Reaching out, Building Community

In this month of bountiful harvests which also encompasses Community Service Day on October 5th, The Arc of Delaware County recently reached out and supported local communities in a variety of ways.

 

Pictured in the photo from left to right are: Pat McDonald and Judy Ford from the Delhi Senior Community Apts., Tina Osadca, Gabrielle Rosario, SUNY Liberal Arts student, Adonis Smalls, SUNY Carpentry student and Matt Wilson.


For SUNY Delhi’s Community Service Day, people at The Arc of Delaware County’s Main Street Residence teamed with students from SUNY Delhi and enjoyed baking cookies together for delivery to residents at the Delhi Senior Community Apartments. In a note to The Arc of Delaware County the seniors wrote: “Thank you so very much for the platter of homemade cookies. We really appreciate your thoughtfulness and kindness.”



Pictured in the photograph are Carol Norwick, Secretary to the Principal and Thomas Ferrante who helped in the baking and delivery of the cookies.



On October 8th Margaretville Central School hosted a Senior Citizen Dinner Dance in recognition of LiLY (Lifeforce in Late Years), a nonprofit dedicated to improving the lives of senior citizens. Again, using their baking skills, a group of self advocates from The Arc of Delaware County supported the dance by providing delicious desserts for the enjoyment of over 60 seniors who attended.  

And ending the month with a “ BANG” or should we say a “BOO!”, Community Living Skills in Walton hosted another popular Halloween Hoopla on Saturday October 26th where over 60 local children and their families enjoyed, crafts, games, a costume exchange, a “not-so-spooky” Halloween Maze and refreshments.

Reaching out, giving back, and fully participating in our communities- that are what being part of a community is all about!

Angie Edwards Nominated for Blesher Award by Entire CLS-W Staff

Angie pictured on the left of Blesher surrounded by the staff at CLS-W who nominated her
 

“During a time when CLS-W was growing and in need of additional staff, Angie stepped in, set up here and jumped in whenever needed” stated the CLS-W Staff in their nomination.

Angie Edwards is a Person Centered Planner located in The Arc of Delaware County’s Hamden office. She helps individuals with disabilities to plan their life and supports that enable them to live personally fulfilling lives. However, when CLS-W experienced a large increase in caseload, staff stated that Angie was a real team player- when help was needed; she rearranged her work schedule and jumped in to assist.

While at CLS-W she asked what she could do to assist one on one with an individual new to the CLS-W program. She followed up on feeding guidelines before assisting individuals and offered many helpful suggestions at staff meetings. CLS-W Staff was very appreciative of her efforts and her passion to be helpful. They wanted to express their appreciation by nominating her for a Blesher Award which was presented on Oct. 7th at the CLS-W facility.

Through her actions Angie exemplifies each of the 6 Unifying Principals of The Arc of Delaware County: Those We Serve Come First, Commit to Excellence, Be Dedicated, Employee Satisfaction, Communicate Effectively and Be Innovative.

Congratulations Angie!

 

A Writer Scripts His Own Success

The journey of a lifetime has begun for Justin Kirby.  Justin has always enjoyed writing, acting, and theater. He shared, “I’m a big movie buff. I’ve been in plays before and I just love acting.” But he wanted to further his knowledge and hone his skills, so he started to look into colleges that offered theater classes. However before applying to college, Justin first needed to obtain a General Education Diploma (GED). This fact did not deter him and this year Justin attended a weekly class from January to July. However the process of obtaining a GED requires strong self motivation and determination to complete self studies using books and preparatory tests in Math, Social Sciences, Reading, and Writing. When asked what kept him motivated, Justin pointed to his parents and Valarie Stafford, Life Coach at The Arc of Delaware County who knew that he wanted to do this for years. The first step is always the hardest, but “Jeanne Ntibalkure (Service Coordinator) made the phone call with me to get me enrolled in classes”.  Val shared that Justin “showed a commitment and desire to work through it (the courses).” And on September 12th, Justin was thrilled to find out that he passed the test and earned his GED. He was especially proud that he passed the test on his first try and he and his family celebrated with a special dinner that night.

When asked what he would say to others considering obtaining a GED degree he said, “If you have a dream to get your GED, go for it. Don’t let anybody else tell you that you can’t.”  Justin looks forward to enrolling in a college theater program and in the meantime continues to write. “I’ve been working on writing my own movies.” The most recent movie script he is working on involves a romantic comedy set in New York City.  He shared, “I hope sooner or later one of my screenplays gets picked and turned into an actual movie.”

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.