Meaningful partnerships can strengthen communities in unexpected ways. At Rogers Behavioral Health Foundation, we believe making a difference is about more than financial support. It’s also about bringing people together, sharing our strengths and creating opportunities for connection. Our growing partnership with Journey21 reflects that spirit, demonstrating what can happen when community organizations come together with a shared purpose.
For 19-year-old Cal, a student at Journey21 and graduate of Oconomowoc High School, each week brings a new opportunity to learn something, meet someone and make a difference.
Through a growing partnership between Rogers Behavioral Health Foundation and Journey21, an Oconomowoc-based organization providing supportive living, learning and social opportunities for adults with intellectual disabilities, Cal is gaining valuable hands-on work experience at Rogers’ Oconomowoc campus.
The internship program, launched earlier this year, gives Journey21 students the opportunity to explore different roles, develop practical skills and build confidence in a supportive environment.
Cal began his internship working alongside Rogers’ landscaping team, gardening, mulching and planting trees. In the weeks that followed, he helped assemble gift bags for program participants and spent time working in the Faith Factory gift store inside the main hospital. Soon, he’ll have the opportunity to put another of his favorite skills to work: cleaning.
“I love cleaning,” Cal said. “I do a good job at home.”
While some assignments come more naturally than others, Cal is learning the value of perseverance.
“Planting a big tree was kind of tough,” he recalled. “And sometimes I did like it… sometimes I didn’t, but I pushed through.”
That determination is already paying off beyond his internship. The landscaping skills Cal has developed at Rogers have helped him take on similar projects in his own neighborhood, earning money for his work.
But for Cal, who has traveled to 46 states with his family, the opportunity to meet new people is just as rewarding as the work itself.
“I love to be around other people and communicate with a lot of friends and people,” he said.
Each week, Cal is accompanied by Journey21 job coach Tom, who has watched him embrace new challenges and build relationships with the Rogers team.
“Cal is so polite and so kind and so grateful,” Tom said. “He makes it a point to say ‘thank you’ to everybody that works with him and helps him, and I’m just so impressed with that.”
Tom hopes the internship will continue to strengthen Cal’s skills and reinforce his already-strong work ethic. And while neither had visited Rogers’ campus before the internship, both have developed a newfound appreciation for the people and place they’re helping support.
“It’s a really beautiful, nice facility, and I think Cal understands how he’s contributing to keep it that way,” Tom said. “He’s doing a great job.”
A partnership rooted in community
Cal’s experience is just one example of the growing relationship between Rogers and Journey21. Through Journey21’s Life Academy, participants have also had opportunities to use Rogers’ campus facilities, including its ropes course, creating additional avenues for learning, connection and personal growth.
In recognition of this collaboration, Journey21 named Rogers Behavioral Health its 2025 Partnership of the Year Award recipient.
“The partnership between Rogers Behavioral Health and Journey21 is deeply important, creating meaningful opportunities for adults with intellectual disabilities to learn, grow, and give back while helping build a more connected and inclusive community,” Rogers Behavioral Health Foundation Manager of Community Partnerships said. “I have been so fortunate to watch Cal work across these various disciplines, and it is clear that Rogers is truly lucky to partner with Journey21. Cal is an incredible, kind, and remarkably hard-working individual who brings so much dedication to everything he does.”
The partnership reflects Rogers Behavioral Health Foundation’s expanding commitment to the communities Rogers serves. In 2026, oversight of Rogers’ community partnerships transitioned to the Foundation, creating an opportunity to renew and strengthen investments in relationships with local organizations like Journey21.
By sharing resources, creating opportunities and working together toward common goals, these partnerships help build a more connected, inclusive community where people of all abilities can thrive.
For Cal, that sense of connection is what makes his experience at Rogers so meaningful.
“I’ve learned that helping others pays off,” he said. “Being a good team leader and having fun.”
And although his internship will eventually come to an end, Cal already knows he’d like to return.
“It’s a beautiful campus, and I want to be a part of it,” he said.