ARTICLE
RANDOLPH, MA, ISSUED JUNE 2, 2023… In 1973, a group of parents came together to form the Randolph Occupational Workshop, an organization that served approximately 20 individuals with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities in a former one-room school house. Fast forward 50 years, and today Grow Associates, which evolved from the Randolph Occupational Workshop, continues to connect individuals of all abilities with opportunities at its 50,000-square-foot building in Randolph. Grow has flourished over that timespan, now serving nearly 250 individuals ranging in age from 18 to 82 from over 24 surrounding communities, and employing more than 50 human service professionals. Grow settled into its current space at Mazzeo Drive in 2013. When Grow Associates closed its sheltered workshop in 2014, the organization led the state-mandated movement to shift from piecework to fully integrated employment services in the community. With an operating budget of over $5 million, Grow provides a wide range of services to adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities of all backgrounds, including community-based day supports, day habilitation, employment services, transition services, and transportation. And Grow continues to expand! In 2021, the organization purchased the building at 68 Mazzeo Drive, gaining 21,000 square feet of program space in addition to the space Grow had been renting. Grow is currently developing the space to provide additional opportunities for the individuals the organization serves as well as the greater Randolph and South Shore communities, which will provide more opportunities for integration, acceptance, and inclusion in the process. Already Grow has added some evening and weekend hours to provide even more opportunities for growth to each person Grow serves. The organization has also welcomed several new people in leadership roles over the last 15 months. Scott Pralinsky, Grow’s executive director, took over the post in April 2022. Previously, he had served as executive director of Echoing Hope Ranch, and had also founded the Casa Milagro Foundation, which offered cross-cultural understanding between the United States and Costa Rica while also working to help children exploited by human trafficking. Brian Jadro, Ph.D., LABA, BCBA-D, the organization’s director of service operations, joined Grow in September 2022, bringing with him many years of experience with other human services organizations. In June 2022, a new development office was established at the organization, and Jill Tompkins was named Grow’s first director of development and marketing, In celebration of the organization’s golden anniversary, Grow Associates is planning a “Big Dreams for Brighter Futures” Gala, which will take place Friday, October 13, at the Four Points by Sheraton in Norwood. For more information on the event, including tickets and sponsorship opportunities, please visit https://grow50.givesmart.com/. Additional community events and smaller celebrations are also planned throughout the year. “This is an incredibly exciting time at Grow Associates,” said Pralinsky. “We are building on this amazing 50-year foundation that has been formed by invested family and board members and a caring staff that fosters an individual’s choices, life skills, community integration, and long-term employment. As we think about this year and beyond, we’re looking forward to ways we can be even more impactful in our mission to connect people of all abilities with opportunities – because everyone deserves to live a happy and meaningful life.” About Grow Associates Grow Associates, Inc. is a non-profit 501 (c) organization connecting people of all abilities with opportunities since 1973. Grow provides a wide range of services including day habilitation, community-based day supports, vocational training and integrated employment services. Grow serves nearly 250 individuals ranging in age from 18-82 from over 24 surrounding communities and employs more than 50 part-time and full-time human service professionals. As a leading community health and human services organization in Massachusetts, Grow Associates is licensed, certified, and accredited by a range of agencies and organizations, guaranteeing the highest quality of services to support people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Grow Associates is located at 68 Mazzeo Drive, Randolph, MA. For more information, please call 781-961-6700 or visit www.grow-associates.org. Photo (left to right): Grow individuals Julie, Kelly, John, Sandra, and Marcell on their way to volunteering at Cradles to Crayons.
RANDOLPH, MA, ISSUED JUNE 2, 2023… In 1973, a group of parents came together to form the Randolph Occupational Workshop, an organization that served approximately 20 individuals with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities in a former one-room school house.
Fast forward 50 years, and today Grow Associates, which evolved from the Randolph Occupational Workshop, continues to connect individuals of all abilities with opportunities at its 50,000-square-foot building in Randolph. Grow has flourished over that timespan, now serving nearly 250 individuals ranging in age from 18 to 82 from over 24 surrounding communities, and employing more than 50 human service professionals. Grow settled into its current space at Mazzeo Drive in 2013.
When Grow Associates closed its sheltered workshop in 2014, the organization led the state-mandated movement to shift from piecework to fully integrated employment services in the community. With an operating budget of over $5 million, Grow provides a wide range of services to adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities of all backgrounds, including community-based day supports, day habilitation, employment services, transition services, and transportation.
And Grow continues to expand! In 2021, the organization purchased the building at 68 Mazzeo Drive, gaining 21,000 square feet of program space in addition to the space Grow had been renting. Grow is currently developing the space to provide additional opportunities for the individuals the organization serves as well as the greater Randolph and South Shore communities, which will provide more opportunities for integration, acceptance, and inclusion in the process. Already Grow has added some evening and weekend hours to provide even more opportunities for growth to each person Grow serves.
The organization has also welcomed several new people in leadership roles over the last 15 months. Scott Pralinsky, Grow’s executive director, took over the post in April 2022. Previously, he had served as executive director of Echoing Hope Ranch, and had also founded the Casa Milagro Foundation, which offered cross-cultural understanding between the United States and Costa Rica while also working to help children exploited by human trafficking. Brian Jadro, Ph.D., LABA, BCBA-D, the organization’s director of service operations, joined Grow in September 2022, bringing with him many years of experience with other human services organizations. In June 2022, a new development office was established at the organization, and Jill Tompkins was named Grow’s first director of development and marketing,
In celebration of the organization’s golden anniversary, Grow Associates is planning a “Big Dreams for Brighter Futures” Gala, which will take place Friday, October 13, at the Four Points by Sheraton in Norwood. For more information on the event, including tickets and sponsorship opportunities, please visit https://grow50.givesmart.com/. Additional community events and smaller celebrations are also planned throughout the year.
“This is an incredibly exciting time at Grow Associates,” said Pralinsky. “We are building on this amazing 50-year foundation that has been formed by invested family and board members and a caring staff that fosters an individual’s choices, life skills, community integration, and long-term employment. As we think about this year and beyond, we’re looking forward to ways we can be even more impactful in our mission to connect people of all abilities with opportunities – because everyone deserves to live a happy and meaningful life.”
About Grow Associates Grow Associates, Inc. is a non-profit 501 (c) organization connecting people of all abilities with opportunities since 1973. Grow provides a wide range of services including day habilitation, community-based day supports, vocational training and integrated employment services. Grow serves nearly 250 individuals ranging in age from 18-82 from over 24 surrounding communities and employs more than 50 part-time and full-time human service professionals.
As a leading community health and human services organization in Massachusetts, Grow Associates is licensed, certified, and accredited by a range of agencies and organizations, guaranteeing the highest quality of services to support people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Grow Associates is located at 68 Mazzeo Drive, Randolph, MA. For more information, please call 781-961-6700 or visit www.grow-associates.org.
Photo (left to right): Grow individuals Julie, Kelly, John, Sandra, and Marcell on their way to volunteering at Cradles to Crayons.