Jane Wear, CEO of Cardinal Services, is retiring after 40 years of service to the community. (Photo provided)

WARSAW — After 40 years, Jane Wear is retiring from Cardinal Services, Inc. on July 1. It’s a date that holds special significance. She started at what was then Cardinal Center on July 1, 1976, just a few weeks after graduating from the University of Wisconsin. Twenty years later on July 1, 1996, she became CEO and has spent the past two decades leading the not-for-profit.

Wear’s passion for people with disabilities began when she was a teenager in Menomonie, Wisc. Watching other students being sent to the far end of the school – away from her and others – had a lasting impact on her. It made her question, and it inspired her life’s work of empowerment and inclusion.

When Wear joined Cardinal in 1976, the company served just 75 people with disabilities in Kosciusko County with a staff of fewer than 40. One of Wear’s great achievements has been to shepherd the company through its growth. Today, Cardinal is known as one of the largest and most effective social service agencies in the state, serving 4,000 people with a staff of 500 in Kosciusko, Marshall, Fulton, Cass and Elkhart counties.

Wear has played a key role in developing the services and programs Cardinal is known for: residential group homes, residential community living, supported employment, Adult Day Services. KABS, Head Start, WIC, Healthy Families and Pike Lake Pointe Apartments. She also spearheaded the effort to have Cardinal pursue accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities. Then an optional process, it’s a serious indicator of excellence and one which she knew would be important in assuring ongoing quality and accountability. Today, Cardinal regularly receives the highest accreditation that CARF awards.

A recognized leader in the field of disability services, Wear is the Indiana representative to the industry’s national association, ANCOR, she sits on the Board of Directors (and is past Chair) of the state association, INARF, and is a Board member of the state collaborative association, SIPN.

Her many awards include the INARF career leadership award, the inaugural James M. Hammond III Award honoring excellence in leadership in the disability field, and the Chamber of Commerce Athena Award for her efforts in mentoring and encouraging other women leaders. Just this past January, Wear was named Kosciusko County’s 2015 Woman of the Year.

As Wear retires, her thoughts are with the people and company she has led these many years. Her vision is for Cardinal’s sustainability, it’s continued growth and strength, that it continue to respond to the needs of the people; that parents are empowered to be the best parents they can possibly be and that every person with a disability gets what help they need to lead rich, rewarding lives. Certainly, Wear has placed Cardinal Services in a position to accomplish her vision.