Enid Mary Ann Nall Honored With a Best of the Best Award and Award of Excellence in Direct Support Services

OKLAHOMA CITY -- The Oklahoma Department of Human Services (DHS) Developmental Disabilities Services (DDS) held its 28th Governor’s Conference on Developmental Disabilities recently in Norman. During the awards ceremony, DHS recognized ResCare Agency Companion Mary Ann Nall with an “Award of Excellence” and a “Best of the Best Award” in direct support services.

Nall was nominated by Oklahoma DHS DDS’ Case Manager Jerry Bellar in Enid. Bellar said Nall is an agency companion for Danielle, an individual who she cared for while working in direct support services at the Northern Oklahoma Resource Center (NORCE).

“Mary Ann Nall is one of the best caretakers I have ever had on my caseload,” Bellar said. “She can read Danielle like a book and knows exactly what to do for her before anything severe happens. Plus, she knows how to create fun.

“I think that’s what makes her one of the best. It’s because she loves what’s she’s doing. She thinks it is her mission in life and she is in love with it.”

During her more than 20 years of service working at NORCE, one day Nall was asked to work with a new group of individuals.

“There was this little girl, sitting there by herself with her head down,” Nall said. “I thought that she looks like one of my children, so I went over to Danielle, but she was really shy and she didn’t want to have much to do with anybody. So I just kept talking to her and pretty soon she started holding her head up, smiling and stole my heart.”

It wasn’t long until Nall began taking “Dani” on trips outside of NORCE. She said she believes God brought her into her life.

“When I was younger, I had had a child and she had passed away,” Nall said. “I had a miscarriage and my daughter would have been her age, so I thought, ‘God you gave me back my little girl.’ I was pretty tickled with her.”

Nall retired once, but later went back to work at NORCE. When she found out later that Dani was going to be transitioned into the community, she decided to retire again, become an agency companion and have Dani live with her. Today, Dani’s guardians are two of Nall’s daughters, so Dani has a large extended family who love her, take her on family trips and she’s well-known and supported in the community.

 “She’s awesome,” Nall said. “I don’t know my life before her and I’ve had seven children, but she stole my heart. She really did and she still has it!”

A direct support service professional is someone who works as a direct care worker for individuals with developmental and/or intellectual disabilities. These workers can include habilitation training specialists, job coaches and group home staff, as well as habilitation aides, workshop staff, and agency companions or as specialized foster parents.

The criteria for winning an Award of Excellence focuses on a nominee’s tenure, experience, relationship to the individual(s) and the families they support, leadership, advocacy and their success in supporting people to be included in the community.

“Our award winners say they absolutely cherish the people they serve,” said JoAnne Goin, director, DDS. “They’re practical, determined and compassionate folk who treat their individuals like dear friends and family, all the while encouraging and teaching them how to become more independent members in the communities where they work and live.

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Enid’s Mary Ann Nall accepts her "Best of the Best Award" and an “Award of Excellence” from DHS Director Ed Lake