Founded in 1967 as a group of parents providing for their preschoolers, Wildwood has since expanded to offer daily programming to more than 100 individuals with developmental and learning disabilities in the Capital Region. A recent Department of Justice memo could endanger the organization’s efforts.
Wildwood’s newest location, on the southern end of the city of Schenectady has been open for less than three months.
In that time, the organization has been able to expand its daily support programming to 40 additional people – the facility has an active room filled with folks playing board games, drawing, or taking a nap.
“We say we support people to live their best lives. People with disabilities and we support families as well. So, whatever that looks like for people. It’s a very individualized and holistic approach. So, whatever they need we try to meet them where they are,” said Lou Deep.
CEO Lou Deepe has led Wildwood for five years.
“Well, I think we feel at our core, as so many do, people with disabilities are equal citizens. In New York and nationwide and everywhere. We feel the importance of what we do is get folks to live their best lives but to also be seen in the community as true equals and be truly embedded in these communities not just pushing in,” said Deep.
Apart from the daily routine provided at the four Wildwood locations in the region, the individuals supported also get opportunities to volunteer with local organizations – they help deliver food to Capital Region senior citizens and prepare meals at local soup kitchens.
42-year-old Aaron Weinberg says coming to Wildwood weekly has helped him set and meet his own goals.
“Volunteering, maintaining your own personal space. And another subject goal is to just be having fun and just chilling,” said Weinberg.
Diane Perino has been helping individuals with developmental disabilities for 15 years. She joined Wildwood when it merged with The Alternative Living Group in 2022.
She gets a bit emotional when talking about how far some of the folks she’s worked alongside have come.
“They become different people. They become a part of society. They love going out in the community, and that's changed a lot. Our society is much more accepting of this population now, and that's what's great about having day programs because they're able to get out into society and they feel like productive members of the society when they go out and they do the volunteering, and it makes them feel good too,” said Perino.
With all of the positivity and growth happening at Wildwood locations across the region, a very difficult conversation is looming on the periphery.
Last month, a memo by the Department of Justice threatened to upend three decades of precedent and progress toward protecting the rights of individuals with disabilities.
The memo revised the federal government’s interpretation of what states must provide when it comes to caring for people with disabilities.
As is -- and has been the practice for 30 years -- states are required to pay for care that allows individuals to stay within their communities, as opposed to being institutionalized. But the DOJ opinion could open the door for states to slash funding for vital community-based services.
Perino says the new interpretation of the so-called “integration mandate” is heartbreaking.
“When I think of all the years that I've invested in working with the gentleman that I work with, it would seem like it's time, not wasted because they're still where they are now, but they still have a ways to go, and we still have work to do. So, for that to be taken away from us and taken away from them, it's it would be tragic,” said Perino.
Deepe says since the memo was released, there’s been a lot of fear.
“They are your family, you cannot do this work and be detached. So, you feel like they are threatened and then you feel a very visceral reaction. So, it does resonate, you do see it, we’re all feeling it at different levels. Maybe I’m feeling it more from an administrative, what does it mean, but people closer to services are absolutely just angry and frustrated. So, we’re doing our best to manage that, those expectation and balance the need for vigilance with the need for calm and patience. We’re a long way from anything being enacted,” said Deep.
Organizations like Wildwood rely heavily on state support. While no dramatic shifts are expected in the near future, leaders like state Assemblyman Angelo Santabarbara, who chairs the Assembly's Committee on People with Disabilities, are already working to implement safeguards to ensure continued care. In 2024, New York voters approved a measure to enshrine protections for individuals with developmental disabilities in the state’s constitution.
Facility Manager Shannon Haas puts the memo’s potential impact bluntly.
“We’re working with human beings. They have their struggles, we all have our struggles, but they deserve the best life possible. And that is not an institution at all,” said Haas.
