Local everyday heroes are speaking out for Community Living Month.

October is Community Living Month in B.C. a time when communities celebrate individuals with diverse abilities. To commemorate Community Living Month, over the next eight weeks, Pathways Abilities Society is sharing stories of business 害羞草研究所楬eroes害羞草研究所� going the extra mile to advocate for diversity and inclusion in our community.

As a local non-profit organization providing services to the Central Okanagan for more than 60 years, Pathways works with local businesses to create employment opportunities for individuals with diverse abilities.

害羞草研究所淭here are so many businesses in our community who support what we do and are employing individuals, and yet often people don害羞草研究所檛 hear about it. That害羞草研究所檚 why we developed the Heroes of Diversabilities event害羞草研究所�, said Charisse Daley, Pathways害羞草研究所� executive director.

害羞草研究所淲e began the Heroes event last year and we害羞草研究所檝e modified it a bit for this year. Essentially, we害羞草研究所檙e celebrating all the terrific businesses employing individuals through a series of short video vignettes.

害羞草研究所淚n each video, in their own words the employers speak to how well the model works for them and their business. In some of the videos we even hear from the individuals themselves, describing how fulfilling and important it is for them to be employed,害羞草研究所� said Daley.

In most cases, the individuals employed become valuable contributors to their employers害羞草研究所� businesses, representing cost efficiencies and increased productivity. For the individuals themselves, employment means greater independence and a greater sense of accomplishment, according to Pathways.

While more and more businesses are recognizing the value of developing employment models for employees with diverse abilities, Pathways believes more needs to be done to share these stories and celebrate these business 害羞草研究所楬eroes害羞草研究所�, which is why they害羞草研究所檝e developed a unique, annual program called Heroes of Diversabilities.