Before moving to the area, Jane Price was a special ed. teacher in Warren County for two years and then in Craven County for six years. She had a heart for children with special needs. When she and her husband moved here to be closer to her father-in-law as he was aging, she was delighted to find Horizons and she started working here in September of 1987 as a special ed. teacher in the Special Community Center. She felt like her work here allowed her to make a real difference in the lives of the residents. Just by reaching out and holding a hand, or patting someone on the shoulder, she could help make her “friends” feel cared about.
Jane grew to love her friends and thought of them as her family and of Horizons as her home.
Back then Horizons was housed in the cottages that were built originally as homes for the children of Memorial Industrial School, an African American orphanage. When the new Atrium building was built, Jane moved there as the teacher on B-wing and later taught on D-wing. At that time all the residents were children. In 1992 the Arches was built as a home for the children who were aging out of the Atrium. Subsequently, policy changed to permit our residents to “age in place” as they became adults rather than having to move out. Jane became the Education Director in charge of not only the teachers but also the new Day Program that was started for those no longer going to school. After that she was assigned the role of Clinical Director for both locations. At one point she was also the Volunteer Coordinator. Finally, she became what is known as the QIDP which stands for Qualified Intellectual Disabilities Professional. Jane has worn many of the hats at Horizons and has played a concrete role in forming the culture of the whole organization.
Throughout her 39 years working at Horizons, Jane has seen dozens of residents pass through, as well as three CEOs, countless other members of staff, volunteers and vendors. She noted that she has even had several dogs and cats as pets which she adopted after they showed up as strays at Horizons.
This past week, Jane announced her plans to retire. When asked what she plans to do next, she laughed and said that she has always been addicted to work and now she needs to learn how to relax and to take care of herself. She immediately followed up by saying she hopes to remain involved with her Horizons family as a volunteer and advocate. She also plans to travel and do some missionary work. When asked to describe Jane, staff members use terms like, “self-less”, “devoted”, “dedicated”, “strong” and “work-horse” to describe the 71 year old woman, usually seen pushing a wheelchair down a hallway.
She wishes more people knew about how amazing Horizons is, “It’s a wonderful home that treats their residents like people, and has some very dedicated staff who really love them.”
We hope that the culture of kind and loving service inspired by Jane will live on at Horizons for many years to come.
