Fort Wayne, IN – September 14, 2020 – Mental Health America of Northeast Indiana (MHANI) received a three-year funding commitment from AWS Foundation to support the Volunteer Advocates for Seniors and Incapacitated Adults (VASIA) program. Through the VASIA program, MHANI’s Professional Guardians advocate for individuals with health conditions, including intellectual or developmental disabilities, who are unable to make medical decisions on their own. In 2019, guardianship services improved the lives of 110 individuals throughout Northeast Indiana.
Through guardianship, clients experience a higher quality of life and are protected from abuse, neglect, and exploitation. In addition to monthly visits completed by guardians, volunteers visit clients twice monthly. Volunteers provide clients with opportunities to build relationships and broaden their support network.
Since the VASIA program launched in Allen County in 2015, AWS Foundation has been an instrumental partner to fund supporting guardianship services for individuals with disabilities. Today, with the assistance of AWS Foundation, MHANI provides guardianship services to nine Northeast Indiana counties.
“We’re seeing the need for guardianship services continue to grow,” Joseph Blazier, Director of Guardianship Services at MHANI, said. “This long-term commitment from AWS Foundation ensures that we can continue to serve often overlooked members of our community.”
About AWS Foundation: Founded in 2007, AWS Foundation supports a wide range of organizations in northeast Indiana working to develop a community in which people with enduring intellectual, development, and physical disabilities are engaged fully and meaningfully in all aspects of community life. For more information, visit awsfoundation.org.