By David MacDonald I ’m going to confess to a degree of ignorance here: I’ve always assumed that a service like the one you provide at the NSRAA exists because of the inclusive reality of neighbourhoods and communities across Nova Scotia, but I haven’t really thought about who endeavours to make this happen. Can you please give the readers a brief history of the NSRAA? KW: The NSRAA was incorporated under the Societies Act in 1993. It was basically a group of executive directors from non-profit organizations across Nova Scotia providing similar services who established it. What was in place before ‘93 were different institutional models in every corner of the province. This group had one belief in common, that people of all abilities belonged in community settings like everyone else. From this came many conver- sations about best practices in providing residential support for people with disabilities and their families in community settings. And how would you say this conversation has progressed during your tenure? KW: When I started working with people with disabilities in the late 1980s, children with disabilities who required support were largely supported by children’s training centres outside of the home. They weren’t living at home; they were living
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MAY 2017 • SPOTLIGHT ON BUSINESS MAGAZINE
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