Despite growing up a few blocks away from the Village of Progress in Oregon, Angie Martin-Bakener wasn’t aware of its services until years later.

Martin-Bakener was recently promoted to executive director of the Village after the retirement of previous Executive Director Brion Brooks. She has worked at VOP for more than 12 years, most recently serving as its manager of Qualified Intellectual Disability Professional services.

The Village of Progress serves people with developmental disabilities in Ogle County through evaluation and assessment, job training, supported employment, social and recreational experiences, health care and maintenance and living skills instruction.

“I wasn’t expecting to become director,” Martin-Bakener said. “It was exciting. When I started here, I did hands-on care and worked as a case manager. After COVID-19 hit, we transitioned our services from within our walls to community-based. At that time I became the manager of the other case managers. I think it’s exciting to be able to continue to transition our agency to be more community-focused versus the old sheltered workshop model.”

The Village’s new executive director said she’s looking forward to working on bringing in clients after they leave the school system to ensure they continue social interaction. VOP also recently broke ground on the Hill Street Neighborhood in Mt. Morris with Kreider Services, which will see people with and without disabilities living in the same housing together and people with disabilities having the chance to choose their own services. Construction will be completed in 2027.

Martin-Bakener is also excited to work more with VOP’s Village Bakery and janitorial services programming for clients in her new role, along with expanding its Special Olympics program.

“I think we have an opportunity to expand our footprint,” Martin-Bakener said. “We’ve done a great job of becoming visible in Oregon. I think it would be beneficial if we could be a little more visible in the other Ogle County towns.”

Day services programs like the Village of Progress are a rarity in Illinois, and Martin-Bakener said Ogle County residents with disabilities and their families are fortunate to have VOP’s work, social interaction, recreation and leisure opportunities.

Martin-Bakener said she enjoys her work at VOP because “every day is a new day”, inside and out of the facility.

“Since we’ve transitioned into a community-based format since COVID-19, it’s been amazing to watch people do things for the first time,” Martin-Bakener said. “I went with a group to a Milwaukee Brewers game a couple of summers ago and to get to our seats we had to take an escalator. I didn’t think anything of it and I got on. I got to the top and I looked behind me and the client I was with was still at the bottom. He had never been on an escalator before and was in his late 60s. It’s awesome to watch them do things for the first time.”

Martin-Bakener thanked VOP’s board, staff, volunteers and donors for their dedication to the Village’s mission. She said the work Village of Progress staff does each day is vital to the people it serves for the betterment of their lives. She particularly enjoys seeing VOP clients getting out into the community.

“Our people all just want to fit in and be respected and loved like all of us do,” Martin-Bakener said. “If we go back to a place for a second or third time, they’re getting recognized and having interactions with people at a restaurant or grocery store. It’s been really exciting to see them foster their own relationships.”

After growing up in Oregon, Martin-Bakener went to school and got a degree in law enforcement. Due to a state hiring freeze at the time, she then took a job as a group home manager in Oregon. It was then that she learned about the Village of Progress. After working at Sinnissippi Centers for a couple of years, she took a job at VOP.

“I didn’t see myself doing work like this when I was in school,” Martin-Bakener said. “But once I got here, I never looked back. I had no idea the Village existed when I was growing up. In the sheltered workshop days, the Village was a very well-kept secret. They didn’t leave the building often. Now that we’re out in the community on a daily basis, it’s just wonderful. Everyone gets to experience the joy that they bring out in the community. It’s special to be in this position and help people as a person that grew up here.”