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History of Lifetrack Resources
History of Lifetrack Resources
In 1948 Lifetrack Resources opened its doors with the name St. Paul Rehabilitation Center. Responding to community need from both the polio epidemic and injured veterans returning from WWII, the purpose was to provide physical, occupational and speech therapy services to children and adults, as well as preschool training to young children with disabilities. Lifetrack Resources was founded by the Minnesota Society for Crippled Children and Adults, the Junior League of St. Paul, the Amherst H. Wilder Charity and the Board of Directors of Family Nursing Service of St. Paul.
Throughout the 1950’s Lifetrack Resources’ major program areas of rehabilitation therapies and employment services were developed. A comprehensive Therapeutic Child Development Program was developed to serve the whole child and the family. Additionally, vocational programs were developed to help people move into employment after physical rehabilitation.
In the 1960’s, Lifetrack Resources followed a national trend toward comprehensive rehabilitation centers and merged with the workshop of the Jewish Vocational Service resulting in a comprehensive rehabilitation center. Today, the workshop created through the merger serves as our production facility, Packaging First, which provides training and work experience to people with disabilities, refugees and people moving from welfare to work. Also during the 1960’s Lifetrack Resources began its first demonstration project with “long term” welfare recipients referred by Ramsey County. The program included a job in the workshop, vocational evaluation, counseling and job placement assistance.
During the 1970’s, Lifetrack Resources consolidated services with St. Paul Hearing and Speech Center and added audiology services. Additionally, Lifetrack Resources’ rehabilitation services for individuals with hearing impairment and multiple disabilities received national recognition as a service model.
In the 1980’s, Lifetrack Resources expanded employment services to help people who are homeless and refugees or immigrants, and become the major resource for employment services for persons with metal illness in the east metro area. Our production facility, Packaging First, also saw expansion in the 1980’s. We broke ground on our new facility in the fall of 1988 and moved into the facility in the fall of 1989.
In the 1990’s, Lifetrack Resources employment services were expanded. Lifetrack Resources became the largest private provider of employment services to persons who have disabilities or who are disadvantaged in the east metro area. Our employment services grew in many dimensions in the 1990’s including increased use of our supported work environment. Additionally, we became a vendor for government supported employment programs. Lifetrack Resources was a participant in providing demonstrations which shaped Minnesota’s welfare reform program. Lifetrack Resources became a STRIDE (Success Through Reaching Individual Development and Employment) vendor in 1993. After serving as an experimental pilot site for Minnesota Family Investment Program (MFIP) in Ramsey County in 1996, Lifetrack Resources became a vendor for MFIP when the statewide program started in 1998.
Also in the 1990’s, Lifetrack Resources moved to the heart of the neighborhood we serve, Frogtown. We moved into our current location at 709 University in the spring of 1991. We expanded across University Avenue and purchased the property located at 738 University as a part of the Neighborhood Cleanup Project in 1998.
In 2000, SPRC was renamed as Lifetrack Resources.
In 2001, Lifetrack Resources began the Family Support Connection, a statewide information service, lending library and support service to families of children diagnosed as deaf or hard of hearing. Our role is to provide parents with information on the complete array of choices in making medical, communication, education and lifestyle decisions. Also in 2001 Lifetrack Resources unveiled a new two-story mural on our main building. Four different colorful images represent a community and show children and adults enjoying daily activities. The images were inspired by drawings by children and senior citizens who participate in a number of St. Paul Area community programs. The mural was painted by Bethel College Art Professor Dale Johnson and his son Simeon and is a joint project between Lifetrack Resources and the Frogtown Pluralism Circle.