06/01/2026
What do cleaners, food truck operators and bakers have in common? They are all professions that St. Joseph’s Lifecare Centre interns are dreaming of, thanks to a unique program that provides people with disabilities the chance to gain real-world work experience. Project SEARCH, an award-winning program hosted at St. Joe’s, has helped Ed McKenzie, Curtis Wilson, Sophia Devries and Logan Leversage gain the skills and confidence to aspire to these career paths. They are just three of 20 students with intellectual and developmental disabilities who have been employed through the program over the past four years and have become a fundamental part of working at St. Joe’s.
Project SEARCH helps students with disabilities find confidence, careers and belonging.
St. Joe’s is an ideal setting for the program, providing various internship positions in a compassionate community setting. Job roles include everything from making sandwiches in the kitchenette to playing games with residents through the recreation department. Interns learn skills like independence, confidence, teamwork, problem solving and interpersonal communication, which sets them up for success finding a job once they graduate.
The program benefits not only the interns, but St. Joe’s staff and residents, too. Interns have been embraced as part of the St. Joe’s team, and residents have built connections through many interactions over the years. Five interns have gone on to work in a permanent position at St. Joe’s.
On May 26, St. Joe’s was awarded a City of Brantford Accessibility Improvement Award for its commitment to providing an inclusive and equitable workplace. In 2025, it won the AdvantAge Ontario Community Connections Award in recognition of its outstanding leadership and impact as the host organization of Project SEARCH Brantford.
Learn more about this award-winning program, https://shorturl.at/VWwaq
St. Joseph's Healthcare and Foundation Grand Erie District School Board Community Living Brant City of Brantford
