Hauppauge Employee with Disability Honored at Nonprofit ACLD Annual Employment Recognition Breakfast

HAUPPAUGE, NY; DECEMBER 1, 2016 – Matthew Ahrens was honored by Adults and Children with Learning and Developmental Disabilities (ACLD) at its 31st Annual Employment Recognition Breakfast held at Carlyle on the Green in Farmingdale. Ahrens, a resident of West Islip and a Clerk at Suffolk County Traffic Violation Court in Hauppauge, was presented ACLD’s Vocational Achievement Award, which recognizes individuals with disabilities for their professional accomplishments.

ACLD, a leading Long Island based not-for-profit agency supporting people with developmental disabilities, hosts the Breakfast each year as part of National Disability Employment Awareness Month. The event honors employees with special needs who have made notable achievements on the job, salutes businesses that are committed to hiring people with disabilities and encourages other businesses to do the same because, as Jeanie Shelton-Clyne, ACLD’s Assistant Director of Vocational Services said, “it’s what people can do that matters.”

“ACLD has been, continues to be, and will remain committed to helping the people we support pursue their dreams of meaningful, sustainable employment,” said Rich Breuninger, First Vice President of the ACLD Board of Trustees. “ACLD is dedicated to identifying successful employment solutions for people with developmental disabilities.”

Nearly 150 people, representing many of the more than 100 Long Island companies ACLD’s Vocational Program partners with, attended the event.

Adults and Children with Learning and Developmental Disabilities, Inc. (ACLD) was founded in 1957. The 501(c)(3), not-for-profit agency serves the needs of more than 3,000 children, teens and adults with learning disabilities, autism and other developmental disabilities, and provides support for their families. ACLD's mission is to provide opportunities for individuals with disabilities to pursue enviable lives, increase their independence and improve the quality of their lives within the community. ACLD employs more than 1,100 people and operates 80 different program sites including group homes and apartment programs across Nassau and Suffolk Counties. Service programs include early childhood services, day habilitation, residential alternatives, vocational training and job placement, recreation programs, respite, family support services, Medicaid service coordination, and medical and behavioral health services.

Photo Caption: Matthew Ahrens of West Islip, a Clerk at Suffolk County Traffic Violation Court in Hauppauge, was presented ACLD’s Vocational Achievement Award, which recognizes individuals with disabilities for their professional accomplishments, during ACLD’s 2016 Employment Recognition Breakfast.