Inclusion Means Everyone

Tom Trisdale understands how challenging it can be when a person wants to work but is prevented from doing so by disability.

When Trisdale was young, his mother began suffering from physical ailments that forced her to stop working before she was ready. “It was difficult for her, and that always stuck in my head,” he recalls.

Today, in his role as vice president, Quality Promotion, Assurance and Audit, Toyota Motor North America (TMNA), Trisdale has an interest in creating inclusive employment opportunities for people with disabilities, inspired in part by his mother’s experiences. Another source of inspiration is My Possibilities, a nonprofit that provides vocational and life skills training to adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD) in Plano, Texas.

Beyond Toyota’s program, My Possibilities offers diversified pathways designed to help adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD) pursue interests in employment at a range of organizations (as shown here) through vocational education, a contract with the Texas Workforce Commission, work experience and long-term job coaching support.

After being introduced to My Possibilities, Trisdale began to think about what Toyota could do to support their participants, who are known as “HIPsters” (hugely important people). That’s when he got the idea for a partnership with Toyota’s Parts Return Center.

“The center gets 400-500 packages a day that need to be sorted and handled properly,” Trisdale explains. It seemed like the perfect opportunity for a HIPster to gain entry-level processing skills and maybe even advance to additional responsibilities.

To put the idea in motion, the My Possibilities team visited the Parts Return Center to assess the work environment and skills needed. They then matched the opportunity to Michael, a young adult whom Trisdale describes as having an “infectious smile” and “super attitude.”

In October 2023, Michael began working at the Parts Return Center two days a week with support from My Possibilities, which helps coordinate his schedule and transportation. His tasks include handling parts, passing them to the parts auditor, scrapping parts and breaking down packaging materials.

With Michael on the job for more than seven months now, the partnership between Toyota and My Possibilities has proven effective. And Trisdale is already thinking of ways to find opportunities in other parts of the company to match Toyota’s employment needs with the skills of HIPsters, so that more people can access the benefits of work.