Every Sunday, Joshua Rhine visits his family in Bridgeport. Before hanging out at the house, he and his dad Tom eat breakfast at McDonald’s, then stop by Bridgeport City Park for a walk and, hopefully, catch sight of a train.

 

“Josh’s No. 1 obsession is trains and that has never changed,” said his mom, Tana Rhine. “They always walk up to the railroad tracks to see if any trains are coming.”

 

Joshua, who is autistic, likes a routine. Even his breakfast at McDonald’s is consistent from day to day. 

 

“He orders the same thing every week – three buttered biscuits and a Coke with no ice,” Tana said.

 

Joshua has a weekday routine also. And it’s a routine which gives him purpose and enables him to help support himself financially.

 

A 2012 graduate of Bridgeport High School, Joshua Rhine is one of several area individuals who work at Empowerment Through Employment, Inc., previously known as The Sheltered Workshop, Every Wednesday and Friday, he puts in a workday at the Stonewood facility, performing some specialized skilled labor.

 

“Joshua does a little bit of everything,” said Brian Miles, behavior specialist and therapeutic consultant who oversees activities which take place on sight at the agency’s wood shop.

 

“We make survey stakes, which are used by oil and gas companies and construction companies,” he said. “We have a few different jobs and it’s done in like assembly line.”

 

The assembly line work includes loading the saw with wood, cutting the stakes, stacking them and sharpening them. At the next station, they are strapped together in bundles of different sizes.

 

Although Joshua usually works in the wood shop, he has tried his hand in other work areas, such as screen printing, document shredding and chair caning.

“We also have a dispatch unit where we do low-impact monitoring of West Virginia bridges,” Miles said.

 

That information is dispatched to truck drivers for traffic purposes, he said.

 

Those who work at Empowerment Through Employment have some type of intellectual disabilities.

 

“We have people with autism, Down’s syndrome and oppositional defiant disorders,” Miles said. “We also have some with mental illness, but mainly those who have moderate intellectual disabilities.”

 

From Miles’ experience, individuals with autism like to be busy.

 

“My experience is when they are working – say, in our wood shop – there is constant movement,” he said. “More times than not, when someone is idle they become bored very quickly.”

Being part of the crew fits Joshua to a T as he had a prior interest in woodworking. But it is much more than just a job.

 

“It gives him a chance to be around a higher functioning peer group and it helps with his behavior,” she said.

 

Joshua was referred to Empowerment Through Employment by his case management at United Summit Center. It is not his first job.

 

“He worked for a couple years at Sheetz on Johnson Avenue,” Tana said. “He was there for one day a week and he wanted more time, but there were constraints and he wasn’t allowed to pick up a second day.”

 

His work at Sheetz and Empowerment Through Employment overlapped for a short period of time.

 

“He did both for a while,” Tana Rhine said. “He needed to keep as much time structured as possible.”

 

Joshua is verbal and can make his needs known. He does, however, have some communication difficulties and social interaction doesn’t always come easy for him.

 

It’s important to Joshua to be part of a group. Since it started locally, he has taken part in the Little League Challenger Division. He has also participated in Special Olympics.

 

“That has been his way of networking with friends,” Tana said. “He started with Challenger when he as 11 or 12 and I’m sure he’ll play until he ages out.”

 

That would be at age 25. Joshua is now 21 and lives in his own apartment.

 

“He has since graduation,” Tana said. “There’s pretty much round the clock staffing, including a person who drives him back and forth.”

 

That includes his commute to work and visits with his family. In his down time, Joshua likes to do computer research, play video games and pinball. 

 

Editor's Note: Joshua Rhine is pictured above; top/cover photo was taken at the Empowerment Through Employment banquet.