Good News Friday!

In honor of this season of giving, last week I highlighted the many ways Imagine! employees go way beyond their daily duties to support Imagine! and the people we serve.

Today, I’d like to highlight a few ways in which some wonderful local businesses raised money for Imagine! this past summer and fall.

On July 23, Grossen Bart Brewery hosted “The Mane Event” – The Grossen Bart Brewery Annual Beard and Mustache Contest. While that sounds cool to begin with, this part was even cooler - a portion of proceeds from the event ($200) were donated to Imagine! to support Imagine!’s Innovations Advocacy Council’s Fall Formal.

Learn more here.

On August 8, Next Door Boulder donated 50% of sales to Imagine! from participating tables, which netted a total of $375.

Learn more here. 

On September 12, Samples World Bistro donated 30% of their dinner sales to support Imagine!’s mission of creating a world of opportunity for all abilities. The event was a huge success, bringing in $400!

Learn more here.

During the week of September 23-30, the good folks at BCinteriors pledged to dedicate a portion of the proceeds from their Inventory Clearance Sale to Imagine!. Sale purchases resulted in a donation of $2,500 to Imagine!.

Learn more here.

On October 15, First Summit Realty hosted a Halloween “Monster Bash,” and encouraged attendees to donate to Imagine!. The encouragement must have worked, as we received $1,500!

Learn more here. 

On October 22, ALEX AND ANI donated 15% of sales during their “Charmed By Charity Soiree” to Imagine!, which resulted in a $200 donation.

Learn more here. 

And on December 10, our good friends at MOOV completed their 2nd annual Kettlebells for Christmas fundraiser for Imagine!. After two hours and over 6,000 kettlebell swings, they were able to collect $3,619 in pledges to support Imagine!’s mission of creating a world of opportunity for all abilities!

Learn more here. 

We are so fortunate to work in a community that supports our mission and the people we serve in so many fun and creative ways.

And here’s a cool bonus demonstration of our wonderful community’s support. The picture below is of local neighborhood carolers singing Holiday tunes last week for the residents of Imagine!’s Santa Fe Group Home in Broomfield.

Technology Tuesday

Imagine!’s CORE/Labor Source department hosts a weekly “Friday Communication Class.” Recently the class held a unit on money management. Here, Wendy, Autumn, and Peter are using iPads in combination with plastic money to sort, add, and distinguish currency!

Good News Friday!

It is the season of giving, and today I would like to highlight a group that always gives: Imagine! employees. Even though they already work hard in difficult jobs that don’t always pay well, Imagine! employees never fail to step up and help out in other ways.

Below are just a few recent examples.

This year’s Imagine! Holiday Gift Giving Program was a huge success! 365 children and 110 adults received gifts thanks to many generous supporters. Imagine! employees led the way in donating, volunteering, and helping to organize the event. Check out the video below to learn more.
  Can’t see the video? Click here.

Here’s another fun example of the generosity of Imagine! employees: thanks to a growing number of employees (77 now!) participating in this year’s employee giving campaign through regular payroll deduction, Imagine!’s Behavioral Health Services (IBHS)  has been able to provide meaningful social skills trainings to kids, adolescents, and young adults. Imagine! employees contributed close to $8,000.00 to help support social skills training for this fiscal year! You can view the video below to learn more about this exciting program.

Can’t see the video? Click here. 

Over the summer, IBHS hosted two social skills sessions that met once per week for two hours over a four-week period. Each session was broken down into three age groups; kids ages 3-7, adolescents ages 7-14, and young adults ages 14-18. Over the course of these sessions, IBHS hosted 21 individuals. All participants had the opportunity to partake in play schemes that facilitated attending and orienting themselves toward a play partner, eye contact, waiting and sharing skills, and opportunities for natural interactions with other group participants and typical peers.

Thanks to the continuing generous support of Imagine! employees, IBHS will be continuing their social skills program on February 6, 2017. Contact Ania Young, PhD, BCBA, IBHS Clinical Team Leader, if you are interested in participating: ayoung@imaginecolorado.org

And finally, over the past few days, several groups of Imagine! employees have donated their time to wrap gifts for donations at Liquor Mart. Thanks to those employees who volunteered and to Liquor Mart for their support of our mission. Check out a couple of pictures of employee (and other) volunteers below.

Imagine! HR Director Karen Kalis, Imagine! Director of Innovations Laurel Rochester, and Imagine! Foundation Director Patti Micklin

Judy James Anderson, Director of Imagine! Behavioral Health Services, volunteered with her son and mother

Technology Tuesday

Last month, Imagine!’s Greg Wellems attended the invite-only White House Disability & Inclusive Technology Summit. Greg was one of the only service provider representatives to be included in the event. Also attending was Cathy Bodine, Executive Director of Assistive Technology Partners and a member of Imagine! Board of Directors. This is another exciting example of Imagine! being at the epicenter of the exploration of how technology can improve the lives of individuals with a variety of disabilities.

Good News Friday!

The Holiday spirit is alive and well at Imagine!. This past week we’ve had office decoration contests and dessert making contests, and every part of Imagine! seems to be fully embracing the season. Pictures below include celebrations from our Case Management team, our Innovations team, our Santa Fe Group home, our Charles Family SmartHome, and our CORE/Labor Source team. And yes, there are a lot of pictures, but there’s a lot of Holiday spirit to share. I hope you enjoy the pictures and I hope you have a wonderful holiday season!

A Perfect Storm

Today, I’d like to share a very meaningful document produced by Alliance, a nonprofit, Colorado-wide association of Community Centered Boards (CCBs) and Program Approved Service Agencies (PASAs) that is dedicated to strengthening services and supports for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD).

The document, entitled “A Perfect Storm for I/DD Service Providers,” looks at how insufficient rates, challenging economic realities, and new regulations are putting unprecedented pressures on Colorado’s already strained system of services for people with I/DD.

It is an eye-opening and vital read for anyone concerned with the future of services in our state, and I strongly encourage my blog readers to examine it thoroughly.

You can read the document here.

Technology Tuesday

Here’s a great example of how technology can increase an individual’s independence, even if the person has significant disabilities. In the two videos below, Gerald, who lives in Imagine!’s Santa Fe Group Home, can be seen controlling a can opener and a coffee grinder using nothing more than simple hand switch and a PowerLink module.

Can’t see the video? Click here.

  Can’t see the video? Click here.