Tommy Nobis Center
Atlanta Falcons defensive star Tommy Nobis was the first player ever drafted by the football franchise in late 1965 and was later known as “Mr. Falcon.”
When he was not on the gridiron, Nobis volunteered his time with the Georgia Special Olympics. Decades before his death in 2017, the athlete lent his name and support to the Tommy Nobis Center, which empowers people with disabilities through employment.
“Tommy Nobis was a champion for people with disabilities and held a soft spot for them,” says Dave Ward, president and CEO of the center. “He really enjoyed participating in activities and events with the center’s participants and he was present and active in all we did.”
The Atlanta-based organization, founded in 1977, constitutes a win-win economic engine for Georgia, giving people with disabilities resources to achieve career success and helping employers find reliable, motivated and productive workers. The center’s programs offer education, training and employment services to help both youths and adults achieve their employment goals.
In addition, the group manages federal and state government contracts for administrative, mailroom and custodial services, and the center’s business solutions give companies the opportunity to change the lives of people with disabilities or other barriers to employment. Its Academy offers accelerated vocational training with guaranteed job placement.
“We help people not only obtain a job but develop a fulfilling career that helps them maintain independence,” Ward says. “Our participants learn to be self-advocates, with greater self-confidence.”
Over the past 49 years, the Tommy Nobis Center has helped more than 25,000 job seekers. Its Early Youth Employment Services (EYES) program works with more than 1,000 students in 42 schools across Georgia. 
