A new executive director joined the leadership team at Rock County Opportunities, which provides services and employment for local adults with disabilities.
Eric Sage, who started Aug. 24 in Luverne, brings more than 15 of experience to the position after working with home and community-based services in the Minneapolis metro area.
Since 2016 he was senior director of True Friends, a nonprofit organization providing respite care at camps for children and adults with disabilities.
Prior to that, he worked with Hammer Residences, another influential Twin Cities provider for people with intellectual disabilities.
“It’s very rewarding when you can help individuals and their families with needs,” Sage said. “I’m looking forward to meeting our families and filling that need here in Luverne.”
Adria Benson and Danielle Landberg have been co-directing RCO since Beth Bartels left in 2020.
“Things have gone great as far as the team leadership approach we started about a year ago,” Benson said. “But we have kind of felt there was a piece missing and decided to hire an ED to help the organization continue to grow and flourish.”
She said the RCO board and directors wanted to get a feel for what they needed and how the executive director’s position would be structured before hiring someone.
“I can say with confidence that we are all proud of the last year and what RCO has been able to do with our team leadership,” Benson said.
“We are doing well financially, the individuals we support and their teams are happy with the services provided, and we have a great team of staff here.”
At the six-month mark, she said they evaluated progress and determined a point person would be helpful to relieve the team leaders of some responsibilities.
“We each still had our previous jobs to do, and adding these duties didn't allow us to devote the time we needed into certain areas,” Benson said.
“We felt that it would be really important for the future and growth of RCO to have someone who could focus their time on things like fundraising, legislative needs, ideas for growth and additional community outreach. … In order for RCO to be the best it can be, we all felt that we needed to bring someone else in.”
She said the RCO board and staff are looking forward to working with Sage.
“We're very excited to have Eric start,” Benson said.
“He has a lot of experience and knowledge in this field, and he will be able to continue the good things that our team has accomplished over the last year — as well as think of new ideas.”
Originally from Yankton, South Dakota, Sage said his new job in Luverne puts him closer to family.
“I’m really excited for the opportunity to be back in the area,” he said. “Luverne is a great community.”
He and his wife, Becca, recently moved to Brandon after she was recruited by Sanford to fill a physician’s assistant position in Sioux Falls.
They have three children, twin 4-year-old boys, Jameson and Beckham, and a 2-year-old daughter, Henly.
He said he’s grateful for the short 20-minute commute for a job he enjoys in the state of Minnesota where he understands its laws and regulations of services for disabled adults.
“It just worked out really well,” he said.
Sage said he anticipates hiring and retaining staff will continue to be a challenge across the state, unless legislators do more to help.
“I hope that local providers and the state of Minnesota can continue to find ways to help our families and individuals with special needs,” he said.