Barbe Wolf

Barbe works for the City of Redmond in the Parks and Recreation Department, as the Program Coordinator for Adaptive Recreation and Inclusion Services.  Adaptive Recreation currently offers year round programs specifically designed for people with developmental disabilities, including classes, sports, outings, camps, and social activities. While open to participants eight years and older, on average the age range is 13-26 years old.

Tell us about your program:

Inclusion Services allows all individuals no matter what their abilities to have the opportunity to take any class offered through the Parks and Recreation Department, as long as s/he meets the gender, age, and prerequisite requirements for the class. This is done by making accommodations, such as providing aides to assist them, providing extra training for the staff, and/or adapting activities/instruction to meet that individual’s needs. The average age range of inclusion participants is 7-18 years old.

What makes your program awesome?

“I believe it’s the staff that makes this program awesome. They are all really passionate and are very committed to working with the participants.” Another thing that makes the Adaptive Program awesome is that the parents of participants are so supportive. “They love the staff and the program is like a big family unit, not just a bunch of classes but a group of kids and families who are really close.”

The fact that Redmond has Inclusion Services is awesome! It is not a popular choice [for Parks Departments to take on], even though it is mandated by law to accommodate people with disabilities. Maybe it is because people are afraid of working with people with disabilities or think it is too expensive to provide inclusion support. At Redmond it works and it doesn’t cost as much as most people think it will.  The City of Redmond has had inclusion specialists since 2003. “We are not afraid to accept all people.” The uniqueness of this program also makes it an awesome example for other departments who are thinking about providing inclusion!

What are some of the best resources you have found helpful?

Go online and check out what other departments are doing. Adaptive Programs on the East Coast are a great resource because they seem to be further ahead of the curve. Also, Barbe has found that conferences such as the National Institute of Recreation Inclusion are extremely helpful for learning about trends as well as networking. Finally, Round Table meetings with other Adaptive Recreation coordinators in the King County area provide a great opportunity to get together to discuss the programs they are offering and ask for advice on situations from people serving the same population.

Do you have advice for other youth workers?

Her best piece of advice for other youth programmers is “if it can be stolen, steal it! Don’t reinvent the wheel. Take what is out there and repurpose it for your use. If you create something new, share it.” In other words, she encourages collaboration. Networking with those, even as far as across the country, is extremely beneficial. She also does not view neighboring city recreation departments as rivals, but believes that recreation departments should be allies and support one another. Share your obstacles and challenges with others—chances are, someone else has already faced something similar and has valuable advice.

Ultimately, she says, “Don’t program in a box or within your own company but collaborate. This makes your job easier and your program better!” In this field, borrowing and sharing programs, ideas and methods with your peers is the way to be successful and to ultimately benefit the youth you are serving—which is the point at the end of the day.

See previous Youth Worker Spotlights here.