A Career Built on Grace: Cissy’s Story

To celebrate Direct Support Professional (DSP) Recognition Week, Aspire would like to recognize and honor Lucinda “Cissy” Moss for her 35 years of dedication and support for people with disabilities!  

Cissy’s journey as a Direct Support Professional began more than 40 years ago with a simple but powerful inspiration: watching people with disabilities leave their nursing home each day to go to (at the time) Workshops. That vision of progress lit something inside her. “I knew then that I wanted to be part of that journey,” she recalls.

On April 17, 1990, Cissy joined Aspire, beginning what would become 35 years of walking alongside people with disabilities, empowering choice, nurturing independence, and celebrating life’s big and small victories together.

For Cissy, being a DSP has always been about more than just care, it’s about connection.

“Making a difference in someone’s life, encouraging them to exercise their ability to make choices to live life as you and I, that’s what matters most,” she says.

Her career has been filled with moments of compassion that have left a lasting impact. One moment that sticks out in particular to her is when she helped to comfort Brian, someone in Aspire’s programs, while he was grieving his mother’s passing. To help him keep her memory close, Cissy laminated a photo of her so he could carry it in his wallet.

Another memory she looks back fondly on is the honor of assisting with fulfilling the final wish of someone we supported before his passing, an act that reminds her of why this work is so meaningful.

Some of her proudest memories come from coordinating the Physiosocial Rehabilitation (PSR) Department’s Moving On Program in Lake County, where she helped people transition out of state institutions and into homes of their own. “That was my greatest joy,” she reflects.

Through it all, Cissy has learned just as much from the people she supports as they have from her. “The people we support often aren’t given equal opportunities, but they’ve taught me to enjoy every moment, big or small, and not to take anything for granted.”

Her faith and grace guide her daily. “I truly have a place and home here,” she shares. “Being a DSP and working with the people we do is such a mission for me. I’ve received so much grace, and I feel it’s my responsibility to extend that grace to others, whether it’s my coworkers or the people we support.”

To describe her journey, she chooses three words: Flexible. Grace. Constancy. And perhaps she sums it up best in her own words:

“When you truly love what you do, you never work a day in your life. And this is how I’ve felt over the last 35 years of being a DSP.”

The amazing work that Cissy does is a shining example of what being a DSP here at Aspire is all about. Her grace, patience, and care are truly what makes her so special, and we couldn’t be luckier to have her leadership.

She reminds us that this work is not just about supporting daily life, it’s about building trust, empowering choice, and walking alongside people as they discover new possibilities. Her journey shows us how one person’s dedication can ripple out to create lasting impact, inspiring both the people she supports and her fellow team members.

As we celebrate DSP Recognition Week, we honor Cissy’s legacy of love and constancy. She embodies what it means to be Powered by Possible, and because of her, our Aspire community is stronger and kinder.