PALLING AROUND — Staff and participants of the PALS Chrysalis Health program in Mingo Junction stand in front of decorations that won the program a Christmas decorating contest among all seven PALS locations in Ohio. From left are Heather Deerfield, program director; Aaron Bracone, CEO and founder; Brandon, participant; Danielle Nutter, administrative assistant; and Ian, participant. -- Christopher Dacanay

MINGO JUNCTION — A regular sight to see zipping around Jefferson County are vehicles emblazoned with the logo for “PALS Chrysalis Health,” transporting individuals with developmental disabilities into communities for integrated activities and work.

The history of PALS, and its ongoing story, is one of care, empowerment and joy for those individuals.

PALS is a program supporting adults who have developmental disabilities, providing choice-based recreational options and vocational support. There are seven program locations throughout Eastern and Central Ohio, including one in Mingo Junction.

The Mingo Junction program, located at 220 Murdock Ave., averages as many as 50 participants per day coming for activities. Activity coordinators develop a monthly activities calendar, so there’s always a variety of things to do once participants walk through the doors — which are open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Some activities, like art or games, are in-house, but many are out in the community — museum and library visits or a recent trip to Highmark Sportsworks in Pittsburgh, to name a few. Program director Heather Deerfield said those activities are made possible by various community partners — local businesses or other organizations — that “roll out the red carpet” for participants, some even providing discounted rates or opening on off days.

“This community has embraced us, and I’m definitely appreciative of that,” said Aaron Bracone, CEO and founder of PALS. Born and raised in Mingo Junction, Bracone oversees each of the seven PALS locations in Ohio and travels among them to make sure they’re doing well.

“Our mission is community integration and making sure that our folks are seen out in the world,” Bracone said. “They’re part of everyday society and they have the same opportunities as everybody else.”

Also integral to PALS is its vocational training initiative. PALS contracts with organizations including the Ohio Department of Transportation and American Electric Power to provide simulated work environments in which individuals clean and upkeep the organizations’ facilities.

Working up to five hours per day and with job coaching from PALS, participants gain employment skills and bolster their resumes to eventually clinch their own job in the community — some contract partners have hired the individuals full-time, Bracone added.

“People feel comfortable here because they know they’ll be treated right,” Bracone said. “Unfortunately, in the world, that’s not necessarily the case. In a previous job, they might’ve been picked on or made fun of, so they’re scared to go back. We have to work against that and build up their confidence to know they’re capable of doing it and reaching that goal.”

Prospective participants take a tour with PALS, and if they want to enroll, they’re given an intake meeting for PALS to learn about them. During that meeting, individuals choose what days they want to come, form their own service plan and identify outcomes, or goals that they want to grow in and accomplish, Bracone said. PALS takes it from there to work with the individuals and help them flourish.

Some of the 27-member staff of direct support professionals — people who work alongside individuals with intellectual disabilities to help them achieve their outcomes — remain at the program facility while others work in the community, transporting individuals from their homes and to their community activities or work situations.

Advocacy on behalf of the individuals is crucial for PALS, Bracone said, meaning the program is always looking to break down societal taboos surrounding individuals who have developmental disabilities. The term “individual” itself is an example of “people-first language,” he added.

Even today, Bracone said, there are people with false notions about those individuals, so the mission is to bring them out into the community and help others “understand them a little bit more.”

Deerfield said advocacy has included monitoring legislation important for individuals and their rights, as well as partnering with schools to educate students on disabilities. In those situations, it’s the individuals themselves giving the presentation, speaking from their own experiences, while the PALS staff are there to offer support.

“The big thing in those moments is confidence,” Bracone said. “For most of their life, they’re told ‘You can’t, you won’t, you never will.’ For us, it’s ‘How can we, what can we do.'”

PALS began when Bracone was working as a direct support professional in Columbus. After 10 years of working for a large agency, he was “frustrated with the quality of services for individuals and the lack of options.”

Bracone joined with his former college roommate, Hector Lamourt, to create a business plan for a program focused on providing more activity and work choices for individuals. The two pitched their plan to Chrysalis Health, a Florida-based behavioral health care provider, which partnered with them to form PALS.

The first PALS location was created in 2012 in Gahanna, near Columbus, with the program later adding Bracone’s childhood friend from Mingo Junction, Mike Pierro, as a business partner. Other locations were developed in Heath and Gallipolis, and an art program called Art Outside the Lines was created in Columbus. PALS expanded to Jefferson County in April 2019, privatizing the former Jeffco Workshop.

For almost three years, PALS Steubenville operated out of the Jeffco Training Center, before moving to its current location, the former St. Agnes Central School building in Mingo Junction. Déjà vu still strikes Bracone and Pierro, who both attended the school, but it’s comforting to Bracone that he could bring PALS to his hometown and contribute to the community’s betterment.

The former school has caught its second wind, with PALS participants active and lively. In the art room, participants express their creative sides, with some being led to become entrepreneurs with their creations.

On a recent day, a participant named Lacey practiced her favorite activities, writing letters and coloring. Nearby, participants M.J. and Donnie built a puzzle together.

Donnie, whose geometric art is displayed on the walls, said PALS is “good” and he enjoys the trips into the community. Even when it rains, he said, PALS is always there to pick him up for the day.

The location has a cafeteria, media room and gymnasium, which fulfills one of PALS’s core aspects of physical activity through games like basketball and pickleball — PALS itself stands for physical activity and life skills. Life skills and education are important aspects, Bracone said, and PALS works to instill skills for personal hygiene, healthy eating and interviewing.

Always looking to individuals’ parents as the barometer for a job well done, Deerfield and Bracone believe it is a “privilege” to serve the individuals each day and make each day special.

“We love what we do,” Bracone said. “I feel like we’re making the world a better place. And it’s really because of our individuals. They’ve been through a lot, and they refuse to accept no as an answer … because we have given them those opportunities. We believe they can do what they dream.”