Frequently Asked Questions
Have a question about Focus on Freedom disability support services, open positions, or how to get started? You’ve come to the right place!
General
Focus on Freedom is an organization dedicated to helping individuals with disabilities gain as much freedom, independence, and joy as possible. We believe all people are valuable, can contribute and can live as independently as possible.
We offer a variety of services, including daily living skills training, personal futures planning, respite care, and caregiver seminars, to help individuals reach their full potential.
Founder Marla Kopecky started Focus on Freedom in 2019. The business has been growing and expanding its services ever since!
We work with individuals with disabilities ages 8 and older and their families. We have experience supporting people with a variety of intellectual and physical disabilities, including Autism, cerebral palsy, Down syndrome, spinal cord injuries, and more.
Disability Services
Our services work best for people ages 8 and older in Winnebago County.
Our services are state-funded as a qualifying Children’s Long-Term Support (CLTS) program. If you are interested in enrolling in Daily Living Skills Training or Personal Futures Planning and do not have state funding, please contact us for more information.
Daily Living Skills Training through Focus on Freedom can be scheduled for 2 to 4 hours, or up to 8 hours, depending on the family’s needs.
We totally get it. In order for us to schedule properly and provide the best care possible, please let us know your respite care needs as far in advance as possible. Respite Care services are available to current Focus on Freedom clients. If you are interested in Respite Care services, please tell us about your needs and join our waitlist.
Yes! We customize every program to focus on the individual and their goals and abilities. As skills improve, we’ll continue to refine our focus and approach.
All of our trainers receive in-house training and ongoing support from our founder, Marla, who has more than 20 years of experience in special education and in-home support services. Our team members also have backgrounds in education, health care, and disabilities services.
It depends! Everyone’s plan and coverage is different, which means there’s no one-size-fits-all answer here. Connect with your caseworker to discuss your specific coverage.
Caregiver/Parent
Our seminar is a virtual program that includes 18 weeks of content to support caregivers.
Content is recorded and sent by Friday mornings. There are also weekly meetings on Wednesdays to discuss the content, answer questions, and build community.
Our seminar content covers the following topics:
- Self-Care
- Routines and Boundaries
- Organization and Visuals
- Communication
- Emotions and Emotional Regulation
- Relationships/Puberty
You will receive worksheets with the weekly content and resources to help you develop a plan you can begin using immediately.
Our Caregiver Seminars are a great fit for anyone who provides consistent care to individuals with disabilities. The Seminar is especially helpful if you’ve been on waiting lists for Children’s Long-Term Support (CLTS) programs and need support now. Participants often include parents, siblings, grandparents, and other relatives or designated guardians.
You will enroll individually. This allows both participants to have time on their own to review the materials, and then come together to discuss their biggest takeaways, which can be different. Then, you can discuss it as a family unit and determine a plan for what changes you would like to implement in your home.
The seminar costs $2,000. This enrollment fee gets you 18 weeks of content, tons of resources, a community of like-minded people, and lifetime access to all resources.
Great question. We’re all for sharing support resources with families. We’d definitely recommend you check out the following sites to start:
- Winnebago County Aging and Disability Resource Center
- Wisconsin Disability Rights Wisconsin
- Winnebago County Department of Human Services
Once we know more about your family and your specific needs, we can offer other resources as well. Your school and health care provider may also be able to offer specific support recommendations.
Employees
We are currently looking for Daily Living Skills Trainers, Respite Caregivers, and Personal Futures Trainers. Learn more about these open positions to see if you’d be a good fit.
We are looking to hire individuals who are passionate about helping children and adults with disabilities.
Most skills can be taught on the job and through onboarding and ongoing training. We want to help you build your resume and gain skills to use in a career helping those with disabilities. That said, experience with education, health care, or disabilities can be beneficial.
Our trainers are paid an hourly rate that varies depending on the role and individual experience. Our Respite position begins at $14/hour and our Daily Living Skills and Personal Futures Planning Trainer positions begin at $15/hour. In addition to a flexible schedule (we work around your school and other work schedules), we also offer a referral bonus (paid out when your referral completes one year of services at Focus on Freedom).
We’re here to support our team every step of the way. New employees are trained based upon previous knowledge, experience, and comfort level. We also have ongoing monthly call and on-site visits to offer feedback, training, and support.
