Good News Friday!

Representatives of Imagine! are often out in the community, participating in important events, sharing our story, and especially sharing the many successes of the individuals who accept services from us.

Last weekend we had the privilege to participate in two separate events in Boulder.

We had the honor to participate in Sunday’s 25th Anniversary Celebration of the passing of the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) in Boulder. Our good friends at The Center for People With Disabilities and Boulder Parks and Recreation’s EXPAND program co-hosted the event. There was music, speeches, and a great vibe as participants celebrated our successes so far, and talked about what still needs to happen to achieve a fully inclusive society. Check out some of the pictures below.

Also on Sunday, representatives from Imagine! were given the opportunity to interact with shoppers and share information about Imagine! and our CORE/Labor Source program at the Safeway located on 2798 Arapahoe in Boulder.

Safeway also sold hot dogs and other items to passersby, and Imagine! received a generous portion of the proceeds!

We are grateful to partner with Safeway in many ways. They employ many of the people who accept services from us and have even provided grants for iPads for Imagine! in the past. This event was just one more way that they have helped us, offering us the chance to reach more people in the community and let them know about Imagine!, our mission, and the incredible contributions the individuals we serve are bringing to their community every day.

Safeway even donated a prize for a drawing during the event, an inflatable kayak won by Eli Mackay. Eli told us, “You guys are giving your time to a great cause that deserves attention. I'm actually on my way to the creek now so if anyone asks about the raft I'll tell them the people at Imagine! (and Safeway) hooked me up!”

Thank you, Eli, and thank you, Safeway, for your continued support of your community!

Enjoy some more pictures from the Safeway event below.

Dayspring Community Connectors: Airborne Gymnastics

Imagine!’s Dayspring department’s Community Calendar Activities (CCAs) introduce families with young children who have developmental disabilities or delays to places in our community that offer great activities and opportunities for children to meet their goals through fun and play. All activities encourage motor, sensory, social-emotional, cognitive, and speech-language development.

Each location has activities that are age and developmentally appropriate. Activities are centered around play, because play is the primary vehicle for a child’s mental and physical growth. Play has a vital role in cognitive, speech-language, physical, emotional and social development.

Much of young children’s learning takes place when they direct their own play. Learning occurs as children touch, manipulate, experiment and talk about things, while interacting with people who facilitate without directing. During play, children are provided with sensory experiences and opportunities to move. Young children need to climb, run, jump and challenge themselves motorically. Children are natural explorers and instinctively touch, taste, hear, and observe the world around them.

In order to create these meaningful community activities, Imagine! needs the support of many local organizations. So today I’d like to highlight one community partner that does so much to connect young children with developmental delays and disabilities and their families with the community: Airborne Gymnastics.

Airborne has been a part of Dayspring’s CCAs since almost the beginning, hosting a monthly open gym for Dayspring families and offering a reduced gym booking fee. We greatly appreciate Airborne’s support of Imagine!, of Dayspring, and of their community!

Bulletin Board Blues

Yesterday, upon entering the Imagine! administrative building, I noticed landscapers working to provide a more welcoming environment for our visitors.

This gave me reason to think back several years on my participation in a Disney Institute training called “Building a Culture of Healthcare Excellence.” Among the quality standards, my notes included thoughts about our settings. As I entered the reception area to our building I found myself on alert; looking over every detail of our environment. And then I spotted a contradiction – the place and moment of first contact.

I know what you are thinking … "Mark! For crying out loud, you have got to be kidding me! Bulletin boards? How could they send a contradictory message?"

Well, they send a contradictory message for several reasons.

First of all, they are located right behind a computer. A machine that provides easy access to almost all of the world’s information ever! What could possibly be pinned to a bulletin board that is going to have that same capability? Yes, the bulletin board may hold Imagine!-specific information, but the computer can easily be set up to have that same information available to anyone accessing the computer (it is there for our visitors to use) with a click of a mouse or a tap of a keyboard.

Secondly, bulletin boards have a tendency to fill up quickly, with one flyer hung up over another regulatory notice hung up over a “For Rent” notice with tear off tabs. They get cluttered and then become worthless. It reminds me of going to government offices – invariably the waiting area in any government office will contain a bulletin board so chock full of items that I can’t imagine that the information is current or would be of any use to anyone. We strive to keep our waiting area (and all work spaces at Imagine!) inviting and clutter free, and bulletin boards tend to be the opposite of that.

Finally, at Imagine!, we are very interested in a “technology first” approach. We see technology as a way to enhance and improve almost everything we do, from operations to service delivery. And we don’t take that approach because we are always attracted to the shiny new thing, we do it because it is absolutely vital. An ever increasing need for services like ours, coupled with a small and shrinking workforce available to provide those services, means using technology in everything we do isn’t a luxury, it is a necessity.

So now you may be thinking, “OK, the bulletin board is contradictory, but so what? Why does that matter?”

That’s where my Disney Institute Training comes in. A key takeaway I received from attending the training was that it takes just one contradiction, one out of place stimulus, to negate the experience for end users. Now, Disney sells an experience, and they don’t want that experience ruined by incongruity – they don’t want guest to see Cinderella smoking a cigarette.

We do much more than offer an experience at Imagine!. We provide services for family members and loved ones – brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, cousins. Those family members and friends want the absolute best available for their loved ones.

 What kind of message does it send, then, if we can’t take care of our own building? If it is messy and cluttered? If our vehicles are dirty and poorly maintained? If the landscaping and lawns at our homes or offices are overgrown and full of weeds?

I’ll tell you what message it sends: that we aren’t even capable of taking care of the easy stuff, the small details. And if we can’t take care of those details, then why on earth would we be capable of caring for a family’s loved one? We must always strive to send the right message. We must attend to details small and large. We must make sure we operate in a manner which aligns the process of services with the interests of the individuals accepting services (and their families). Every detail is important in our work, and we can never lose sight of that. The minute we do, our organization, and all the people we serve, are at risk.

And that is why the bulletin boards will be taken down from our reception area promptly.

Then again, what do I know?

Technology Tuesday

This week’s Technology Tuesday is another exciting edition of “Chris’s Corner,” featuring a communicative update from Chris Baumgart, Imagine!’s Assistive Technology Specialist. 

Chris’s Corner 

Welcome back, Fellow Corner-ians!

In this installment of The Corner takes us over to the communication lab at Imagine!’s Boulder CORE/Labor Source site, where participants are using iPads as communication devices.

As you may or may not know, there are many options available for individuals requiring assistance to communicate, and different devices have different advantages. Many of these devices, however, carry an extremely hefty price tag, and the process to acquire one typically requires a lengthy approval process through a major insurer. For the participants in this communication lab, some of whom are in various stages of this process, an interim solution has been devised. Participants are using iPads in the classroom setting to relay anything from the days of the week, or the weather, or how they are feeling at the moment, to participating in group gameplay. Here are a couple of photos of this in action!

Now, as all of you sophisticated tablet and touch-screen users know all too well, not all buttons, icons, and text fields are created equal. The simple act of touching a touch screen does not equate to communicating, so this communication lab is also working on the art of discrimination. In other words, the art of pressing the correct button to ensure that something happens. The importance of this cannot be overstated. When someone is communicating how he or she may be feeling at a given time, or communicating a choice that he or she may have, it’s important that the participant is actively selecting the icon or button that realistically communicates that choice, rather than pressing any old button on the screen to do the trick. To that end, a few of the activities for this communication lab are dedicated to just that purpose. Each screen presented to a client during this activity has a number of buttons. One button serves an active purpose, be it a video of an animal making its signature sound in the case of the Animal Safari, or playing a section of a music video that participants enjoy watching. Any number of additional buttons may be present for an individual, each of which is a ‘null’ button that does not have an action associated with it.

Note above the two buttons, one with an icon, the other without. Only one serves a function. And below you can see a participant using Animal Safari.

In this way, participants learn to discern the buttons or icons that more correctly represent the thought, feeling, or choice that he or she would like to communicate, thus adding another tool to his or her communication tool box.

Stay tuned for more, corner-ians!

Good News Friday!

Today, I’d like to say “thank you” to everyone that came out to celebrate at Imagine!’s CORE/Labor Source department’s Art Show and Performance last Friday night. More than 200 people were in attendance, and more than 40 art pieces have already been sold!

Feeling bad that you missed your chance to purchase some of the art? It’s not too late - there’s still some available! The art show and sale continues at the Dairy Center for Arts, 2590 Walnut Street in Boulder, until August 31. Take a look at the photos below to see some examples of the fantastic art (and the artists and crowd enjoying the show last Friday), and consider making a trek to the Dairy Center to support these talented artists.

Dayspring Community Connectors: Mountain Kids

Imagine!’s Dayspring department’s Community Calendar Activities (CCAs) introduce families with young children who have developmental disabilities or delays to places in our community that offer great activities and opportunities for children to meet their goals through fun and play. All activities encourage motor, sensory, social-emotional, cognitive, and speech-language development.

Each location has activities that are age and developmentally appropriate. Activities are centered around play, because play is the primary vehicle for a child’s mental and physical growth. Play has a vital role in cognitive, speech-language, physical, emotional and social development.

Much of young children’s learning takes place when they direct their own play. Learning occurs as children touch, manipulate, experiment and talk about things, while interacting with people who facilitate without directing. During play, children are provided with sensory experiences and opportunities to move. Young children need to climb, run, jump and challenge themselves motorically. Children are natural explorers and instinctively touch, taste, hear, and observe the world around them.

In order to create these meaningful community activities, Imagine! needs the support of many local organizations. So today I’d like to highlight one community partner that does so much to connect young children with developmental delays and disabilities and their families with the community: Mountain Kids.

For over 35 years, Mountain Kids has been providing children quality instruction. They have programs to fit any skill level from beginning dance classes to advanced competitive gymnastics teams and performance dance companies.

They have also been a longtime supporter of Dayspring’s CCAs. Not only do they host a monthly open gym for children served by Dayspring, they also allow Dayspring to use their space for the very popular weekly “Stomping With Sara” activity.

Thank you, Mountain Kids, for supporting Imagine!, Dayspring, and, most of all, your community!

More Bang For The Buck

United Cerebral Palsy’s annual report, “The Case for Inclusion,” ranks all 50 states and the District of Columbia (DC) on outcomes for Americans with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD).

So how is Colorado doing, according to the UCP report? Very well, thank you very much. Here are some rankings that may be of interest. Colorado:

• Ranked 9th in promoting independence 
• Ranked 14th in tracking health and safety 
• Ranked 9th in promoting productivity (employment) 
• Ranked 24th in reaching those in need 

Four very important categories, two of which Colorado ranked in the top 10, one in the top 15, and one in the top half.

I’m not sharing this to celebrate or offer an “attaboy,” however.

It must be pointed out that Colorado achieved these positive rankings despite the fact that, according to the Coleman Institute for Cognitive Disabilities’ “State of the States in Developmental Disabilities,” Colorado:

• Ranked 33rd for tax burden 
• Ranked 48th in fiscal effort 

When you compare the amount of money spent on services for individuals with I/DD in Colorado to the outcomes of those services, one thing is abundantly clear: Colorado is getting a heck of a bang for its buck. And the Coleman stats are from the year 2013. From 2013 – 2016, service rates dropped 15% below the Consumer Price Index, meaning that the bargain is even greater than the stats above indicate. By almost any metric, the successes in Colorado’s system of serving people with I/DD compared to the funding for those services are astounding.

And yet.

And yet we continue to struggle to completely understand the optimum service delivery design for the I/DD system in Colorado. Too many people either don’t know how successful this state is in outcomes versus effort, or they are just ignoring the facts. I have yet to see an example of a state with a better record when it comes to providing consistently positive results for such consistently little economic effort. Yet having said this, these results are not because of design effort, but rather of mission driven organizations squeezing every ounce of value out of very limited resources.

I have to wonder, with what we are currently able to do, and what we have done in the past, can we continue to improve the lives of those we serve in the face of a significant lack of funding when compared to other areas of the country? I also wonder, when the next report comes out of United Cerebral Palsy, will we looking at completely different rankings?

Then again, what do I know?

Technology Tuesday

This week’s Technology Tuesday brings another episode of Leah’s Apartment.

Leah, a young woman with intellectual disabilities, is sharing the story of her work towards a more independent life, facilitated by Imagine! using low and high-tech solutions, through a series of webisodes titled “Leah’s Apartment.” Here’s Episode Three – Leah using the induction stove to cook a meal independently.
  Can’t see the video? Click here.

Good News Friday!

Recently, two members of the Imagine! Foundation Board of Directors took a little time to explain why they are willing to donate some of their valuable time and resources to help Imagine! meet its mission. Take a look at the short videos below to learn more.

 Bob Charles, Imagine! Foundation Founder and Emeritus Board Member 
  Can’t see the video? Click here.

Priscilla S. Lacy, Imagine! Foundation Board Member 
  Can’t see the video? Click here.

Dayspring Community Connectors: WOW Children’s Museum

Imagine!’s Dayspring department’s Community Calendar Activities (CCAs) introduce families with young children who have developmental disabilities or delays to places in our community that offer great activities and opportunities for children to meet their goals through fun and play. All activities encourage motor, sensory, social-emotional, cognitive, and speech-language development.

Each location has activities that are age and developmentally appropriate. Activities are centered around play, because play is the primary vehicle for a child’s mental and physical growth. Play has a vital role in cognitive, speech-language, physical, emotional and social development.

Much of young children’s learning takes place when they direct their own play. Learning occurs as children touch, manipulate, experiment and talk about things, while interacting with people who facilitate without directing. During play, children are provided with sensory experiences and opportunities to move. Young children need to climb, run, jump and challenge themselves motorically. Children are natural explorers and instinctively touch, taste, hear, and observe the world around them.

In order to create these meaningful community activities, Imagine! needs the support of many local organizations. So today I’d like to highlight one community partner that does so much to connect young children with developmental delays and disabilities and their families with the community: WOW Children’s Museum.

WOW has been a part of Dayspring’s CCAs since almost the beginning, opening up its doors monthly for open play sessions for kids and families served by Dayspring. They also provide an amazing scholarship program, which allows qualified Dayspring families to purchase an annual pass for only $10 (a $75-$105 value)!

Thank you, WOW Museum, for supporting Imagine!, Dayspring, and, most of all, your community!

Sneezing Trees

I just finished registering for the 2015 ANCOR & AAIDD Technology Summit & Showcase. Attending conferences such as this one is part of my job, and for the most part, I enjoy them. But here’s a secret as to why I enjoy them – it isn’t so much about the presentations or panel discussions or breakout sessions, it is about the opportunity to keep in touch with colleagues from all over the state and the country.

When I connect with these colleagues, I almost always learn something new. We talk about what is happening at our respective organizations, what is happening with our families and friends, and what is happening in the world. I am frequently surprised by the knowledge I take back from these conferences, and it isn’t always (or even usually) about the work we do. It may be something as simple as someone showing me a new app they are using on their phone to track how many steps they are taking every day. Whatever the subject, conferences tend to provide great learning environments set in a natural, real world setting.

I believe Imagine! operates best as a learning environment. The employees who succeed here tend to be the ones who are always asking questions, not just about their daily tasks but about the larger world around them. They make connections between concepts that may not be immediately apparent but that can lead to new solutions to common challenges. They are willing to admit when they don’t know something and to ask for clarification when they don’t understand. And guess what? I do the same.

I firmly believe that the culture of learning at Imagine! is the cornerstone of our success. We seek out information from many sources in all of our daily interactions. We avoid acting in isolation, because we understand that isolation leads to stagnation. Inside Imagine! and out, individuals or organizations that don’t look to continually learn frequently find themselves behind. I’m not just talking about new ideas, tools, or approaches specific to our field. The person who says that they aren’t good at Facebook, or get confused trying to join in a conference call, or don’t know how to access their email through their smart phones are putting themselves at risk of falling so far back that they won’t be able to catch up.

I want to be clear that I understand there is a difference between needing to know and wanting to know. For instance, for Calvin, and for most of us, knowing what causes wind isn’t essential knowledge to our daily lives.

We all make decisions about how much time we will spend learning something based on how important it is to our daily lives. A lot of ignorance is willful, which isn’t always a negative, and sometimes it is just easier to think that the trees are sneezing then learning about the complex factors that create weather. However, taking the occasional risk to learn about something for which the value to your personal life may not be immediately apparent can open the door to so many possibilities. And in the field in which we work, where the challenges are many and the solutions aren’t always obvious, that approach can make all the difference in the world. A learning environment can mean the difference between a life fulfilled and a life wasted.

Then again, what do I know?

Technology Tuesday

Check out this article from our friends at DirectCourse/College of Direct Support (who create online curricula designed to help those who support the needs of others build more rewarding careers) about Imagine!’s Technology Architect Alex Andrews being honored as ANCOR’s National Direct Support Professional of the Year.

Good News Friday

On Memorial Day, I joined in with tens of thousands of amateur and professional joggers, rollers, runners, and walkers of all abilities for the Annual Bolder Boulder 10k race – one of the largest running races in the world. Of course, I wasn’t the only person associated with Imagine! to take part in the event. This year, as in years past, many individuals who receive services from Imagine! came out to participate as well. Some needed assistance from caregivers and friends to walk or jog, while others pushed themselves for a new personal record.

Here are a couple of fun stories from Imagine!-associated 2015 Bolder Boulder participants.

First, here is the race day experience of Cari, who accepts services from Imagine!, submitted by her team.

Cari and her team walked to the starting line, and “bam” the starter’s pistol fired and the race began. We walked the first mile with the many other racers. There was lots of fun music and cheering along the course! Then we broke away from the race course to cut through town a bit. Eventually, we made our way back to the course for the final 2 miles of racing. We were way ahead of schedule, so we met up with Cari's parents and enjoyed a short break and snack. 

Our plan was to keep racing after our snack, but our feet were beginning to hurt. Fortunately, our friend Mike met us with a wheelchair, and Cari was able to finish the race. 

Cari was very proud when we got into the stadium and we really enjoyed all of the people cheering us on. When the race was finished, Cari and her team had walked a total of 3.5 miles, which is further than the usual 5K race! We picked up some post race snacks and watched the Memorial Day professional race and closing ceremonies. Cari seemed to enjoy the music and the traditional stadium fly-over of military jets most of all. 

And here is a story submitted about Kam and Ryan (who receive services from Imagine!), and their race day experience, and training for the Bolder Boulder with Beyond Limits.

On the path where we did a lot of our training lived a family of owls, so every week walkers and runners alike would run or walk past the tree to hear the chirps and to check in on the baby owls. Ryan really enjoyed seeing the owls, and he would talk about how cool they were on many of our training runs. 

On race day, our team was amazed to hear the cheers of the many strangers encouraging each athlete along the race course. As we came in to the stadium filled with people, Ryan said, "They are all cheering for me." 

Ryan was really proud that he beat his time from last year by more than five minutes and Kam was equally impressed that he beat his time from last year by almost eight minutes. Everyone from the team, including many of the runner’s coaches, parents, guardians, and Host Home providers, gathered in the stadium to enjoy the post-race festivities. The group pride was intense from all who had trained and raced as a member of the Beyond Limits team.

Memory Bank Withdrawals

I recently watched the latest Pixar movie “Inside Out.” A good portion of the movie takes place inside of an 11-year old girl named Riley’s head, where five different emotions act together (and apart) as she navigates a variety of new worlds – a new home, a new school, and a new outlook on life as she moves away from childhood an into her teen years.

Since the movie came out, there has been a lot of discussion about the “science” of the movie. Although it is an animated feature, targeted mainly towards kids, the consensus seems to be that much of the movie offers very realistic parallels to how the human mind actually works.

One interesting element that struck me is how the movie provided a visualization of memory. In the movie, memories were stored in orbs in what appeared to be giant warehouses with wall after wall of these orbs. One would assume that as a person aged, they would have larger and larger warehouses stored with many more orbs, most of which would never be accessed.

And . . . of course that started me thinking about Imagine! and the field of serving individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. This is a field that is staffed from top to bottom with individuals who have vast memory banks worth of information about best practices when it comes to allowing the individuals who accept services from us to fully engage in their communities.

However, I fear that in our field, we don’t take full advantage of those memories. We all face the same challenges, and we all have an equal amount of time in which to address those challenges. But we aren’t all equal when it comes to memories and knowledge about how to address the challenges. If we ignore the treasure trove of knowledge we have access to (and I’m afraid we ignore it all too often), then we are failing at our jobs. Our field should be advancing as fast as technology advances. Instead, we seem to move forward at a snail’s pace (at best).

When I was younger, and had a lot more hair, one of my favorite songs was “San Francisco (Be Sure to Wear Some Flowers in Your Hair),” by Scott McKenzie.
  Can’t see the video? Click here. 

The song included the line “There's a whole generation with a new explanation.” At the time, that line really resonated with me. I believe it was true then. Now, I’m not so sure one could say the same thing. New explanations are necessary, but the circumstances are different; information is readily available. Today we can understand the old explanations as well when we make informed choices about our next steps. When there is not a lot of learning, there’s not a lot of growth. If we want to put people in motion (also a line from the song), we need to be focused on learning about what we know really works. We need to start making some withdrawals from our collective memory banks and use that knowledge to make deeply informed choices.

Then again, what do I know?

Technology Tuesday

This week’s Tech Tuesday brings another edition of “AppAbility” – where Imagine!’s Technology Architect Alex Andrews provides short instructional videos and reviews of apps that may be beneficial for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities or related conditions. Today's episode: a demonstration of Time Timer.

Can’t see the video? Click here. 

Good News Friday (Thursday Edition)

To get a head start on the 4th of July weekend, I thought I’d share a special Thursday edition of “Good News Friday” to let you know about a couple of upcoming Imagine! events.

Imagine! Job Fair 

Monday, July 13, 9:00-11:00 AM 

Imagine!’s John M. Taylor Conference Center, 1665 Coal Creek Drive, Lafayette, CO  

Are you looking for a career with meaning? Imagine! is a progressive, statewide leader in services for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Our services are community-based and mission driven. We value creativity, innovation and teamwork. Our employees enjoy flexible work schedules, comfortable work environments, great benefits, as well as challenging and valuable work with friendly, supportive co-workers. We offer comprehensive orientation, training, and opportunities for professional development. If this sounds like what you are looking for, then join us July 13 and learn how you can start down the path of a career that positively impacts our community and the lives of the people we serve.
  Can’t see the video? Click here.

Friday, July 17, 6:00 PM

CORE/Labor Source Art Show and Performance

Dairy Center for the Arts, 2590 Walnut Street, Boulder, CO 

Since 2008, Imagine!’s CORE/Labor Source (CLS) program has held an annual celebration at the Dairy Center for the Arts in Boulder, where artists with intellectual and developmental disabilities share their artistic expressions. This year’s theme for the live performances and exhibits is “originality,” and consists of original compositions of choreography, poetry, song, and original interpretations of well-loved works that many will recognize. You might even catch a few of the residents of Imagine!’s SmartHomes joining in on the fun! We are all very excited, and cannot wait to enjoy the artistic expressions that await us on July 17. The CLS art show begins at 6:00 PM, and the live performances begin at 7:00 PM. We hope that we will see you there!

Can’t see the video? Click here.

Values Added

Last week was an interesting week in our country. This isn’t going to be a political piece, and I’m not going to take a stand here on some of the controversial issues that have been at the forefront of the news recently. But I have noted that much of what has been discussed lately has to do with differing values, and how those values determine how we think the government should (or shouldn’t) respond to social issues.

Values are also of paramount importance when it comes to serving individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Specifically, it is the values of those who need services which should be driving those services. For example, if the end users of our services value choice, then any service design that doesn’t emphasize choice is already suspect. Or if serving every eligible person is a value, then waitlists are unacceptable. Or if an employment first approach is what matters to end users, then services that don’t explore all options for employment won’t meet the needs of those being served.

I could continue, but I think the point is clear. There are many elements of what our end users value in the services they receive. I’m not so naïve to think that all of those values will be perfectly satisfied all of the time, nor am I going to say that sometimes those values won’t contradict other values at times. We all face that challenging reality of life, and designing services that meet the values of the end users isn’t necessarily an easy task.

That being said, I do know this: it is unlikely end users value services designed to save Medicaid money or meet the needs of the rules and regulations. Although these may happen, they will happen outside of the values list. Once the values list is complete, set it in front of service designers and let them have at it back in the design room. The designers should have enough information without every stakeholder stirring the pot. The litmus test will continue to be established values.

Let’s rethink our approach of everyone at the design table.

Then again, what do I know?