Out & About With . . . Flatirons Community Church

Imagine!’s Out & About department was created in 1997 in response to the requests of community members with disabilities and family members who care for those with disabilities to have more options for community-based recreation services.

That “community-based” element is key - rather than scheduling activities in a segregated setting, you will find Out & About participants (both adults and children) utilizing recreation centers, bowling alleys, movie theaters, museums, and even amusement parks.

Of course, Out & About wouldn’t be able to provide those services without the support of the many, many community organizations that collaborate with Out & About to ensure that participants are able to receive positive instruction, within a therapeutic framework, to encourage growth, learning, community participation, socialization, health, safety, and the achievement of individual goals.

Today, I’d like to acknowledge Flatirons Community Church in Lafayette for its support of Out & About. Eagle-eyed readers of my blog may remember that I have given them a shout out before, but I want to thank them again, this time for opening up their church so Out & About could host their Summer Camp orientation there.

Elena Ciaravino, Out & About’s Children’s Services Coordinator, said, “They were very warm and welcoming! They accommodated us in many ways, allowing us to come early in the mornings, providing us all the information we need for our orientation week to go smoothly, and Out & About as well as Imagine!’s Human Resource Department benefited from their kindness. Our Summer Camp program started off on a wonderful foot thanks to Flatirons Community Church!”

Thank you, Flatirons Community Church, for your continued support of Imagine!, Out & About, and the people we serve.

Technology Tuesday

Welcome to a new feature for our Technology Tuesday posts – “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 we start with a review of Visual Impact, created by our good friends at AbleLink Technologies.

Can’t see the video? Click here.

Look for more AppAbility posts in the future!

Good News Friday!

Donna and Gerald, former Imagine! SmartHome residents who currently reside at Imagine!’s Santa Fe Group Home in Broomfield, recently made a presentation to an undergraduate class at Metropolitan State University of Denver. Each shared their perspectives and stories of how their lives have changed over the years, and how they each contribute and participate in community life. As you can see in the pictures below, Donna, Gerald, and the students enjoyed learning and sharing time together.

Technology Tuesday

Imagine! Behavioral Health Services (IBHS) provides evidence-based behavioral services in a variety of settings through education and collaboration.

IBHS team members have long used the latest in technology to help in delivering meaningful and impactful services. Today, they share some online apps that they have found useful in their work.

Little Writer - The Tracing App for Kids 

Little Writer is a tracing app. Some helpful aspects of the app include:

• You can turn individual items on or off and introduce one letter at a time based on the player skills 
• You can customize everything - record your own language or add your own words 
• You can add pictures and names of family and friends to write 
• The app also includes a collection of basic shapes to draw since handwriting require the same core skills 
• The app comes preloaded with dozens of three and four letter words to write 
• The app is easy to use for kids of all ages and abilities. 

The app includes

• ABC uppercase letters 
• abc lowercase letters 
• Numbers 1 to 10 
• 20 basic shapes including lines, circles, rectangles and more 
• Dozens of 3 and 4 letter words to make practice more enjoyable and interesting 
• Ability to add an unlimited number of your own words and pictures for maximum enjoyment and variety 
• Additional letters for foreign language characters. 
• Customization - turn additional characters on and record their sound 

Sounding Board 

SoundingBoard transforms your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad into the latest in communication technology. In just minutes, you can create custom boards using AbleNet symbols or your own words. This App is perfect for children in special education, persons on the autism spectrum, and adults with disabilities. SoundingBoard includes switch access and is compatible with the AbleNet Blue2 Switch.
 
Important note - SoundingBoard is compatible with the following Apple devices: 

• iPad Air 2 
• iPad Air 
• iPad 4th Generation 
• iPad 3rd Generation 
• iPad 2 
• iPad mini 3rd Generation 
• iPad mini 2nd Generation 
• iPad mini 
• iPhone 6 Plus 
• iPhone 6 
• iPhone 5s 
• iPhone 5c 
• iPhone 5 
• iPhone 4s 
• iPod touch 5th Generation

Good News Friday

May is National Foster Care Month, a month set aside to acknowledge foster parents, family members, volunteers, mentors, policymakers, child welfare professionals, and other members of the community who help children and youth in foster care find permanent homes and connections. So today I’d like to celebrate these caring individuals by talking a little bit about the amazing foster care providers who work with Imagine!’s Innovations for Children department.

What do Imagine!’s Innovations for Children foster care providers bring to the children they serve? Here’s the story of just one of those incredible providers, Pema Chosang, shared with us by her Foster Care Placement Worker, which answers that question:

Pema has been a foster parent for several years. Pema is an exemplary foster parent in every sense of the word. Pema makes a concerted effort to understand the needs of the children in her care in order to create a home environment that allows them to thrive. Last month, for example, she took both children in placement on a month-long trip to India with her family. When the foster family returned home from the trip, one of the foster children commented that he felt like he truly is a part of the family. Pema’s ability to integrate her foster children into her extended family is admirable. She feels strongly that her foster children are her sons, and treats them as such. 

Thank you, Pema, and thank you to all of Imagine!’s Innovations for Children foster care providers.

Pictured above: 

Back row from left to right: Pema Chosang, Tenzin Chosang, Pema Dolma, Tashi Carlek, Tenzing Sopa, Jigme Tanzin, Roberto Abarca, Andrea Legleiter, Mike Miller.

Front row from left to right: Kalden Dingtsa, Jampa Dolma, Teresa Woodworth, Phurbu Lhandon, Lhamo Tsesum.

Not pictured: Christopher Davis, Shawnna Davis, Jampa Dothar, Denise Belk, Julie Miller, Dechen Wangmo, Tenzin Rabgye, Tsering Bhuti, Passang Mayang, Ana Henriquez, Bruce LaMonica, Angela Suppes, Darren Suppes, Dawa Dolma.

Conflict Free Case Management – Who Do You Trust?

Who do you trust? That is what my two favorite cartoon characters are chatting about today, and how that trust matters in the discussion about conflict free case management.

Can’t see the video? Click here. 

Technology Tuesday

A group of University of Colorado students in Professor Melinda Piket-May's Spring 2015 Engineering class worked on adaptive equipment projects for individuals served by Imagine!. We have already shared some of those projects (here and here).

Today, we are going to share two more projects. In the videos below, you will hear the students explain the projects, talk about some of the challenges they faced in designing and building the projects, and discuss what they learned through the process. If you want to skip ahead, and the end of each video you will be able to see the students demonstrate the project.

Voice Activated Lamp

  Can’t see the video? Click here.

Safe House System

  Can’t see the video? Click here.