Recognition Reception Celebrates the Importance – and Benefits – of Advocacy
for People with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities
HOPEWELL JUNCTION, N.Y., June 10, 2025 – During a heartwarming evening, Abilities First celebrated four extraordinary community partners whose unwavering support and dedication have transformed countless lives and advanced the nonprofit organization’s mission of empowerment and inclusion.
About 140 dignitaries and supporters gathered for Abilities First’s annual Recognition Reception at the Curry Estate in Hopewell Junction on June 5, 2025. Abilities First provides people who face developmental challenges and their families support to attain independence, self-determination, integration and acceptance by others through education, exploration and experience. Abilities First is supported by the Foundation for Abilities First NY.
“We are here to honor some remarkable people,” said Abilities First CEO Dr. Jeffery Fox. “Your contributions have made a real difference in the people we serve.”
Business Partner of the Year: Kim Constable, Food Service Director of TRIO Community Meals. Abilities First’s innovative partnership with Constable and Trio’s Poughkeepsie operation has positioned dozens of Abilities First individuals over time to help create 750 meals a day at the Dutchess County Office for the Aging. The meals are delivered to senior citizens. “Meaningful work changes lives,” Constable said, championing the vital importance of possibility and sharing honors with Abilities First participants and their job coaches. “The commitment these individuals put into the tasks they perform is a win-win situation,” he said. “They benefit from the work environment, we benefit from the work and we all benefit from the teamwork.”
Volunteer of the Year: Steven Howell of RBT CPAs, LLP, is Chairman of the Abilities First Inc. Board of Directors. His exceptional volunteer leadership and unwavering dedication, blended with strategic vision and compassion, have significantly advanced Abilities First’s mission and enhanced lives. Howell was introduced by Pete Setaro, Chairman of the Foundation for Abilities First NY Board of Directors. “Steve brings decades of wisdom, a profound understanding of community needs and belief in every person we serve,” he said.
Howell said he was “deeply honored and humbled… This moment means more for me than I can fully express.” He held up a rock inscribed with the word “Gratitude” that serves as a “daily reminder of the lives changed through compassion and of showing up every day with purpose,” he explained. Howell returned the praise, explaining that Abilities First inspires him through its “respect, dignity and unwavering commitment that everyone deserves a chance to thrive.”
Friend of Abilities First: Lorraine Heneka, in memoriam, for 14 years of extraordinary volunteer leadership that created a legacy of compassion and inclusion. “She understood that change happens when we open our hearts and minds in our community,” said David Melby, a member of the Abilities First Foundation Board of Directors. “She had a talent for making everyone heard and appreciated; her legacy is in every life touched by Abilities First and when understanding replaces misconceptions.” The award was accepted by Heneka’s family, with her sister, Joanne Spridco, speaking to the audience. “Lorraine felt all people deserve to be supported and encouraged to reach their potential,” she said. “Her work with Abilities First helped her fulfill her need to push for acceptance of people no matter who they are.”
Abilities First Person of the Year: Joseph “Wally” Domoulin embodies resilience, determination and extraordinary strength in overcoming obstacles, said JoAnn Parker, Director of Development for the Foundation for Abilities First NY. Domoulin joined Abilities First’s Early Intervention Program for infants and toddlers, and later attended Abilities First’s school-age program. He embraced a love of music, developed drumming talents and has created guitars during an apprenticeship. “He’s a natural teacher and performer who loves connecting with everyone,” Parker said.
Domoulin told the crowd, “Thank you to everyone… I’m happy to have the strength to do what I love to do.”
His mother, Romi Domoulin, recounted an early medical diagnosis and how Doumoulin persevered. “This is a child I was told would never walk, talk or amount to anything,” she said. “We proved them wrong!”
She profusely thanked Abilities First’s supportive teachers and staff. “Everyone that Wally met did it from the heart,” she said. “It wasn’t a job for them – it was a mission… All you have to do is believe in them. He amazes us every day with something new.”
In addition, decorated hats were displayed as part of the “Hats Off!” project, a creative initiative in which Abilities First participants expressed their individuality and revealed personal stories and creativity through art. Funding was provided by Arts Mid-Hudson; Carrie Decker, Executive Director and Founder of Crazy Over Arts on Tour partnered with participants on their creations.
“What makes this project even more meaningful is that our participants enjoyed inspiring outings to the conference rooms of board members Josh Mackey and Pam Gunther, where they created these pieces,” said JoAnn Parker, Development Director of the Foundation for Abilities First NY. “These experiences provided the opportunity to work alongside community partners in professional settings, sharing creativity around the table together. Tonight, we’ve brought our community full circle – the finished hats and artist biographies you see represent not just a person’s artistic expression, but the collaborative spirit that happens when we truly include everyone in our community spaces. Thank you, Arts Mid-Hudson, Carrie, Josh, and Pam, for believing in the power of creativity to change lives.”
Abilities First’s Recognition Reception was generously sponsored by numerous community businesses:
- Impact Visionaries: NFP, an insurance brokerage and consulting company.
- Empowerment Champions: Savant Wealth Management; Mackey Butts & Whalen LLP, Attorneys At Law; Cuddy + Feder LLP.
- Reception Hosts: RBT, LLP, Certified Public Accountants, Business Development Consultants; Hudson Valley Credit Union; and Trio Community Meals.
- Advocate Sponsors: Drake Loeb PLLC, Attorneys At Law; TEG Federal Credit Union.
- Friends of Abilities First: PKF O’Connor Davies, Accountants and Advisors; Think Wealth; Resorts World Catskills Hudson Valley; and Ulster Savings.
About Abilities First and the Foundation for Abilities First N.Y.
Founded in 1962, Abilities First is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization serving the needs of over 1,100 children and adults with developmental disabilities from birth through adulthood throughout the Hudson Valley. More than 600 dedicated employees are committed to providing a culture of compassion, empowerment and respect through educational, vocational, residential, habilitation and family support programs and services. Founded in 2018, the Foundation for Abilities First NY is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization. Its mission is to garner the financial resources necessary to meet the programmatic interests and to assure the sustainability of the mission of Abilities First, Inc. Learn more at AbilitiesFirstNY.org.
