Shadowing René Pellerin
By Elizabeth Spiers
“I have a challenge finding clients,” René Pellerin joked. “Vermont has more cows than deaf or deaf-blind people.”
However, it is Mr. Pellerin’s job to find and serve deaf, hard of hearing and deaf-blind clients.
Mr. Pellerin, who has Usher Syndrome, is the coordinator of the Northern Vermont Resource Center, part of the Vermont Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing. This center serves people who are deaf, hard of hearing and deaf-blind in northern Vermont. Mr. Pellerin oversees mental health, counseling and day programs for people with developmental disabilities and mental illness. He also coordinates a telecommunications distribution program for northern Vermont.
Mr. Pellerin supervises eight employees on his staff. In addition to his administrative work, he does about 15 hours a week of direct client service, where he provides counseling and support for his clients. He also works with his staff to develop treatment plans, behavior plans and address issues with his clients. He attends task force and legislative meetings.
Mr. Pellerin’s efforts have paid off. A few years ago, he was invited to join a national governmental task force focusing on the needs of low-functioning deaf and hard of hearing individuals. “I have always had a strong interest in low-functioning deaf, deaf-blind and hard of hearing individuals. They need to have a strong voice.”
“I like my job because I enjoy working independently,” Mr. Pellerin said. “I can develop projects where I see the need and my administrator is very supportive. For example, Vermont has no SSP services at all. I am working on establishing a pilot project to establish SSPs. We hope to have something ready sometime in July. We are also developing another small pilot project to provide services to deaf, hard of hearing and deaf-blind people who need services but don’t meet state qualifications to get them. I know clients who don’t fit the definition of developmental disabilities or mental illnesses, but need individual services.”
To do his work, Mr. Pellerin uses interpreters for staff meetings and meetings away from his office. He has a driver who drives him to various appointments around the state. He also uses videophone and video relay services. “This is much easier for me because I can focus on one person rather than trying to watch a group of people all at once,” he said.
Mr. Pellerin uses a mobility cane to get around and also uses a personal alert device both at home and at work. He commutes to work on the bus and car pools with his wife if she goes through the area. “I recently had a new bus driver who didn’t know me and I missed my connecting bus! I was able to get to work, but it was rather frustrating.”
Mr. Pellerin traveled a multi-faceted route to his current position. He received a BA degree from Gallaudet University, and shortly afterwards, worked in a group home for hearing people with developmental disabilities. “There were no specific group homes for deaf or deaf-blind people at that time, so I got the job that was available.” He tried teaching for a while, but discovered he disliked it. He then found a job working for the Vermont Association for the Blind, providing peer advocating and case management for people who were blind or visually impaired. He had a few deafblind people at that time, but only a few. Then he heard about an independent living program coordinator position open in Boston, Massachusetts.
“I moved down there with my wife and four children,” he said. “I quickly found out that the job was very demanding and required a lot of my time; I became overwhelmed very quickly. Also, my wife, who is an interpreter, often worked evenings and weekends as well. We didn’t have a lot of time for our family. When a position for a vocational rehabilitation counselor became available in Vermont, we moved back there. It was much quieter and I had more family time.”
Mr. Pellerin worked as a vocational rehabilitation counselor for two years, then took a position as state coordinator for the deaf and hard of hearing. He stayed in this position for 15 years before he became coordinator of the Northern Vermont Center four years ago. “I was ready for a change and wanted to try out some new things,” he said.
Mr. Pellerin has noted some challenges in this new position, however. “My vision is decreasing and some of my clients don’t understand my visual needs at times. My staff is great. They know they need to stay in one position and sign in a small space. It is harder for my clients to understand that so I face the challenge of understanding them and getting them to understand my vision loss.”
