Posted 5/26/2023
To hear him tell it, Richard Lewis has always considered himself a bit of an anomaly. From his early days growing up in West Chester, Pennsylvania in an almost all-white school, to acing every classroom test but scoring low on all the standardized ones, he often felt a little different. His charm, warmth, and intelligence grew throughout his youth and landed him at Penn State’s main campus for college. There Richard would learn more than the content listed on his university classes’ syllabi. Richard would discover what he recalls as the worst bouts of depression in his life. Floating in and out of classes while he worked the overnight shift at the 24-hour diner in State College, Richard was approached by a friend who wanted to help him change his course.
“My friend had recently moved to Philadelphia and told me look, you’re not going to graduate,” Richard recalled. “You’re 24 years old, it’s time to get a real job. Come to Philly and we’ll get you a job.” He didn’t know it yet, but that was the beginning of Richard’s career with Merakey. That first job, or as Richard called it, his ‘first grown-up
as a Direct Support Professional. That’s how it all started for Richard – not just his new career with what would become Merakey, but a new outlook on his life and his future.
From his hire date on December 6, 1993 to now, Richard has been able to experience a myriad of roles and a vast array of responsibilities, often learning a great deal along the way. He went from working as a DSP to a Shift Manager, then to running an entire unit. After working as a unit manager for 2 ½ years, he worked for Betty Boyd and Paula Nerone managing 22 CLAs in Northeast Philadelphia. He did stints working in homes for teenagers with co-occurring mental illness and intellectual disabilities, to supervising behavior specialists and sexuality consultants in Philadelphia. He spent 5 years as the Director of Programs in Bucks and Montgomery Counties which included group homes, respite, supportive living, and day programs, and even worked in IT on Avatar. His extensive experience grew even more in recent years, which brings us to his latest role as a Learning and Development Facilitator.
Richard’s Merakey journey is a testament to how much you can grow with a company like ours. “One of the things I’m most excited to be working on in this role is the new tools we’re building for goal setting and career ladders. So many folks don’t realize all the areas they can explore working here at Merakey. To be able to compare your skills and credentials to the pathway you want to seek and figure out how to get there? I’m excited about that. I want to help our employees see the opportunities available to them and the growth they can achieve.”
When asked what he loves about working at Merakey, Richard’s answers all fall under one main area: growth. “The growth I’ve seen in the array of services we provide has been amazing to watch. Then there’s the growth I’ve seen in the level of independence of a lot of the individuals we serve. And beyond that, I love seeing the growth of so many of the people I’ve worked with who have advanced in the company – seeing people who have dedicated so much of their lives to this company do great things. It’s the growth for me.”
We can’t wait to see what Richard brings to his latest role with Merakey and look forward to celebrating his 30-year work anniversary this December!
