Joseph
R. Erwin, a resident of Commerce Twp., and a pioneer in obtaining services for
children with developmental disabilities, has died after a long illness. He was
82.
Erwin,
a native of Birmingham, Ala., died on July 29. He is survived by his wife, Betty,
and his sons, Bradford and Joey Erwin.
Funeral
services will be held at Bessemer Brown Service Funeral Home in Bessemer, Ala.
at a date to be determined.
Erwin
and his wife, Betty, were a team that “has given so much on behalf of people
with intellectual and developmental disabilities,” said John Torrone, former
public relations director at Macomb-Oakland Regional Center which has offices
in Auburn Hills and Clinton Township.
While
their goal was to retire in the South, they decided that they could not because
the services for their son Joey were so bad
compared to services he was receiving in Michigan.
Together,
the Erwins devoted themselves to becoming
advocates for all those receiving services. For many years, they served
together on the AMORC Board of Directors -- Joe as president and Betty as
secretary.
Joe
set the bar high for AMORC and lobbied hard for pay increases for direct care
workers. Erwin also talked to legislators, community mental health boards, and
others to win greater services for those with developmental disabilities in the
state. Because of his efforts, direct care workers received several pay
increases.
As
part of the AMORC Monitoring Committee, the Erwins actively monitored group
homes, Torrone said.
They
also encouraged other AMORC monitors to also monitor homes on behalf of
Recipient Rights for the Oakland County Community Mental Health Authority. The
husband and wife and other AMORC monitors received special training in
recipient rights for those with disabilities who received services from various
agencies.
The
Erwins were involved for years on the MORC Citizens Advisory Panel. Joe was
also involved with Oakland County CMH Authority's Citizen's Advisory Committee.
Erwin
also was on the Board of Directors for The Futures Foundation, the fund-raising
entity of MORC. He also
was chairperson of the MORC, Inc. Holding Company Board of Directors until he
became ill. For years Erwin was chairperson of the Springhill Housing
Authority.
In
lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to The Futures Foundation.
The web site is http://www.thefuturesfoundation.org/.
Jerry
Wolffe is the advocate at large & writer in residences at MORC. He can be
reached at 586 263-8950.
