Harriet Golden dedicated her entire career to supporting people with intellectual and other developmental disabilities and their families. On March 14, hundreds of people gathered at Betty Pendler New York League to celebrate a one-of-a-kind legacy and an unforgettable person integral to AHRC NYC’s mission and history.
About Harriet Golden
Harriet, who is the sibling of a woman with I/DD, began her career at AHRC NYC in 1976 as a Direct Support Professional, shortly after the signing of the Willowbrook Consent Decree. She went on to develop some of the first programs of their kind supporting people with I/DD, including the first day program in the city for people who once attended Willowbrook, the first sobriety program for people with I/DD who suffered from addictions to drugs and alcohol, and the ESCAPE curriculum, a domestic violence prevention program in collaboration with Teacher’s College at Columbia University. This curriculum was based on research and a growing understanding of decision-making theory and has subsequently been used effectively throughout New York State.
More recently, Harriet has worked with assistive technology professionals to bring adaptive devices and programs to more than 2,000 people in AHRC NYC’s Adult Day Services. She oversaw the transition from workshops to community-based programs that fully enrich the daily lives of thousands of people and the staff members who support them. Harriet was additionally the creative force behind the founding of ArTech, providing opportunities for artists to develop and express themselves creatively through inclusive, innovative and accessible approaches to traditional and new media.
Ending her career as Vice President of Adult Day Services, Harriet’s contributions to our field are innumerable. Her leadership, mentorship, vision, and advocacy exemplified the agency’s mission of protecting the human rights of neurodiverse people and their families.
“Like a Mother to Me”
Harriet’s Day Services family gathered to thank her with an event filled with performances and memories. AHRC Fisher Day Center’s Soaring Wings gospel choir opened the set with four powerful songs, including a stirring rendition of Whitney Houston’s “Greatest Love of All.” Choreographer extraordinaire Jamel Mills debuted a dance piece he created featuring many of his fellow dancers from Day Services.
“Our Broadway is eternally grateful to Harriet Golden for her support of all of our productions over the years,” said Dale Hensley, founder of the performance collective which has grown to support the musical ambitions of dozens of performers. Our Broadway performed a selection of songs from their repertoire, along with some special additions, including “We Are Family,” “Shake It Off,” and “What Was I Made For?” before fittingly ending with the Roy Rogers classic “Happy Trails.”
Vernette Walker has known Harriet for decades and felt compelled to express her deep appreciation towards a steady presence in her life.
“From Union Square to Maiden Lane, I always found time to be a pain,” Vernette said. “You were like a mother to me and kept me out of danger. Being around you is like a light from heaven. You picked me up so many days. That is why I pray that you are happy each and every day. We are going to miss you and your big heart.”
AHRC NYC will be eternally grateful for Harriet Golden’s dedication to our agency. We wish her the very best in this new chapter of her life.
