The Arc of Delaware County's video wins a First Place at Film Festival

The first annual “Art and Soul of the Catskills Film Festival" was held this past Friday and Saturday. Submissions to the film festival were accepted from all levels of filmmakers who were either residents of Delaware, Otsego, Ulster, Green, Chenango, and Schoharie counties or whose films were produced in or made the subject of these Counties. Over 42 films were entered and judged in 5 categories.  The Arc of Delaware County’s video, “Making the Shift to Community Connections” won first place in the short documentary category.

This film tells the story of Delarc and the connections being made by people with disabilities in the communities in which they live.  Sheri Hull, THRIVE Program Director shared “We felt like we needed to do it in a meaningful way (make connections). Doing things that were meaningful for them and that really had to do with their life choices and goals.”  This film consists of a series of vignettes of people with disabilities engaged in their communities with activities such as working at a local auto repair shop and vegetable crop farm, taking classes at SUNY Delhi, taking horseback riding lessons, learning skills and assisting at a day care center. And the ultimate outcome of community connections in which real relationships and friendships are formed is powerfully demonstrated by this video.

George Suess, CEO of The Arc of Delaware County shared “ At the actual showing of the video, Saturday afternoon, the audience was very small but their response when the video ended was over the top. Loud and sustained applause with big smiles all the way around.” You can view this award winning video on our YouTube site or by clicking here: Making the Shift to Community Connections



George Suess, CEO listens as The Arc of Delaware County's video
 "Making the Shift To Community Connections"
wins a first prize at the 1st Annual Art and Soul of the Catskills Film Festival

The ASCFF welcomes submissions from all levels of filmmakers providing they are residents of Delaware, Otsego, Ulster, Green

Jessica Baldi and Janet Stoop Recognized With Blesher Award for Making “Camp Work” a Success

Jessica and Janet were nominated for a Blesher Award by Steve Finkel, Community Program Life Coach. In his nomination he stated,” They both worked as a team to make the recently completed “Camp Work Program” a success for our folks, despite staff shortages and some very hot weather!

They’re the best!” Jessica and Janet supported people from Delarc as they assisted in readying Camp Shankitunk for the summer season and also helped maintain the facilities while the 4 H Camp and Day Camp programs were in session.

In order to qualify for a Blesher award, those nominated must have exemplified the Unifying Principles of The Arc of Delaware County. In using their, talents and abilities, these ladies have gone above and beyond job expectations to provide a wonderful opportunity for those they support.

Steve wrote that Janet and Jessica exemplified the 6 Unifying Principles in the following ways:

Those We Serve Come First-“Regardless of staffing issues, they were there to make this program happen.

Commit To Excellence- “Great Outcomes, great feedback from camp staff.”

Be Dedicated- “They really know how to overcome almost any obstacle or problem.”

Employee Satisfaction- “You can see it in their (Janet and Jessica’s) faces. They are proud to support those we serve to see rewarding outcomes.”

Communicate Effectively-“Despite very busy schedules, you always knew “what’s up” and “what’s happening”.

Be Innovative- “Overcoming schedule changes and other obstacles never were barriers to their achieving success!”

Congratulations Janet and Jessica!

Unifying Principles in Action at the 2012 Staff Retreat

The Arc of Delaware County (Delarc) held its Staff Retreat on July 20th at Scott’s Family Resort located on beautiful Oquaga Lake in Deposit, NY. The Staff Retreat is eagerly looked forward to each year by Delarc’s employees as a chance to interact together as well as have fun, relax, and take part in a variety of learning activities.

The morning program included a presentation by guest speakers, Polly and Dylan Emmons who gave their personal story about living with Asperger’s Syndrome, a form of Autism. This mother and son team spoke about how they discovered Dylan had Autism and how they navigated the obstacles and solutions presented to them as Dylan grew up to the amazing young man he is today. Dylan graduated from Ithaca College this Spring and will continue pursuing his interest in writing while working on his Master’s Degree at Sarah Lawrence College this Fall.

After their presentation, a variety of interactive activities were centered around the 6 Unifying Principles of The Arc of Delaware County. Employees were broken into teams as they took up the challenge of each activity that represented a Unifying Principle –Those We Serve Come First, Commit to Excellence, Be Dedicated, Employee Satisfaction, Communicate Effectively, and Be Innovative.

After a delicious luncheon Delarc staff had an opportunity to get to know each other better while participating in a variety of afternoon activities including golf, boat rides, yoga, massage, horseshoes, volleyball, and classes in art (Zentangles), mind exploration,volleyball, fly casting, bicycling, and just plain relaxing around Scott’s Resort.

Several Departments had created gift baskets around the Unifying Principle theme and these were raffled off at the end of the day.

What a great place to work! To find out more about how you can become part of the Delarc Team visit our Career Page at www.delarc.org.

The Arc of Delaware County Awards Scholarships

The Arc of Delaware County (Delarc) is one of the country’s most progressive and unique organizations serving children and adults with developmental disabilities. Each year, Delarc awards scholarships to high school students that will be attending college to further their studies in the field of Human Services.  The recipients selected by their schools should not only have demonstrated scholastic ability but also been active providing service to their communities and/or school. The scholarships were sent to each school for presentation at commencement or awards ceremonies.

The 2012 recipients of The Arc Delaware County Scholarship are:

• Jasmine Jester of Charlotte Valley Central School, attending the College of St. Rose majoring in Clinical Psychology
• Katherine Bracci of Delaware Academy, attending Mohawk Valley Community College, majoring in Health
• Jennifer Newman of Deposit Central School, attending Elmira College, majoring in Nursing.
• Harley Rae Frey of Downsville Central School, attending SUNY Cobleskill, majoring in Early Childhood Education.
• Sarah Gladding of Franklin Central School, SUNY Delhi, majoring in Nursing.
• Tabitha Althiser of Hancock Central School, attending Onondaga Community College, majoring in Human Services/Special Education
• Daphne Ancona of Margaretville Central School, attending Kutztown University, majoring in Psychology
• Sydney Peters of Roxbury Central School, majoring in Human Social Services.
• Alaina Wagner of Sidney Central School, attending SUNY Oneonta, majoring in Psychology
• Rebecca Johnson-Quigley of South Kortright Central School, attending SUNY Delhi, majoring in Nursing
• Nicole Burgher of Stamford Central School, attending SUNY Oneonta, majoring in Early Childhood Education.
• Elizabeth Patterson of Walton Central School, attending St. Rose, majoring in Speech Pathology.

In a thank you letter to the agency, scholarship recipient Tabitha Althiser wrote, “It means everything that you gave me this scholarship. This scholarship is helping me out paying for college. It has also been a pleasure working for the summer at the Walton location (Delarc’s Community Living Skills- Walton facility)”. Tabitha indicated that she applied for a summer job at CLS-W to obtain insight and experience in the field of Human Services.

For more information about The Arc of Delaware County, including career opportunities, visit www.delarc.org or call (607) 865-7126.

Blesher visits Marian Ewain, A Positive Person Who Always Finds a Way!

Marian Ewain, a Life Coach at Community Living Skills-Walton was nominated by Heather McAdams for a Blesher award.  Marian is well known for her willingness to jump in and help whenever and wherever she can.  Heather shared that Marian found a way to support not only the people at CLS-W but also those at RFI who thoroughly enjoy attending “Creating Art Together” (CAT) classes. Congratulations to Marian who received her Blesher award June 28^th!

Heather wrote the following examples demonstrating how Marian exemplifies the 6 Unifying Principles of The Arc of Delaware County: 

1. Those We Serve Come First
   “Marian was very flexible and was able to help support three folks from RFI, so they could attend classes.”
2. Commit To Excellence
   “Marian is willing to jump in whenever she is asked.”

3.       Be Dedicated
“When Marian was approached to help RFI she jumped on it and gave me an answer the next day.”

4.       Employee Satisfaction
“Marian has an awesome “can do” attitude.”

5.       Communicate Effectively
“Marian kept me updated on how the folks at RFI were doing at CAT class.”

6.       Be Innovative
“Marian found a way to support her folks at CLS-Walton and the folks at RFI at the same times.”

Flower Power in Margaretville

Danny Vollmer and David Greenwood have been working together to help beautify the Village of Margaretville. Both men have had a personal interest in gardening and were pleased when Heidi Friedman, a community inclusion specialist, found an opportunity for them to put their passion to work by tending the flower boxes that line the parking lot of the Village of Margaretville parking lot. David has been volunteering for 3 years and Danny has been a part of the project for 1 year.

The flower box project got started when Heidi contacted Karen McMurray, Village Clerk, who along with Mayor Bill Stanton enthusiastically supported the project. Karen made a connection with local resident Joe Kiss who is very active in the community. Joe worked alongside David and Danny imparting his knowledge of plants and gardening to them.

David expresses joy every time he tends to the flowers by socializing with other community members. Danny sums up his feelings by stating: “I love watering the flowers, they are so pretty.” David and Danny take pride in their community and enjoy the opportunity to develop new connections.

The Arc of Delaware County strives to include people with disabilities in their communities by supporting them in exploring their individual hobbies, talents, and interests.

To view more photos of Danny and David's flowers click here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/delarc/

The Arc of Delaware County Celebrates Much Success

The Arc of Delaware County‘s Annual Membership Meeting and Achievement Awards Ceremony was held at the Holiday Inn, Oneonta, June 8^th.  Members, staff, special guests, Officers and Directors gathered together to elect new Officers and Board Members for the upcoming term and to celebrate the outstanding achievements of people they support, community members, and partner organizations.

After serving a maximum of six consecutive one year terms as Board President, Robert Rothenberg has turned over the reins of leadership. Officers for the 2012-2013 term are: President, Robin Evanitsky; Vice President, Ira McIntosh; Secretary, Sandra Bullis; Treasurer, Tim Crain.  Directors for the 2012-2014 term are:  Sandra Bullis, Lori Cetta, Tim Crain, Robin Evanitsky, Lee Marigliano, Ira McIntosh, Gerda van Leeuwen, Ruth Vitale, Alan Zimmerman; they join Margie Aitken, Thomas Banks, Mary Jane Giarrusso-Wilkin, and Robert Rothenberg whose two year director terms expire in 2013.

Officers and Directors were sworn in to office by Wayne Marshfield, Hamden Town Supervisor, long time Member and supporter of The Arc of Delaware County, and Dale Anderson, representing people who receive services from The Arc. 

Six Outstanding Achievement awards were presented to individuals that have inspired others in each of The Arc of Delaware County’s programs.  Award winners were bestowed with Oscar-like trophies and plaques, honored with Certificates of Recognition from Assemblyman Peter Lopez and Senator John Bonacic, and surprised by a letter of congratulations from Governor Andrew Cuomo.  Assemblyman Lopez also personally congratulated and thanked the staff and volunteers for making all the successes possible.

Carousel Children’s Services selected Jonathan Roy as Outstanding Achievement Award winner.  Jonathan was selected by his teachers for his exceptional progress this past year. 

 The Outstanding Achievement award winners of the adult programs were chosen by a group of their peers.  Selection committees for each program were formed to discuss qualities award winners should possess, and accomplishments of nominees were reviewed and considered. Lisa Nichols, Life Coach of the THRIVE program shared, “The individuals (on the nomination committee) really are observant and they pick up on different things than we do as staff…  they really pick up on the key pieces that are important to this process.” 

The Outstanding Achievement Award winners in the adult programs include:  Community Living Skills, Arkville- Gerry Sparks;  Community Living Skills, Walton- Russell Beadle; Residential Services- Corinne Jones; Resources For Industry- Mark Fenner; THRIVE- Brenda McCall.

Other awards included the Dr. Gerald Burday Professional Excellence Award which recognizes a professional or team of professionals who demonstrates a commitment to excellence so that each individual they touch reaches his or her true potential. The winner of this year’s award is Family Resource Network of Oneonta, NY for providing outstanding support and programs to the Parent Support Group facilitated by the Arc of Delaware County.

The Father Eugene Willis Good Neighbor Award celebrates people who embody the spirit of being kind and neighborly.  The recipient of this year’s award was Nat Thomas of Margaretville, NY.  Nat has become a teacher, mentor, fellow artist, and friend; Nat recognized and nurtured the artistic talents of James Mould. He helped James establish his first gallery showing at Longyear Gallery in Margaretville, NY which further led to an additional gallery showing in Mainview Gallery, Oneonta.

The Partner of the Year Award was presented to the community partner that has done the most to enhance opportunities for individuals with disabilities in Delaware County. This year’s winner was Walton Nursery School. Through the support of the Board of Directors, Walton Nursery School has always been supportive of a program that integrates children with and without disabilities. This collaboration gives all children, regardless of ability level, the opportunity to learn and play together.  Speaking of interactions with children from the Walton Nursery School, Joan Stone, Classroom Aide shared, “Instead of fear or animosity toward their peers with special needs, they develop compassion, understanding, and love.”

To learn how you can become a part of The Arc of Delaware County as a volunteer or employee, visit our website at: www.delarc.org.    To view photos of the “2012 Membership Meeting and Awards Dinner”, click on the Flickr button located on the homepage of the website.