NEW! "Gifts That Matter"
Click the cover art at left to browse the online version of our new "Gifts That Matter" catalog. A better way to honor someone special for their wedding, birthday, or any occasion or holiday: with a donation in their name to one of seven great Polus causes. Choose a gift...
MISSION
The Polus Center for Social
& Economic Development, Inc. strives to create opportunities
for persons with disabilities and members of other vulnerable
groups to become valued citizens within their communities.
The word “Polus” is of Latin origin and means the
highest point, suggesting reaching for the ideal. The name invokes
people being at their best by helping each other and welcoming
one another into a meaningful community life.
The Polus Center is a non-profit umbrella organization that designs
and implements community-based programs in the United States and
throughout the developing world.
PROGRAMS AND SERVICES
International Programs
Polus began working internationally in 1997 in Nicaragua and we
have now expanded to Ethiopia, Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador,
and Mexico. These collaborative efforts have resulted in two community-based
prosthetic outreach projects, an accessibility project, a disabilities
leadership center, a regional wheelchair manufacturing project,
and a series of capacity-building mini-grants to local organizations
and individuals. We use a locally-based, holistic approach to
insure that project beneficiaries are the ones driving services
forward and broad support is created in the community where they
live.
Shared Living
Our individualized shared living programs throughout Massachusetts,
USA, help establish and support households where people with and
without disabilities live in mutually beneficial relationships,
enabling people with disabilities to live and work within the
community. Because of this innovative alternative service model,
many individuals who would have spent years in institutional care
are now competitively employed and have homes in the communities
of their choice.
Social and Economic Opportunities
We support employment services such as CBA, a small community
based organization in Boston, that enables adults with disabilities
to maintain valued work roles. The Petersham Country Store in
the U.S. and the Ben Linder Café in Nicaragua foster communitybuilding
and provide jobs, with profits supporting Walking Unidos and other
Polus initiatives. We work with people who have disabilities and
grassroots organizations to create meaningful income-generating
initiatives.
Training and Consulting
Polus uses a comprehensive person-centered planning process that
brings together project beneficiaries to identify their own needs
and priorities. We have worked with dozens of grassroots organizations
to help them plan and implement economic and social inclusion
projects. We also offer a variety of social skills and business
development training. |
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Sharing
The News - Winter 2009 (PDF, 284k)
Geography of Coffee
In 2009, students from Bridgewater State College traveled to Nicaragua on the "Geography
of Coffee" study tour. On this trip, the group visited many projects supported
by the Polus Center.
First year medical student from UMass Medical volunteers
at Walking Unidos
Give
a Child a Goat - The Uganda Goat Project
The Give a Child a Goat Project elevates the
status of children with disabilities and their families. A child with a disability
who owns a goat holds a valued position in local Ugandan society, since goats
provide families with a sustainable livelihood of food and milk.
Sharing The
News - Fall 2008 (PDF, 340k)
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