Friendly Focused

By Kimberly Tharpe

Working in the Agency for Persons with Disabilities (APD) Communications Office in Tallahassee is a little stick of dynamite named Stacia Woolverton. Woolverton was born 41 years ago with de Morsier syndrome or also called Septo-optic dysplasia which typically affects a person’s vision and pituitary gland.

Woolverton is a call center representative and she knows her stuff. Woolverton provides information about APD and other disability-related information and resources to those who call in or email the agency and to APD staff as well. She also provides Braille and large print for those who are visually impaired and attend meetings at APD.

As a visually impaired person herself, Woolverton is uniquely qualified to help callers with this and other disabilities. She has worked fulltime at APD for 5 years.  Woolverton says, “I just love it when someone calls to say they can’t work because they have a disability.” Her response is, “Oh yes you can, just look at me.” She then gives them the right resources to find the help they need.
   
Woolverton’s former supervisor, Lindsey Boyington says, “Stacia is very knowledgeable about community resources and is always willing to go above and beyond for our constituents. She is motivated and needs little direction. The only accommodation she needs is a screen reader. We ask Stacia to be our website tester for accessibility at APD. She has a great sense of humor and is always so positive.”       

Giving hope to frustrated callers who have not found the answer they are looking for is her main goal.  Woolverton strives to become more knowledgeable of APD’s policies and procedures. She knows it will help her to become an even better guide for someone navigating the sometimes complex system of resources for those with a disability. She loves being the one to find the right answer for a customer and sometimes they even call her back to thank her for her assistance. When asked what she likes best about her job at APD, Woolverton says, “I feel accepted and appreciated.” She said, “I love my job because I am making a difference in the lives of the people I serve.”

On the personal side of things, Woolverton loves to read mysteries and Christian self-help books. Her guilty pleasure is watching Survivor and Big Brother on TV. In her life, it is God first, then family. She is very active in her church and volunteers to make sure the Bible study lessons are in an electronic format for those who are sight impaired.

Stacia Woolverton answers the APD toll free phone line responding to hundreds of calls each month.