 The Arc of Delaware County and the Catskill Mountain Artisan Guild (CAT) have collaborated to develop and implement a series of workshops with the purpose of exposing people to a variety of arts who typically don’t have the opportunity to do so. This series of workshops started in May 2011 and consists of month long workshops, each concentrating on a specific type of art: drawing, painting, pottery, beading, singing, dancing, acting/radio, sewing, writing, weaving, print making, and collage. Jill Cline of the CAT summarized her feelings about the program, saying “Creativity is innate in people. Every human being has creativity within, but whether this creativity is discovered or developed depends on whether people are exposed to the various arts and materials available.” This series of workshops has done that and more.
James Mould has participated in 3 of the workshops and says the experience has changed him in many ways. He explained that prior to taking the workshops he found it hard to try something new. When he started drawing about 3 years ago he worked mainly in pencil and with markers. These workshops have exposed him to other materials and techniques. Jill Cline shared that at first, James wanted to do what he knew; he was comfortable with that, but not inspired. When he started exploring materials that he had never encountered such as watercolors, oils, acrylics he really grew personally and artistically. “He grasped the concept that art is infinite and it excited him.” Heather McAdams, Life Coach said that she has seen many changes in James. “He is open to trying new things now. He is coming out of his shell more and more. He loves his art work and always has his portfolio with him.” James has sold some of his artwork and has recently been invited by other artists to exhibit some of his works at the Longyear Gallery in Margaretville, NY in January 2012.
Speaking for the CAT organization Jill shared, “We feel lucky that we get this chance and opportunity to teach.” They are seeing the self discovery of natural talent that the students hadn’t known they had. “From the little bit we give, we get back so much more” said Jill.
To view some of James Mould’s artwork, visit The Arc of Delaware County’s website at www.delarc.org and click on the ‘Flickr” link.
 Shannon Robinson has fulfilled a personal dream by working at “Springdale Farm” located in Hamden NY; a farm that has been in the Moody family since 1919. This 200 acre farm nestled in the Catskills is home to 89 Holsteins and 40 Jersey cows and heifers.
Angela Edwards, Person Centered Facilitator for The Arc of Delaware County stated that Shannon had met with her in January of 2011 to develop a plan to achieve his personal goals and dreams. Angela stated, “His focus stayed true to his dream of working on a farm. He didn’t stop advocating for himself. He showed great confidence while sharing abilities that matched his desire, saying “I’m strong, I’m a hard worker, I know how to use a shovel and throw hay.” A connection was then made with the Moody farm in an effort to put Shannon’s desire to work at a farm into action.
When Bill Moody was first approached, he admittedly had some concerns about safety for Shannon working with the animals, for instance what would happen should one of the animals startle or chew on his clothes. Farming is a challenging business with operating costs continuing to increase and wet weather reducing the amount of available feed and roughage for livestock. So, it is perhaps not surprising that this family who has weathered the ups and downs of the farming business for 92 years continues to see the opportunities that lie in accepting potential challenges.
Shannon works at the Moody family farm with pride and enthusiasm, feeding approximately 40 calves, removing the old hay and putting it in the pens for bedding for the calves. “Everything about the experience has been positive. Now that we’ve done it, I don’t have the concerns I had before”, shared Bill. This provides a welcome respite for Bill’s wife, Patsy who typically did these chores each morning before heading to work at her off the farm job. When asked about what he would say to other businesses looking for employees, Bill said, “I think we don’t have knowledge of the possibilities. We need to get the word out about this. ...My vision was limited on what people with disabilities can do. What has happened here has more than met my expectations.”
If you are open to exploring similar opportunities contact The Arc of Delaware County at (607) 865-7126 or email: delarc@delarc.org
 Rebecca Townsend, Life Coach for the Arc of Delaware County (Delarc) coordinated flood recovery efforts by the people of Delarc. She states that she felt compelled to act when immediately after the flood, the people she worked with asked her what they could do or how they could help. The felt very badly for the people affected by the flood she said, “As an agency we are involved in our communities. Usually we’re looking to communities for their support. So it was natural to look to give back.” Several people at other locations within Delarc jumped at the opportunity to help. At the Resources for Industry location in Walton, 15 people participated in different ways. Some collected and donated food, toiletries, clothing, and items for backpacks to be distributed through Delaware Opportunities. Sally Kauffman was involved in gathering donations and said they all worked together to make a list of items needed by the flood victims. She said “We’re a team effort around here. Us and the Arc- we see a need and jump into action. A lot of us volunteer in communities.” Others worked through Sidney Civic Center to assist homeowners in their clean- up efforts. After assisting two homeowners in cleaning up their basement, hauling garbage, and cleaning a refrigerator, Fred Hammond and Melissa Finch were asked to come back and help another homeowner. They helped an elderly woman move furniture in her flood damaged home. Fred said “I just felt like helping and I had a good time.” They plan on going back. Melissa said, “I like to give. Call me, I will go right back. I like to work and clean.” When asked how the act of volunteering impacted those involved, Rebecca stated: “I have seen the personal pride in what they did by those that have helped. Being able to give back to their communities, being able to make new personal connections in the community was really neat!” The Arc of Delaware County is a not for profit organization that supports people with disabilities to live personally fulfilling lives. For more pictures about our flood recovery efforts or information about our organization visit our website http://www.delarc.org/, or call 607-865-7126.
 You May Know A Winner!
It is always fun to discover the personal side of people that you may say “Hi” to everyday but not know well. Check out these names of people that have entered and/or won prizes for their entries at the Delaware County Fair and congratulate them! Capture the opportunity to ask them more about their projects and interests and get to know them better:
Horsemanship-Brenda Scott and Brenda McCall (Thrive), Francis Schulz and Jean Borget (RFI) all won blue ribbons in their respective classes. Also participating was Alissa Cronin (Life Coach-Thrive) who entered the barrel riding competition.
Photography- Sammie Conklin (RFI) placed 3rd in the amateur class. Also participating were Bob Bates and Becky Todd (Thrive), Billie Savory (RFI) and Janet Stoop (Life Coach- Thrive).
Amateur Drawing- James Mould (RFI) won 1st place and a blue ribbon. Teresa Vengen (RFI) won 3rd place. Also participating were Karl Lucker and Lewis Pepper (Thrive).
Amateur Painting- Shannon Robinson and Patricia Finch (RFI) entered paintings.
Cooking- Cindy White (Thrive) won a blue ribbon for her chocolate chip cookies. Nancy Haydon (Thrive) won 2nd place for her oatmeal raisin cookies.
Jewelry making- Doris Knowles (Thrive) won first place for jewelry making.
Sewing- Janice Hess (Thrive) won a red ribbon for a quilted walker bag she made.
Tractor Pull- Warren Stelter (Thrive) received a ribbon for 4th place.
The Hamden Town float - sported a photo of the Hamden covered bridge taken by Thomas Ferrante (Thrive).
Brandon Condon planted a flower garden at the Fairgrounds on behalf of CLS-Walton. This garden at the fair has been a project of CLS-Walton for 5 years.
Five people in the Delaware Sport Center’s Small Engine Repair course celebrated their success on August 10th. Mark Fenner, Joseph Fitapelli, Paul Hamill, Gary Whiteman, and Robert Wilcox received certificates in recognition of their achievements in the course provided by Jon Armstrong , owner of Delaware Sport Center. Jon has been offering this course for the past 3 years in collaboration with the Arc of Delaware County (DelArc). Each course consists of three 9-10 week sessions throughout the year. Seasonally appropriate equipment is included in the curriculum and includes: mowers, trimmers, weed eaters, chain saws, small motor bikes, ATV’s, and snowmobiles. The course covers understanding the basics of equipment/engine components, basic preventative maintenance, breaking an engine down and putting it back together, trouble shooting, classical problems/solutions. Jon has been a strong community supporter of DelArc. “It’s been a great joy to have the guys participate. I think they’ve gotten a lot out of it. And it’s been good for us, too.”
One class participant, Paul Hamill, had an additional reason to celebrate. When he arrived for the celebration, he learned that he was being offered a job there. Engine repair has always been a strong interest of Paul's. Julie Conrow, Assistant Program Director, Resources For Industry, Walton, NY shared these thoughts about Paul: “When I first met him he shared that he dreamed of some day having a job repairing engines. The Small Engine class that has been occurring was developed specifically with Paul in mind … to help him work toward his dream. He started out attending the class, and then had the opportunity to share his knowledge and assist with teaching the class. Now he is proud to share that he is a paid employee. The opportunity to learn and work in an area of such great interest has helped Paul grow in all aspects of his life.”
Paul said, “I am thrilled to have achieved my dream today.”
 Students from three local school districts won scholarships for their classes to spend a day at The Arc of Delaware County (Delarc). Students entered a contest by creating posters, poems, essays and other projects to demonstrate respect and including people with disabilities in their schools and communities. The contest was cosponsored by The Arc of Delaware County and Beta Omicron, a chapter of Delta Kappa Gamma, an international organization of women educators.
During the visits, students were paired with mentors who receive services from Delarc. Students and their mentors spent the first half of the day side by side working, learning and sharing. Students learned what it’s like to read, write and even make pizza with a disability.
The second half of the day was spent learning about respect and empathy through YouTube videos, presentations and an interactive “pop quiz.” Throughout the day students learned skills including how to handle bullying, how to stick to a budget, and how to interact with people who have disabilities in a positive and meaningful way. Students also watched the latest video released by Delarc, titled “Making the Shift to Community Connections,” which can be found at www.YouTube.com/arcdelaware.
The Grand Prize winner was Mrs. Liddle’s 6th grade class from South Kortright (pictured above). The students created a series of posters reflecting empathy and respect for people with disabilities. Second place county-wide went to Ali Eichler from Franklin for her essay about respect and Noah Dougherty from Andes won third place for making pasta figurines with a poem and music.
To learn more about The Arc of Delaware County, or to schedule a visit for your own life-changing experience, visit http://www.delarc.org/ or call Delarc’s Community Relations Department at (607) 865-7126.
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