Our Outstanding Employees’ Awards and Milestones

Saratoga Bridges is very proud of its hard working, conscientious staff!  We celebrate them annually during Direct Support Professionals week and at our Employee Recognition event to praise their achievements and exemplary service.  Both opportunities give us a chance to share our utmost gratitude for their dedication, compassion, understanding, kindness, patience and flexibility!  management staff to distribute ice cream and numerous wonderful raffle prizes.  The Employee Recognition Day features a catered meal, games, prizes and a presentation of awards that include certificates and monetary awards including:

2019 Employees of the Year:

Josh Inglee, Day Services Direct Support Professional – Alpha Day Program

Karen Flanders, Direct Support Professional 2 – Ruggles Road

Kelley Alvord, Staff Development Specialist – Administration

Marissa Cornell, Day Services Direct Support Professional 2 – Alpha Day Program

Paige Hall, Day Services Direct Support Professional – ACE Program

Philip Miranda, Bus Monitor – Transportation

Susan Matthews, Employment Specialist – Alpha Career Options

Tina Lomaestro, Quality Assurance Specialist – Administration

Yolanda Gill, Residence Manager 2 – Lemont Avenue and Locust Grove Road

Yvonne McGee, Day Services Direct Support Professional – Wilton Day Program

Rookie of the Year — Chad Branch-Guinan, Day Services Direct Support Professional

Volunteer of the Year — Sarah DiPasquale, Associate Skidmore Professor

Years of Service                     

35 Years

Catherine Kukan

30 Years                                                           

Arlene Delaney

25 Years                                                           

Carol Mallory

Lynn Darenzo

Nicole Dumas

Robert Harrington

Sandi Stevens

20 Years                                                           

Cynthia Ricciuti

Jennifer Rivers

Karen Gibbins

Theresa Kozlowski

Tina Licata

Trudy Weatherwax

15 Years                                                           

Barbara Rogers

Dawn Watson

Diane McFarland

Fay Fagnant

Janette Lamb

Kristen Mattice

Lyn Moy

Matthew Martin

Tonya Grimes

10 Years                                                           

Cassandra Estey

Cassandra Shafer

Christine Burr

Jean Thomas

Jessica Bryden

Karen Staulters

Megan Fleury

Michael Kennedy

Nancy MacNeil

Richard Varney

Sonya Nickol

Tami Duket

Tanya Wood

Terry Rimmer

Thaddeus Obloy

Wendy Ashe

5 Years                                                             

Amanda Burt

Bruce Cooper

Christina Barss

Christopher Deloriea

Christopher Toma

Cynthia Garcia

Donna Kiel Diaz

Kylie Starks

Linda Fay

Loretta Mohr

Louann Leach

Philip Anderson

Renee Brown

Samantha Welch

Samuel Chabot

Stephen Lloyd

2 Years                                                             

Alexa Starr

Alicia Amato

Alicia El Younsi

Annemarie Conklin

Carl Wright

Christina Karnavas

Christine Petricek

Christopher Fisher

Cindy Novak

Clifford Barrett

Corinne Calkins

Courtney Jones

David Dumas

David Lomaestro

Elissa Bennett

Encar Tambolero

Erin Martinelli

Faith Johnson

Hannah Ciccone

Heidi Eustis

Jack Falanga

Jasmine Rivera

Jason Russell

Joseph Gabel

Joshua Inglee

Julie Olefson Marks

Kaitlynn Willette

Kathryn Sowle

Kellie Bates

Kelly Lavoy

Koren Lasher

Lisa Mitchell

Margaret MacDonald

Mark Roberts Jr

Matthew Tedrow

Melissa Kelly

Patricia Pate

Raymond Wilson

Richelle Mulcahy

Sefth Berry

Shana McCullough

Sloan Russell

Stephanie Miner

Susan Matthews

Tiffany Stevens

Safe Driving Awards

Bob Harrington – 25 Years

Jon Ladd – 17 Years

Phil Ellsworth – 11 Years

Melissa Rafferty – 8 Years

John Moore – 7 Years

Kelly Howe – 6 Years

Lori Kinisky – 5 years

Jackie Lewis Goodmason – 4 years

Woody Turenne – 4 years

Aubrey Kinsey – 3 years

Patty Boyle – 3 years

Wayne Allie – 3 years

Robert Williams – 2 years

Cathy Sarkany – 1 year

Ed Beam – 1 year

Jim Tyrrell – 1 year

Joe Gabel – 1 year

Mark Roberts – 1 year

Mike Marino – 1 year

Robert Bellamy – 1 year

Steve Smith – 1 year

Tina Licata – 1 year

Supervisor Program Graduate

Clark Spickerman – Staff Development Coordinator

Linda Fay – Executive Assistant

Scott Wright – Clifton Park Day Hab Coordinator

Terry Rimmer – Assistant Director of Residential Services

Scholarship Awards

Saratoga Bridges is most fortunate to be able to award scholarships to our dedicated staff members. They provide a wonderful mechanism to enhance their educational opportunities.

The 2019 J. Michael Fitzgibbons Scholarship was awarded to Kelsey Meaker, a Direct Support Professional at our Clifton Park Day Program.  Kelsey wanted to extend her utmost thanks to you for the financial assistance.  She is applying the $500 towards the tuition at SUNY Adirondack for an Associate’s Degree in Liberal Arts and Humanities with hopes of becoming a Social Worker or Behaviorist.

The 2019 Mary Lawless Scholarship was awarded to Sara Scott, a Direct Support Professional at our Clifton Park Day Program.  Sara wanted to extend her utmost thanks to you for the financial assistance.  She is applying the $500 towards the tuition at Purdue Global University where she is studying for a Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice with hopes of becoming a Criminal Investigator.

Leadership Institute

Saratoga Bridges Leadership Institute began in 2009 to strengthen our workforce, build internal leadership capacity, foster long-range individual growth, ensure stability and develop a group of highly knowledgeable staff.  highly knowledgeable staff.  Selected staff meet monthly with coordinator, Dr. Thaddeus Obloy, to receive training on the fundamentals of leadership.  The Institute provides an opportunity for the member to experience the agency mission and familiarize themselves with each department’s activities.  Their training focuses on topics that include supervisory strategies, communications, human behavior, self-analysis, presentation skills and others.  Working with mentors, the Leadership Institute members develop a project that will benefit the agency and the people they support.   The mentors guide the candidates until he or she is ready to successfully demonstrate their knowledge base to a graduation panel of executives and peers.  

Our most newest graduates are –

Brittany Alonzo de Paz – Assistant Director of Residential Services

Dorothy Broekhuizen – Quality Assurance Coordinator

Terry Rimmer – Assistant Director of Residential Services

Brittany, Dorothy and Terry are our 12th, 13th and 14th graduates and have demonstrated a potential for advancement in administrative and agency-wide functions and activities. As Saratoga Bridges was seeking accreditation status for the programs the agency supports, the three women worked as a team to develop and present a multi-media orientation to visiting members of The Council on Quality and Leadership (CQL).   Their presentation outlined the agency’s mission, service programs and delivery systems for disabled adults.  The orientation presentation was evaluated by CQL members and a panel of agency executives and peers.

As graduates, they can become mentors for co-workers in the Leadership Institute program, serve on future graduate panels and use their training for agency-wide task forces and committees.

The College of Direct Support Professionals

We have numerous recent graduates of The College of Direct Support.  Sponsored by The New York Alliance for Inclusion and Innovation (NY Alliance), The College of Direct Support provides a validated and specialized curricula to enhance and develop a skilled Direct Support workforce throughout the United States.

Barry Bonney – Direct Support Professional 2 – Southbury Road

Elissa Bennet – Day Services Direct Support Professional 3 – Wilton Day Program 

Jamie-Lee Greene – Program Coordinator – Wilton Day Program

Jasmine Rivera – Residence Manager 2 – Moe Road

Jeri Ferris – Direct Support Professional 2 – Finley Road

Jessica Miller – Family Support Direct Support Professional

Stacy Williams – Day Services Direct Support Professional 3 – ACE Program 

Every graduate receives a Certificate of Completion from The College of Direct Support and will have their names listed on a permanent plaque located in the foyer of our Administration Building.

Direct Support Professional Week

For the past 12 years, Saratoga Bridges has designated Direct Support Professional (DSP) week each September. We acknowledge our dedicated workers who are often unrecognized. Along with the New York State Office of Persons with Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD), we celebrate staff who provide support to the people we serve every day, 365 days a year. This workforce is responsible for the health, safety and emotional well-being of individuals they work with by encouraging them to live more meaningful, dignified and productive lives. They promote inclusion and independence within the community.

Our celebratory week includes distributing movie passes, Stewart’s Shops certificates and ice cream to recognize our outstanding employees. Also, we had staff featured on television, radio and newspaper articles.