Duncan Vickie McDowell Honored with a DHS Award of Excellence and Best of the Best Award

OKLAHOMA CITY -- Specialized Foster Care Provider Vickie McDonnell and her husband, Rev. Arlouis McDowell, are a loving couple who do more than just preach about caring for people with developmental disabilities. It’s an important part of their daily lives.

While Pastor McDowell leads his flock at Duncan’s Magnolia Church of Christ, Vickie provides full-time foster care for Diana and Lena, two women with intellectual disabilities. So no one was more surprised than Vickie when she found herself agreeing to also care for Diana’s younger sister, Sylvia, who also has intellectual disabilities.

“I don’t know where this voice came from, but it said YES!” Vickie said, laughing. “I’m like where did that come from? I had said, ‘No!’”

Oklahoma DHS’ Developmental Disabilities Services Case Manager Shirley Bouisri said while it is unusual for three people with developmental disabilities to be placed in one specialized foster care home, she had no qualms about Sylvia’s placement with the McDowell family.

“These three ladies have very different and strong personalities, but Vickie deals with each one of them individually,” Bouisri said. “She and her husband have got it down to a fine art and could definitely give (specialized foster care) lessons. Vickie is the standard that we want and that you would want all your specialized foster care parents to be.”

Today, Sylvia, Diana and Lena enjoy structured lives supported with attending church, eating healthy meals and the love and warmth of a happy home. The cheerleaders at Duncan High School have even made Sylvia an honorary cheerleader.

For her many years and dedication in providing good lives for the people she cares for, Vickie was honored with an “Award of Excellence” and “Best of the Best” award in direct support services during the recent 29th Annual Governor’s Conference on Developmental Disabilities in Norman. She was nominated for the honors by Bouisri, who Vickie considers an important member of her support team.

“The best person on my team is my husband,” she said, laughing. “He’s a good man and he’s been with me from day one. He’s been awesome!”

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