In Columbia Missouri we live in a community that has put a premium on doing good work. We are fortunate to have a very unique workforce in Columbia, that for the past 50 years has been helping meet the needs of innumerable local businesses. Central Missouri Subcontracting Enterprises was established in 1969 under Missouri’s Sheltered Workshop legislation, to provide meaningful and productive vocational opportunities to those with developmental and physical disabilities. Working with local businesses like 3M, Otscon, Millers Imaging, and others, CMSE is able to provide employment for 130 people, growing vastly from their initial 15 employees.
Vocational opportunities for those with developmental disabilities can be limited. While many people are able to find employment alongside the rest of the workforce, some have limitations that prevent them from working alongside their peers. This is where CMSE can really shine. By contracting with local businesses to provide light manufacturing and assembling, packaging, mailing, and other labor-intensive services, companies can provide opportunity through CMSE work programs both at their Bearfield Road location and through on-site work programs assisted by job coaches.
Over the course of 50 years, things have changed. In 2009, CMSE lost a major contract and began wondering, “Where do we go from here?” After long discussions and a great deal of research, it was decided that an ability to provide some employment independent of outside entity’s operations would provide stability and opportunity for even more people. In early 2010, CMSE Giving Gardens was born. This gorgeous retail nursery features thousands of annual and perennial flowers, herbs, vegetables, and more. Employees assist will all aspects of greenhouse production and caring for the plants and strive to provide a truly unique shopping experience. Giving Gardens has blossomed(pun intended) into a community staple, providing a stable and healthy supply of nursery plants along with an opportunity for gardening classes for novices and experts alike!
The real value of CMSE lies in its mission to provide a safe environment for people to develop work skills and gain a strong sense of self-worth and pride in their contributions to society. Without programs like CMSE, many people with severe disabilities would be relegated to group homes or the care of a relative, drifting aimlessly, never afforded the chance to grow and enrich their lives. But the people and businesses of mid-Missouri know the value of good work. The value it brings to your sense of self. That is why so many businesses proudly contract with CMSE to provide needed manufacturing and packaging services for their operations.
CMSE has been around long enough that they have begun looking at the next logical step, retirement. Some employees at CMSE want to retire, but transitioning to retirement can be difficult and very different for people with disabilities. In 2018, CMSE introduced the Next Step Day Program, allowing former employees and others to participate in an enriching environment where they can stay in contact with many of their friends from work, while taking on new activities such as volunteering, music, community outings, and more.
It should be evident that CMSE provides an incredible opportunity for those in need of a unique environment that can provide meaningful work. They have taken this calling and elevated it over the last 50 years to serve so many in our community, and we can only hope that they will continue to grow over the next 50.
Check out CMSE and Giving Gardens at 4040 S. Bearfield Rd, Columbia, MO 65201.
Find them online at www.cmse.org and www.cmsegivinggardens.com
Check out this amazing 50th anniversary celebration on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/672943586458078/