Bangor agency boosts struggling workers

Mike Dell’Olio didn’t want any handouts in his quest for a job.

He just wanted a break.

Born in Brownville, Dell’Olio is 24 years old and has had to deal with epilepsy and other medical problems since his brain tumor was diagnosed eight years ago.

“I’m on disability,” he said recently. “But I don’t want to be on disability. I’m too young.”

That’s where Allies Inc. helps. The agency serves welfare-to-work recipients and people with physical and mental disabilities with job development, job placement, case management and therapy.

It helps an average of 1,500 clients a year and is marking its 10th anniversary this year.

Funding for the agency comes from community donations and state and federal programs.

Dell’Olio said he believes his future is looking brighter since being hired part time at Quiznos Subs on Hogan Road in Bangor. In a recent interview, he pointed proudly to the company’s slogan on his shirt and smiled. “[The manager] gave me a chance,” he said. “Now I have more responsibility than a lot of employees.”

He sat back in his chair and showed off a brand-new pair of stylish blue and white sneakers that Allies helped him obtain for his job.

“It feels good to come home and be tired from an honest day’s work, instead of watching the TV and being drowsy from it,” he said.

Allies was formed when the job development nonprofit agency BDL Inc. merged with REEP Inc., a mental health agency. “We thought ‘Allies Incorporated’ was a good name because it connoted that we are allies of our clients, instead of telling them what to do,” agency president Geeta Balakrishnan said.

Single mom Jill Gray of Orrington, and Machias native Lisa C. (name withheld for privacy) said in interviews that the nonprofit organization has helped them navigate the obstacles in getting their lives back on track.

Gray, 41, had been a stay-at-home mom during her 19-year marriage.

“They’re unlimited support. They helped me go back to school and get my diploma,” said Gray of the agency. “I feel like I can do just about anything.”

Lisa, 44, who moved to Bangor for “mental health reasons,” describes the last few years as a long, painful journey marked by swooping downward spirals.

“My parents died, my son moved 5,000 miles away, my other son became incarcerated,” she said as tears welled up in her bright blue eyes. “This all happened within a matter of months.”

These personal tragedies, combined with severe heart disease and other physical ailments, affected Lisa’s state of mind.

“It really did a number on my mental health,” she said. “You just lapse into depression where you don’t care if you even breathe.”

She credits staff at Allies with stubbornly refusing to give up on her.

“She goes from a Pomeranian to a pit bull,” Lisa said of Hulene Hart, her case manager. “The case managers fight for their clients when you don’t have any strength yet.”

“She’s my inspiration,” Hart countered.

Lisa can now tick off her accomplishments – maintaining an apartment, driving a car, getting a scooter for more personal mobility – and even hopes.

“I’m interested in taking some computer classes,” she said. “Now that I have my scooter, I’ll be able to access places that are handicapped accessible, like the veterans’ home. I want to be able to volunteer for the vets.”

According to Balakrishnan, the agency’s motto is to help people live independently in the community.

Dell’Olio said that he believes Allies achieves this goal.

“They’re investing in people’s lives,” he said. “Tax dollars can buy tanks and planes that get sent to countries you can’t spell. It’s cheaper to fund this agency than to fund my Social Security in the long run.”