VIP 23

Kenneth Singer: Helping people lead independent lives
By Patrick Rheaume

Chances are, in the past few days, you've worked for or dealt with some business that uses the Zip 'n Sort mail service. Operated through the Berkshire County Association of Retarded Citizens (Arc), Zip ‘n Sort serves 288 customers in Berkshire County, among them Berkshire Community College, Berkshire Bank, Mass MoCA and the American Automobile Association. In a scant three and a half years, it has become the largest single mail service provider in Berkshire County.

Along with other programs run by the Arc, such as the Advantage Employee Network for job placement, the Community Day Training Program and support and advocacy services for the mentally retarded and their families, Zip 'n Sort serves to integrate its constituents into the everyday life of the county.

The man behind Zip 'n Sort and the Berkshire County Arc, Executive Director Kenneth Singer, says that this is all part of helping everyone in the community to lead a fulfilling, independent life.

"One hundred of the people we serve have jobs," he said, "and many more volunteer in the community.”

The Arc also devotes many of its resources to establishing homes where mentally retarded citizens can live independently. "The question I always ask people is this: 'We have homes all over the county. Where are they?' And people never have the slightest idea because these houses fit into the community so well."

Singer has worked hard on the statewide level to secure funding for the Arc and its programs. Since he assumed his post, not ten years ago, the Arc's budget has increased from $7 million to $14 million.

Operating in the Berkshires for almost 50 years, the Arc serves more than 350 people annually. "The Berkshire County community has been wonderful," Singer says, "to both the Arc and the people we serve."

"Human services are an integral part of life in Berkshire County," Singer notes.

Asked to name his professional assets, Singers thanks a "supportive board and fantastic staff," for the Arc's success. "My staff makes me look good."

Born in the Bronx, N.Y., Singer devoted himself to the civil rights movement, sometimes traveling to the South to participate in freedom rides. He attended the University of Toledo, where he majored in social work. He went on to earn a master's degree in human services and a certificate of advanced graduate study in organizational development from the University of Massachusetts.

Before coming to the Berkshires, Singer worked as a counselor at a juvenile court in Ohio. Returning to the East Coast, he assumed a teaching position at a school for disabled children in Connecticut.

Initially, Singer worked as the residential coordinator for Berkshire County Arc, a position in which he managed group homes. When he began, in 1980, the Arc ran eight homes. Now they run 28.

"I always wanted to help people and support people," Singer says. "That's what brought me here.”

In 1994, Singer was named to his current position as executive director of the Arc.

Singer says that his passion for the job comes from "watching people who have the same desires and needs as anyone else achieve their goals."

Singer has served in the community as president of the Association for Departmental Disability Providers, a board member of the Mass. Council of Human Services Providers and Girls, Inc., and as vice president of the Counseling Center for the Berkshires. He also supports the United Way, the American Cancer Society and Tanglewood.

Both Singer and the agency have received a number of awards. The National Council of Human Services Providers named Singer the Executive Director of the Year in 1998. In 2001, USArc honored him with its professional achievement award. The Arc won the Berkshire County Mass. Excellence award in 2000 from the Chamber of Commerce.

Singer lives with his wife, Christine, who directs the United Cerebral Palsy Association of Berkshire County.

In his spare time, Singer likes to play tennis and golf. He enjoys traveling, particularly to China, Bali, Mexico and France. At home, Singer spends his time cooking and listening to music.

In conversation Singer often uses the pronouns "we" and "us", doubtless a reflection of his commitment to the cooperative aspect of the Arc.

Wearing a wide smile, he says, "I'm as motivated today as I was when I took this job 23 years ago."

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