Lisa: I knew you were saying
that when you left Allentown

you began working
with providers.

I think was Pan Am the first
provider you worked with?

Tom: Yeah.

Lisa: So how did your
services or life improve

when you started
working with Pan Am?

Tom: Yeah, they were
working with me.

Lisa: And how did things
change in your life?

Tom: I moved up very quickly.

Lisa: And what does that mean,
to move up very quickly?

Tom: It means I went
from point A to point B.

Lisa: So what was point A?

Was point A choosing
a place to live?

Tom: Yeah.

Lisa: And where did you choose?

Tom: Wherever they put me;
that's what I got.

Lisa: Did you get to choose
your own roommates?

Tom: Yes.

Lisa: So you had your house,
and you had your roommates;

different roommates over
the years, of course...

Tom: Yeah.

Lisa: Were you able to find
a job in the community?

Tom: Yeah I'm working with
the newspaper, delivering.

I do my newspaper on Wednesday
then I take them out on Friday.

Lisa: I'm wondering if you
were able to tell the people

who were supporting
you, your providers,

what you wanted from life and
if they helped you get it?

Tom: I'm not too sure.

I don't know.

Lisa: I understand
that you were working

in a workshop for a while.

Tom: Yeah.

Lisa: What did you think
about that kind of work?

Tom: It was - it was
like relatively quick.

You know you get an object, you
just sit there or stand there,

and you get that object
and someone else will -

will do something by
saying you got to get it -

got to get it ready
and get it out of here.

Like they need to
ship it right away.

Lisa: And did that kind
of work appeal to you?

Tom: When I first
started working at

Course Training Center
I was shown one time

to put the object
together and turn around.

Then when they
brought more stuff in,

then I had to put that together
or package it or whatever.

Lisa: Tom, I understand you
do a lot of volunteer work.

Can you tell me a
little about that?

Tom: Work history: Morning Call
- direct marketing / newspaper;

volunteer history: [Bethlehem]
Music Fest, Bethlehem;

Christkindlmarkt, which
is coming up, Bethlehem;

(inaudible), Allentown;

March of Dimes, Allentown;
Bethlehem Recycle Center;

Life Path, Pennhurst training;

Celtic Classic Festival, Bethlehem;

Second Harvest
[Food Bank], packing food;

Salvation Army,
organizing clothes;

and Mayfair [Festival
of the Arts], Allentown.

Lisa: Thank you.

So you were just reading
from your resume?

Tom: Yeah.

Lisa: That's a
pretty full resume.

Tom: You can hand it
back to Paul.

Lisa: Thank you.

Lisa: Why do you like to do
so much volunteer work?

Tom: See that way, that
way I would like to

learn more about the community.

Lisa: And what do you
learn about the community

by doing volunteer work?

Tom: That I'm... that
I know that if I do it

I would be well
prepared for that.

Lisa: Are you hoping
it'll prepare you

for other kind of work?

Tom: Right now I do
have a job and...

Lisa: I'm wondering, Tom,

and I don't know if you
ever would have had time

between work and
volunteer work...

Tom: Well, volunteer work
is after, before hours

and when I do regular
work I start around

8 o'clock in the morning
to deliver paper to 11.

Then I call my paper route
and then after I do that then

I have time to go to McDonald's
to either get iced tea or lunch.

Lisa: Tom, by doing all
this volunteer work

you're getting to meet so
many people in the community.

Tom: Yeah.

Lisa: Have you found
that the community

has always been
welcoming to you?

Tom: Sort of.

Lisa: Why sort of?

Tom: That I'm
getting used to it.

(coughs) Pardon me.

Lisa: So I'm wondering if you
ever became involved in

any self-advocacy groups
like Speaking...

Tom: Yeah I used
to be in Self...

I forget the name of it.

Lisa: There are a few.

Speaking for Ourselves
was a good...

Tom: Yeah, Speaking
for Ourselves;

I didn't care for
that too much...

Lisa: Why did...

Tom: ...because they
wanted me to know why

institutions should be closed

and I wasn't really into
letting them know why that is.

Lisa: But you have
told people about

your experiences at Pennhurst?

Tom: Yeah.

Lisa: And you give presentations
about that sometimes...

Tom: Yeah.

Lisa: So why is it important for
you to share those experiences?

Tom: It is that I... that
I want people to know

if they ever had a person
that is coming around

as a new person, and if they
ever open them up again

they're going to end up
by having problems like

any other one that used
to be at Pennhurst.

I mean it's just like if
you throw a yo-yo down

it's going to come back up.