Wendy Miller Receives Blesher Award For Making a Dream Come True

Wendy was nominated for a Blesher Award for her timely and persistent efforts that culminated in making a dream come true for one of the gentlemen that she supports.  Wendy knew that he was a big fan of the Walton Football Team and always wanted to be a part of it.  Through her efforts he is now part of the team and has formed warm friendships with the players. Pam Moody wrote in her nomination, “Wendy facilitated a “dream come true” for this man to become a part of the Walton Football team. He has a title of “Sideline Assistant”, appointed by the players and coaching staff. He is supporting the players at all home games and is standing with them on the sideline.”

Wendy’s  actions and resulting accomplishments exemplify the 6 Unifying Principles of The Arc of Delaware County:

Those We Serve Come First- Wendy followed up with this man’s dream of being a part of the Walton Football Team.
Commit To Excellence- Wendy started early and assured she made contact with Coach Hoover weekly.
Be Dedicated- Wendy arranged her schedule to accommodate the individual to attend football practice and the other volunteer activities.
Employee Satisfaction- Wendy expresses her delight in the warm friendships he has built with the team.
Communicate Effectively- Wendy has communicated with Jessie and Bruce Baldi to assure his participation at home games.
Be Innovative- Wendy researched during the summer months what she needed to do to make this dream come true.
                                 Congratulations Wendy!

Accolades Abound for CLS-Walton Team

 

Always generous with their time and talent, CLS-Walton had many staff members assisting at other facilities and in other programs while at the same time experiencing a 37% increase in caseload. Their efforts didn’t go unnoticed.  Steve Finkel,  Community Programmer with The Arc of Delaware County nominated the entire staff at the Community Living Skills facility in Walton, NY for a Blesher Award.  Steve wrote, “Despite enormous challenges… the (CLS-W) team never missed a beat- “caring without restraint in spades!”. 

It is rare that an entire staff at a facility is nominated for a Blesher Award. However this team has “dug deep” and pulled together to meet these significant challenges. With the dedication and teamwork of every person at CLS-W, the Day Service program continued to operate smoothly and was able to maintain the high level of service that they provide under normal circumstances. 

Key points noted in the nomination of how the people at CLS-W demonstrated the Unifying Principals of The Arc of Delaware County include:

Those We Serve Come First-“Their human resources focused on our mission despite the challenges.”

Commit To Excellence- “Blending more people from Broome and CLS-Arkville and being positive and proactive.”

Be Dedicated- “Ensuring that the focus is on supporting their participants at all times- and making great strides on meeting Valued Outcomes!”

Employee Satisfaction-“ The pride in a job well done under very trying times – with still much to be done.”

Communicate Effectively-“With all the pressures, programs have happened as planned, annual meetings held, and communications flow as needed.”

Be Innovative- “Reaching out to others to help as needed so the level of service is maintained at a very high level.”

Congratulations to everyone at Community Living Skills-Walton. You are the ultimate example of how mighty many can be when they act as one.

Celebrating Direct Support Professionals Recognition Week

Recognizing Workers Who Support People with Disabilities

In honor of National Direct Support Recognition Week, The Arc of Delaware County, a not for profit organization which supports Delaware County’s children and adults with disabilities to live personally fulfilling lives, joins organizations from around the nation in celebrating its direct support workforce.

National Direct Support Professional (DSP) Recognition Week is celebrated annually across the country to honor the tens of thousands of workers who enable people with intellectual, developmental and other significant disabilities and their families to live healthy community-oriented lives.

The Arc of Delaware County has grown exponentially since it was founded in 1967; supporting nearly 400 individuals with disabilities and employing over 200 staff, the majority of which are direct support professionals, making it one of Delaware County’s largest employers. 

Governor Andrew Cuomo joins governors from across the nation in signing a Gubernatorial Proclamation designating this week as Direct Support Professional’s Recognition Week.  This is the sixth consecutive year the U.S. Senate has approved such a resolution. 

“Direct support professionals work tirelessly every day of the year administering skilled and compassionate care to seniors and individuals with disabilities,” Senator Collins (ME) said.  “I commend the important work carried out by direct support professionals that allows these individuals to stay connected with their community and their families, and I am pleased to have supported a resolution honoring all that these professionals do to help those in their care live meaningful and productive lives.” 

Heidi Friedman, Life Coach (aka Direct Support Professional) at The Arc of Delaware County shared “The people I support are exactly like everybody else, in the sense that we are all different. Being a DSP has made such a difference in my life; it can make a difference in your life also.”   

To learn more about Direct Support Professionals view this video: Direct Support Professionals-Helping Individuals with Disabilities Live Personally Fulfilling Lives

To learn more, visit The Arc of Delaware County’s website at www.delarc.org or call 607-865-7126. Visit our Career Page to apply for a job in this rewarding field.http://www.delarc.org/careers/

"Sprucing Things Up" at SUNY Delhi

Students are returning to SUNY Delhi this week. Along with enjoying a fresh start to the academic year they can enjoy the freshly painted buildings which make the campus a welcoming sight.  The Arc and students from SUNY Delhi teamed together over the summer to paint several college venues including SUNY's Auto Lab and Russell Hall (a student dormitory). Steve Morganstern from SUNY Delhi Maintenance Operations shared:  “Your team did a fine job and I would be happy to have them back again!"  

Pictured Left to Right: Steve Morganstern and Bob Nicholson from  SUNY Dehli Maintenance Operations, Karl Williams, Jason Peck, Matt Anderson, Community Volunteer and Rachel Closs.

The Arc of Delaware County Enters "The Choice Awards" Contest

The Arc of Delaware County recently entered 4 videos in NYSARC's "The Choice Awards" which recognizes excellence by our Chapters through their promotional videos and commercials. The goal of the contest is to recognize outstanding effort and quality by NYSARC's Chapters in furthering the public's awareness and understanding of individuals with intellectual and other developmental disabilities and programs, supports, and services available through NYSARC, Inc. Enjoy viewing the many excellent videos and vote for your favorite!      

To view and vote on the on the Best Commercial Video: Commercial Videos
To view and vote on the -Best Promotional Video:  Promotional Videos
To learn more about the contest: The Choice Awards contest

Each person can vote for their favorite video once in each on the 2 categories: Commercial and Promotional videos.

Achieve With Us!

The Arc of Delaware County supports nearly 400 local children and adults who have intellectual and other developmental disabilities.  But many people may be surprised at the many other facets of The Arc of Delaware County including its level of local community impact, community partnerships, and the national recognition of both staff and programs.  Read the attached brochure or check our stories on our News blog for a more in depth view of what The Arc of Delaware County is all about.  Then consider becoming a member, donor, or employee!

A sampling of stories includes:

Local Community Impact:
“The Joy of Living Makes Life Worth Living – Celebrating President’s Project Week” http://arcstories.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-joy-of-giving-makes-life-worth.html

“Aspiring Student Turned Cooking Sensation” http://arcstories.blogspot.com/2013/07/aspiring-student-turned-cooking.html

Nationally recognized workforce:

“ANCOR Names Heidi Friedman 2013 Direct Support Professional of the Year for New York State” http://arcstories.blogspot.com/2013/05/ancor-names-heidi-friedman-as-2013.html

Partnerships:

“Mutually Rewarding- SUNY Delhi Students Connect with Delarc”
http://arcstories.blogspot.com/2013/05/mutually-rewarding-suny-delhi-students.html

” Winners of the "Everybody Can" Contest Announced”
http://arcstories.blogspot.com/2013/03/raising-awareness-from-childs.html

 

 

Aspiring Student Turned Cooking Sensation

Brenda Scott loved to cook and aspired to obtain a position as a cook in a restaurant. She decided to pursue this dream and jumped at the opportunity to enroll in SUNY Delhi’s Basic Food Preparation Lab course during the 2013 spring semester.  SUNY Delhi and The Arc of Delaware County have teamed together for several years to provide inclusive learning experiences for people with disabilities.  This connection has opened worlds of opportunity and fulfillment for not only people with disabilities but for the SUNY students in the inclusive classes as well.

 “Allemande”, “Bain-Marie”, and “Veloute” are not part of a foreign language but some of the numerous vocabulary words that students must master in the Basic Food Preparation course.  The class objectives included training in basic preparation of food groups, proper use and care of food service equipment, recognizing and identifying product standards, and food safety and sanitation standards of professional cooking. Over the course of 15 weeks, students learned the proper preparation of sauces, soups, salads, meats, vegetables, fish, eggs, pasta/rice, and sandwiches. They also learned how to organize and prepare food within allotted timeframes as well as concession stand set up, shopping, pricing food, and basic equipment operation. Their overall grade was based 60% on performance and 40% on tests and exams. 

Brenda passed with flying colors and immediately put her new skills and techniques to use when she planned and prepared a dinner for The Arc of Delaware County’s Board of Directors on May 23rd.  Brenda loves to share her favorite recipes with others as well and she regularly prepares selected dishes when she works in cafeteria at The Arc’s Hamden location. Pam Walker who manages the cafeteria said, “We have been reaping the benefits of Brenda’s cooking skills. Everyone really enjoys Brenda’s specialty dishes and she loves to plan and prepare them. She is a pleasure to work with!”

Brenda plans to continue her education by taking the next Food Preparation course offered at SUNY Delhi in August. 

Tasty Dishes Cooked Up in Class

To learn more about The Arc of Delaware County and discover more inspiring stories visit www.delarc.org.