Posted on March 14, 2025
“Transforming a person’s life is not easy.”
His given name is Wilberforce Osei Yeboah, but his Penn-Mar family simply calls him “Willie.”
A native of Ghana in Africa, he came to the States in 2011 with his three children, then aged 11, 8, and 4. His wife would join the family 18-months later but in the meantime, Willie handled all the responsibilities of a single parent, rising at 4:30 am each weekday to get his kids off to school and day care, before heading off to his job at a local warehouse.
When a woman at his church mentioned that her sister was working at Penn-Mar Human Services, he found himself wanting to know more about the role of a Direct Support Professional (DSP). She shared literature about the organization and Willie carefully reviewed its website before applying online for an interview.
“Initially I had no idea about the scope of home care services, but I was eager to learn,” remembers Willie.
He was soon offered a position and was fortunate to have a supervisor who encouraged him to ask questions about everything and take advantage of the wisdom and experience of his fellow team members.
Willie officially started with Penn-Mar in 2015 and after only a few weeks on the job had set his sights on one day becoming a residential home supervisor. Transitioning from night shifts to day work, he would eventually staff some 7 different homes over the past 10 years, working as a Senior Residential Assistant and DSP. He is currently a Career Ladders Level III Certified DSP supporting one gentleman in hospice care and three other residents aged 51, 49 and 41.
“Transforming a person’s life is not easy,” says Willie. “It can take months before a person feels they can trust you. I try to build rapport by putting myself in their shoes. If they are happy, I am happy too. If they are upset in any way, I let them know I am there for them. I always say to them, “Let’s work together to help you understand and resolve what is worrying or hurting you.’” When the people he supports respond to his efforts it is very gratifying for Willie.
Yet even with much success on the job, he felt there was always more he could learn to improve the lives of the people he supported while enhancing his own career growth.
His boss suggested he broaden his experience with training, specifically by enrolling in the Career Ladders Program that leads to professional credentialling and commensurate compensation for DSPs.
“I committed to giving it a try,” said Willie. “The program was very interesting, but it required a lot of study time in addition to my full-time job and busy family life. It was a nice thing to do but I decided to put my career development on hold after completing Level I.”
His program manager respectfully wouldn’t take “no” for an answer and encouraged Willie to continue by giving him more private time to complete his course work. Inspired by her faith in his potential, he managed to achieve the top Level III Certification in only three years.
“My experience at Penn-Mar has shown me that this is the best place to learn and grow as a DSP,” said Willie. “As an organization, they take you through scenarios of everything you will encounter on the job and provide you with everything you need to know and have to do your job correctly. There is 100 percent team work at Penn-Mar. Without it, we could never be able to provide the high level of support we give and the trust we build with the people in our care.”