Meet Mark

Mark: So, my personal story started when I was 18 years old. I finished school. Went through something that I would not recommend that anyone do. Met with a few people. They recommended me to go into an NDIS plan because I needed help with my disability. I suffered with anxiety, depression, self-harm and stuff. So, they advised me to go into an NDIS plan, decided to do it. I went through a NDIS review meeting. Got approved straight away. And that’s my personal story.

I was introduced to PSS through a mutual friend of the director. He advised me that he has a friend that owns a support organization, decided to go for a trial, met Ibrahim. He was very respectful, very loyal. He was really outgoing, organized, and for the first time in my entire life, the director allowed me to choose my own support worker.

One of my goals is to be independent and how PSS would make me achieve that is by supporting me as much as they can and for me to do a support accommodation, which is a big step for someone who wants to be independent like me. They do a one-on-one session with a support worker that does access community. And we usually go for a drive, we go to our favorite sport, which is Aspendale Beach. We just sit down in the car. Sometimes we go for a walk. We just talk about careers, what I have achieved, how did I achieve it, and we talk about education, [and] purposes.

The biggest achievement that I’m proud of is PSS helping me to become more independent and teaching me to show love and care around my family and people around me. I’ll agree that I have become more independent and more loving and more caring and careful around the people around me.

Interviewer: How did they perceive this achievement at PSS?

Mark: Everyone was so happy for me. Some people started crying. Some people were cheerful. Some people gave me a hug, fist pump. Some of them was just like, so proud. They were so speechless. I know I was speechless. I would never have thought in a million years that I would become independent.

I will always choose PSS over everyone. I come to the office to relax. Just get anything that’s inside of me that’s hurting me, I’ll just come to the office and just get it out of me. PSS is 24 7. I can come literally 7 o’clock, 8 o’clock at night. The director’s here, he’ll open the door. They also have an after hours number. So, if you ever feel like you’re going through a dark place, you can always call them.

I don’t see Ibrahim as a director, I see him as a human being. I see him as a brother. I see him as a friend. I see him as a good role model. I see him as a good mentor. I recommend [you] to come to PSS and to have a great relationship, family bond with PSS. I reckon that you’ll learn a lot of things from PSS and I reckon that you’ll achieve amazing outcomes and amazing goals and employment pathways from PSS.