. >> reporter: five days a week, 54-year-old ricardo thornton can be found at washington d.c.'s martin luther king junior memorial library. born in the district of columbia, he has worked here for more than three decades. and his full-time employment is just one of the accomplishments thornton has used to rise above a label placed on him as a child. >> i am a person with mental retardation. when you have that label, where ever you go, "oh he has a disability, it's mental." oh, come on you going to be with him? that kind of trust wasn't there. >> reporter: last year, thornton moved into a two-bedroom house in washington with his wife donna of 29 years, who also has a developmental disability. while they still receive some support for daily living needs and light supervision from a not-for-profit agency, having a place of their own was a dream come true. they had lived in small apartments for more than 20 years, where they raised their son. so what does it mean now to have your own home? to be on your own? >> it's beautiful. it means that i'm part of a community that loves me. >>