May 2023 Special Needs Living Akron/Canton

Vocational Rehabilitation for All Ages

Creative Rehab

WRITTEN BY SARAH SMITH

Creative Rehab provides services designed to help people with disabilities explore and secure community employment. The organization is a vendor for Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities (OOD) and works in on expanding its services for high school-aged students, realizing that this is an important age to learn about working, the benefits of having a job, and how to be successful. Through a service called Pre-Employment Transition Services (Pre-ETS) that takes place at school, Creative Rehab helps students start thinking about working and exploring different career options. In addition, Creative Rehab’s Summer Youth Work Experience lets students work in small groups for five weeks with a job coach.

“Creative Rehab is an innovative and influential program which provides emerging employment skills for individuals with diverse needs. The guidance and individualized approach from the Divisional Director Kelly Witt, the Job Coaches, and the entire Creative Rehab team has greatly assisted my students in their successful transition into the world of work,” said Sam Porter, Principal of the Stark County Educational Service Center High School Program.

Creative Rehab is proud of our ability to adapt our services to the needs of the individual,”

In addition to Kelly Witt, AJ Harris is the Divisional Director for Summit County and Erica Jones is the Divisional Director for Tuscarawas, Carroll, and Holmes Counties.

When the President and Owner of Creative Rehab, Mark Bergert, was younger, he often jobhopped and struggled with finding a job that was meaningful and enjoyable. In 1994, he was hired to help coach a small group of individuals with disabilities at different job sites and realized he had found his calling.

“I started working for Creative Rehab in 2003 as a Divisional Director,” Bergert explained. “After helping to grow and expand the business, I decided I wanted to do even more. I was considering branching off to start my own business but instead, I purchased Creative Rehab from the previous owner in 2016.”

“Creative Rehab is proud of our ability to adapt our services to the needs of the individual,” continued Bergert. “We have such a great group of employees covering six counties: Stark, Summit, Tuscarawas, Medina, Holmes, and Carroll. Creative Rehab will help people realize their strengths, and we find ways to catapult these strengths into a successful career.”

Rev. Dr. Vicki Breckner and her husband, David, adopted three special needs children from Summit County Children’s Services 18 years ago. When two of the children became teenagers and sought employment, the family became involved with OOD. OOD referred the Breckners to agencies that could help the teens work on their resumes, help them find jobs, and even provide a job coach to assist them for their first couple of weeks working. After phoning Bergert, they knew they had found the right fit. The job developers helped their son gain employment and helped their daughter gain the self-confidence needed for working two parttime jobs and as a teacher’s aide for preschool through kindergarten.

“I hear from so many people that they did not know these services existed,” Bergert stated. “If you have a disability, or you are the parent or legal guardian of someone with a disability, find out what services and opportunities are available. Speak to someone at your high school, contact your local Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities office, or call Creative Rehab. All of our services are free; there is no fee for the people we assist or for the employers we work with. To local business owners and managers, I would ask that they keep an open mind about hiring someone with a disability.”

Bergert grew up in Canton, graduating from GlenOak High School in 1986. His wife, Danielle, is a teacher at GlenOak, and both of their children are/were involved in Plain Local Schools. Bergert has worked in the Akron/ Canton area, in this field, for over 28 years. The employees of Creative Rehab gather donations for local charities, and the company supports local agencies such as the Autism Society of Greater Akron, Head Start, The Salvation Army, and the Haven of Rest.

More information can be found at www. creativerehab.info or by calling 330-806-0497.