I am pleased to announce the SA Value Award Recipient for Excellence for October 2023!

Pictured: Terri Martindale(top) receiving the award virtually at the SA Training Institute team meeting.

We strive towards excellence; together, we embody it. Terri Martindale is recognized for providing excellence on an ongoing basis through her work as an instructor for our Developmental Disability Specialty Training (DDST) program. The nomination stood out as providing a very specific example that explains excellence in training, excellence in human relations and recognizes her work that focuses on individual strengths.

The nomination states:

I would like to nominate Terri Martindale for the award for Excellence. At each class Terri instructs, an advocate gives a live presentation. Terri always asks the participants of the class, “If I did not know (Advocate), how would you describe them to me?” Participants then begin using adjectives including outgoing, dedicated, hardworking, and great sense of humor.  They express their appreciation and admiration for their advocacy work. This question also allows participants of the class to focus on the human being and their strengths rather than any labels of disability.  I have had advocates request that all trainers ask this specific question during each live presentation. An advocate stated, “It makes me feel good about presenting.” 

After each class, Terri sends an email to the advocate confirming their live presentation and always includes a summary of the admirable qualities listed by the participants and any comments of appreciation. These emails are a fantastic reminder that excellence can be found in the little things that we do and how we can strive to incorporate excellence into our everyday interaction.

Thank you, Terri, for incorporating excellence into everyday work. Congratulations!