MANHASSET, NEW YORK, OCTOBER 9, 2018 Margaret Keymetian Ng of Mountain Lakes, New Jersey has been honored as a Woman of Empowerment by P.O.W.E.R. (Professional Organization of Women of Excellence Recognized) for her outstanding contributions and achievements in the fields of nonprofit services and organizational development.
ABOUT MARGARET KEYMETIAN NG, MSOD
Margaret Keymetian Ng serves as an Organizational Change Management and Development Partner for New Growth Solutions, Inc. since 2005. She has 20+ years of success leading organizations to meet corporate objectives and customer requirements by developing leaders, influencing team direction, building talent pipelines, and managing organizational change. She is responsible for organizational development with extensive experience in process improvement, change management, corporate learning strategy and leadership development to generate gains in performance. Her background includes IT Systems Implementation (ERP, HRIS, CRM, LMS), Transformation and Change Management, Organizational Development, Morale Improvement, Employee Engagement, Culture Change, Learning and Communications Strategy and Leadership Coaching.
Margaret is also the Founder, President and CEO of the Hope for Ethan Foundation in Mountain Lakes, New Jersey. Their mission is to provide education about and access to Medical Service Dogs for families with children that have Autism Spectrum Disorder. They are a national foundation which began as a quest by Margaret to keep her 3-year old son Ethan, with Autism and ADHD, alive without medicating him.
It began the day Ethan ran into a busy street and was almost hit by a car. In addition, at the time, Ethan was nonverbal (he had no real way to communicate effectively) and required constant vigilance to keep him safe. He would frequently tantrum and was unable to sleep more than 60-90 minutes at a clip. Desperate to find the kind of 24/7 assistance they needed, Margaret began to research options.
An internet search led Margaret to Autism Medical Service Dogs: a relatively new addition to the service dog community. A Purdue study showed that children with these dogs statistically had a 70% greater chance at speech, they slept better with a companion beside them, transitions were easier so less tantrums ensued and children like Ethan who were a flight risk and trained to tether walk with their dog were much safer. The dogs in turn were trained to keep their child out of the street and out of harm’s way should the child get out without the tether, the dog was trained to herd the child back to its parents, and in the event the child became lost, the dog could assist in search and rescue. There was only one catch: the dogs cost $47,000 – $60,000 because it takes 3 years to fully train and certify a Service Dog. While there are grant monies available for the blind, deaf and physically disabled to obtain a Medical Service Dog, there were no monies available for people with “invisible” disabilities such as seizures, diabetes, PTSD and autism. It was left to these people to raise money to pay for their dogs in full. This is how the Hope for Ethan: A Dog for Ethan Campaign was born. It took Margaret’s family, with help from friends, neighbors and wonderful civic organizations, 14 months to raise the money in a grassroots campaign. Margaret spoke at every engagement she could and put up booths at fairs.
On November 17, 2017, Ethan’s Autism Medical Service Dog, Yazzie, arrived on a fire truck, escorted by the New Vernon Police, Fire and EMS, with the Mayor present. Both CBS and ABC news were on site to record the event, and their story went national. Yazzie has made such a different in Margaret and her family’s lives. For the first time in over 4 years, Margaret could get a good night’s sleep and she is able to focus attention on her daughter and marriage.
The majority of companies training Medical Service Dogs in the USA today will not place a dog with a family for a child below 8-12+ years because they rely on the child to be the dog’s handler. Hope for Ethan Foundation works with companies that train the parents/primary caregiver to be the dog’s handler, circumventing this issue and allowing for early intervention for a low functioning individual.
Margaret obtained a M.S. in Organizational Development from The School of Public Affairs at American University in 2008. She achieved the AGILE-Scrum Practitioner Certificate, Achieving ROI for HR/OD Initiatives and PROSCI Change Management Certification. She is affiliated with the Organization Development Network and the American University/National Training League Association. She lists her first boss and mentor, Ann, as the person who most influenced her career.
Margaret was married on October 6, 1975 and has two children. In her spare time, Margaret enjoys family activities and nonprofit volunteering.
For further information, contact https://sites.google.com/hopeforethan.org/home/home?authuser=0.