes and dreams.

At the age of fifteen John began to study for the New York State Driver's Permit test. He enrolled in class at BOCES where they helped him prepare for the exam. One year later, John took that exam and passed. John then enrolled into a private driver's education program and at the age of seventeen passed the New York State Driver's exam. It was official, John was well on his way to fulfilling his dreams and goals. He was hired at McDonald's, saved his money and purchased his first car, a Plymouth Breeze.

With a new independence under his belt, John's next goal was to learn to be as independent as possible and one day live in his own apartment. The next nine years were full of challenges for him. He had to accomplish everything from budgeting his money to managing all of his life skills independently. They were not easy years for John but by April 2, 2002, John had overcome all his challenges, accomplished his goals and independently moved into his own apartment in Hamburg, NY!

Soon after settling in to his new apartment, John became interested in becoming a volunteer fireman. John again succeeded, fulfilled all of the required life saving training, and became a volunteer fireman for the Hillcrest Fire Department in 2002. John was very active in being a first responder to many emergency situations; he had a full uniform and his own vehicle with flashing lights.

At age 26, John fell in love, had an unofficial commitment ceremony with his girlfriend in Delaware Park and began to work in an automotive shop where he assisted in performing New York State car inspections. Soon after though, like many of us, John had some relationship troubles. He did end that relationship and moved to the Northtowns.

John is now 30 years old, very happy, has a new job working in the restaurant industry, he has a new girlfriend and is always busy planning, dreaming and building a life of his own. John still remains enrolled in Heritage Centers Medicaid Service Coordination and Supportive Employment programs.


Teeonna Simmons was born too early at 26 weeks and, as can happen when children come into this world too early, complications occurred. Teeonna has a diagnosis of spastic quadriplegia CP so she cannot sit without support or walk. She can have trouble breathing and may tire easily because of severe reactive airway disease and chronic lung disease. Because of a severe feeding and swallowing disorder she must get all of her nutrition through a feeding tube in her stomach. Lots of letters and medical terminology have been applied to this little girl throughout her young life that tell us a lot about what problems she has but do little to describe who she is.

Who she is - is a remarkable young lady who has displayed courage not in a specific incident or event that has occurred in her life, but rather in a more subtle, quiet, ongoing way that keeps her going despite seemingly insurmountable physical odds. You see Teeonna's courage in the way she "wills" her tight fingers to open so she can grab a toy, hold a crayon to color, touch a picture, or pull a blanket up to cover her baby doll. You sense her courage in her determination to push her tiny, tight limbs across the floor as she crawls independently to her place at circle time with her friends or to her chair at the table. And you feel her courage as she realizes she has successfully accomplished a task that to many of us would seem so routine and small in our everyday lives that we barely notice we do them.

Teeonna's health problems cause her to miss a lot of school. She has had more hospital admissions, been on and off life support more often, had more tests and suffered more pain in her seven years than most of us will ever experience. When her body has tried to quit on her, her spirit has remained unshakeable and kept her fighting. Yet through all of this, Teeonna does not know she is courageous. She is too young to understand the meaning of such a big word. To those of us who know her though, this little girl depicts courage and success in its purest form.