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Goodman awarded $1,500 developmental disabilities scholarship from Bethesda

061011/02

Each year, Bethesda Lutheran Homes and Services, Inc., gives out a number of awards and scholarships to deserving Lutheran students who are interested in pursuing an education in the field of developmental disabilities services.

Bethesda is pleased to award Sarah Goodman of Milwaukee, Wis., with a $1,500 scholarship for entering the field of developmental disabilities. To be eligible for this scholarship, the student must have successfully achieved sophomore or junior status at an accredited college or university and be a full-time student with a minimum GPA of 3.0. The students had to complete 100 hours of work to benefit people with developmental disabilities and submit a 250-500 word essay on the career they have chosen to pursue.

Goodman, who is a junior at Concordia University in Milwaukee, is pursuing a degree in rehabilitation science that will allow her to work with individuals and children with developmental disabilities, injuries, and other disabilities.

To help train for her career, Goodman has begun working with people who have different disabilities. In 2005, she worked with an elderly woman with Alzheimer’s disease. In addition, for two summers, Goodman had the opportunity to work with a boy with Down syndrome.

Throughout her high school and college career, Goodman also developed skills that will help her pursue her career as a physical therapist, including volunteering at local nursing home, serving as a camp counselor at a summer camp for children, and traveling with other students from Concordia University to Juarez, Mexico, over spring break to build homes for families and lead Vacation Bible School for children.

“I enjoy helping people of all backgrounds. I know I would like to have a career in physical therapy where I deal directly with people and can help them with their problems,” says Goodman. “Physical therapists need more than just knowledge to choose the most beneficial exercises and treatments. They have to be the ones to set the goals, to encourage, and to motivate.”

Now in its second century of service, Bethesda Lutheran Homes and Services, Inc. provides services and supports to individuals with developmental disabilities throughout the country and throughout the world. It is Bethesda’s mission to support the needs of the individual—both physical and spiritual—and as a result, Bethesda offers many different types of services for the individual and their family, including a variety of residential facilities, supported-living programs, outreach services and secular training workshops. For more information on Bethesda’s services and support programs, call the public relations office at 800.369.4636, ext. 3817, or email: pr@blhs.org.