Proud Self Advocacy Moment For People’s Arc of Suffolk! 🏆

We are absolutely thrilled to share some incredible news from this year’s Self-Advocacy Association of New York State (SANYS) Long Island Regional Conference! Our agency and one of our phenomenal self-advocates were recognized with two prestigious awards that speak directly to our core mission.

Agency of the Year: People’s Arc of Suffolk 

Our team was deeply honored to receive the SANYS Long Island Region Agency of the Year award! This recognition means the world to us because it comes directly from the self-advocacy community. It reflects our team’s unwavering commitment to creating a community of opportunity, listening to the voices that matter most, and ensuring the people we support have the tools to speak up for themselves and others.

Self-Advocate of the Year: Veronica Contreras 

A massive congratulations to our very own Verónica Contreras, who was awarded the Self-Advocate of the Year award for her exemplary advocacy! Verónica is a powerful force for positive change, consistently standing up for her rights and the rights of peers. We are so proud to see her leadership, passion, and dedication recognized on this regional stage.

SANYS does an extraordinary job representing their mission statement of “speaking up for ourselves and others,” and we couldn’t be prouder of Veronica and our entire team for living that mission every single day.

We also want to send a huge, heartfelt shoutout to Doriann Adams, our Director of Self-Advocacy! Doriann pours her absolute all into ensuring there are meaningful opportunities for our self-advocates to grow, lead, and thrive. Beyond her incredible work with our advocates, she is equally dedicated to creating valuable learning opportunities for our staff. Thank you, Doriann, for your vision, leadership, and relentless dedication to the people we support and the team that stands behind them! 🌟👏

THANK YOU to ALL staff involved in our self advocacy efforts. This award represents every one of your dedication and true passion for our mission and the people we do this all for. We are lucky to have our People’s Arc team consistently thriving and pushing past boundaries!

Big congratulations to Veronica and our entire team!