A remarkable day for a remarkable young man

Matamoras — Dennis Huculiak was surrounded by his co-workers and job coach at Price Chopper in Matamoras as he recently celebrated his two-year anniversary working in the Deli Snack Bar. This scene would not be so out of the ordinary unless you knew more about Dennis and the people that support him. Dennis is 39 years old and was born with a form of mental retardation and multiple physical disabilities. He is legally blind, has a speech impediment and is hard of hearing. Dennis was hired by Price Chopper back in 2005, after his mother asked Mark McAfee, the store manager, to give him a chance. He would be assisted by a job coach to learn the job and for on-the-job support whenever necessary. “Mark said ‘Come in for orientation next week.’ That was it,” recalls Dennis’ mom. “It was as simple as that and as remarkable as that!” Mary, Dennis’ mom, knew that for Dennis to have a normal life he had to be involved in his community and for his community to be involved with him. Years ago people with developmental disabilities and physical handicaps were placed in institutions and segregated from society. Due to families and self-advocates fighting for individual rights, a wave of new laws and new ideas evolved: a belief of people having self-determined lives, that they should be able to make their own choices to have the lives that they choose. These are people who need exactly what anyone needs: Family, friends, a home, a job, a place of worship, a place to have fun, and to be able to follow their own dreams. Several years ago, Dennis joined the Knights of Columbus in St. Vincent de Pauls Church and was embraced by all the brother Knights, who he said always made him feel welcome. Later, he became an altar boy at St. Vincent de Pauls Church in Dingmans Ferry; his mother asked Father Paul, Pastor at St. Vincent’s, to give him a chance. The rest is history: how the other altar servers, younger than him would grab his arm to help him navigate the steps or move to a particular spot during Mass. His mom feels they all made him shine and for that she is grateful. Mary recalls how the parishioners would say, “Great job, Dennis,” as he was coming out of Mass. “It still gives me chills to think how gracious they all were and how much they wanted him to succeed,” she said. He practices his citizenship by voting at all the local and primary elections and is very proud to do that. Now living in Westfall, Dennis has become an altar server at St. Joseph’s Church in Matamoras with Father Gus and has joined the Milford/Matamoras Knights of Columbus. Headed by John Sybrandy, there support and friendship has meant a lot to the Huculiaks. Lisa Johnson, Dennis’ manager, says that everyone loves him, he is always so happy and friendly. Dennis works in the snack bar and restocks the counters, keeps the stations clean and wipes the table and chairs down. He works three days per week, four hours per day. He said he is looking forward to working 20 hours a week soon. The people in Dennis’ life have always focused on his abilities instead of his disabilities and have been surprised at what Dennis has imparted to them. Janice Boulanger, staffing manager, says that he really does a nice job and is very conscientious about his work. “He is a pleasure to be around.” Donna Ciancitto, Dennis’s job coach, works with him several hours a week and says that he really enjoys his job. “He listens attentively and always tries to do his best. I really enjoy supporting him because he is so upbeat and wants to do a good job,” she said. Be sure to stop by and say hello to him but, as he’ll tell you, he won’t have time to chit-chat because he has his work to do. How’s that for dedication.