Co-workers say the phrase “community involvement” is Vickie Cap’s job description. The 35-year-old is associate executive director of Partnerships With Industry, a nonprofit, public benefit organization that connects developmentally disabled people to jobs.

“There is daily satisfaction in ensuring that people are employed and achieving their goals,” Cap says of work, which keeps her busy 50-plus hours a week. Under her leadership, PWI provides 1,000 disabled people with comprehensive vocational training and job placement programs through ongoing partnerships with more than 500 community businesses.

“Vickie advocates for individuals with disabilities by increasing access to assistive technologies, expanding educational opportunities, increasing the ability of PWI clients to integrate into the workforce and promoting their increased access into daily community life in San Diego,” says Peter Callstrom, PWI executive director.

Cap supervises four office directors in a territory that covers metropolitan San Diego, South County/Chula Vista, North County/Oceanside, and the Inland Empire of Riverside and San Bernardino counties. She also is PWI’s safety director.

“Everything Vickie does relates to community involvement,” says Kate Bodily, San Bernardino office director. “It is because of her dedication, tenacity and professionalism that so many individuals are successfully employed and that PWI maintains such a strong relationship with the community.”

PWI provides three types of service. Some clients work at PWI on piece-rate projects such as the binders assembled for the Postal Annex. Other clients may work in a community of peers, a group headed by a job coach. Cap says there are about 50 such groups in San Diego. They have worked at Qualcomm and at locations ranging from universities to hotels. A client also may work individually with a job coach. The coach helps the person “to get started and then fades away,” says Cap. These individually coached clients go on to find work at schools and businesses like The Home Depot.

— Liz Swain