Government Shutdown: Effects for People with Disabilities

Today marks the first time in the past 17 years that we have had a shutdown of the federal government.  I'm sure some of you are wondering what effects this will have for people with disabilities.  Many of the government programs and services that benefit people with disabilities will be affected in one form or another.

Click here to read a post that went up today on the news service Disability Scoop that highlights the specific programs that benefit people with disabilities that will be affected by the shutdown.

Fundraising for Flood Recovery

I know a lot of you have been seeing the images and video from the devastating flooding here in Colorado.  I also imagine that a lot of you have been wondering how you can help!

Well, here's your opportunity!  The flooding had a major impact on Imagine!, and we are seeking donations to help us recover!  Many of the homes we operate were significantly damaged during the flooding.  Please watch this video to learn more:

Please click on the link below to donate now to help our organization recover from this disaster.  PLEASE SHARE this information with your friends and family, and send it to anyone who is looking to make a donation to help us recover from this flood.  THANKS!!

www.coloradogives.org/ImagineFloodHelp

Aftermath of the Flooding

Last week Colorado suffered one of the most devastating floods in state history.  Some people lost their lives.  Some lost all of their possessions.  Hundreds of people were displaced from their homes.  Many are still evacuated and have yet to determine how severe the damage was.  Thousands of people experienced damage to their homes, requiring costly and challenging repair.

Many people in the Imagine! network of employees, providers, and clients were affected by this disaster.  Nine of our residential sites had significant flooding, causing significant property damage for some of the live-in staff that support these sites.

During these extraordinary times, our employees and providers provided extraordinary support for our clients-- working exceptionally long hours while replacement staff were unable to reach the site or dealing with crises of their own.  Last week was Direct Support Professional (DSP) Recognition Week, and our amazing staff and providers showed us through their courageous actions why they deserve the highest recognition we can offer!

In the coming days and weeks, we will be using this forum to share some of these stories to honor the unfathomable hard work, heroism, and dedication that these staff and providers offered to shepherd us through this difficult experience.

From all of us at Innovations, thank you to our staff and providers for everything you did and will do to help get us through this disaster!

Happy Direct Support Professionals Recognition Week!

It is with great excitement that we announce that this week is National Direct Support Professionals Recognition Week!

The thing that gives me the most pleasure about my job here at Innovations is that, at the end of the day, we have truly helped people by supporting their day-to-day needs, and assisting them in achieving their personal goals.  However, none of that could be possible without the exceptional and exemplary work of our Direct Support Professionals (DSPs), who work around the clock, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  The challenging work of DSPs often happens behind the scenes, without much fanfare.  So, it that much more important that we really take this moment to say loud and proud that we appreciate the work they do!

As an organization, we make a strong effort to praise and reward our DSPs, even though it is difficult for any reward to fully match the passion and commitment that our DSPs bring to their work every day.  Still, to show our appreciation for our DSPs we will be providing treats and giveaways this week for both our employees and contractors.

Please join us, along with our State and Nation to declare that DSPs shall be recognized for their vital contribution to our Community!

• Click here to read Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper's Proclamation declaring this week as Direct Support Professionals Recognition Week.
• Click here to read the U.S. Senate Resolution designating this week as Direct Support Professionals Recognition Week.

So, if you see a DSP this week, please thank them for the important work that they do!

Groundbreaking!

It may not look like much, but the Utility Box in the photo above signifies that we have broken ground on our latest development, a new 6-bed Group Home in Broomfield!  This new Group Home, called the Santa Fe Group Home, is being built with the help of a grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).  Our vision for this home is that it will support aging individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.  The percentage of aging individuals in our community is expected to grow in the near future as we approach the so-called Silver Tsunami, and we know that aging people with disabilities will need additional settings to support their specific needs.  We are also excited to increase our footprint in Broomfield, where we are seeing a significant amount of growth in our services.  We will continue to highlight the progress of Santa Fe as construction progresses throughout the fall and winter.

Food Drive

I wanted to put up a quick Friday post to let you all know that Innovations will be doing a Food Drive to benefit Community Food Share, a local food bank that helps provide food for low income individuals here in Boulder and Broomfield counties.  The Drive will be running from April 15th through April 30th, and we will have drop-off boxes in both our Dixon building (1400 Dixon Street, Lafayette, CO 80026) and our Coal Creek building (1665 Coal Creek Drive, Lafayette, CO 80026).  

With your help we can beat our last Food Drive total of 170 pounds of food!

Can I Get Some Satisfaction?

Every two years, Imagine! coordinates a Customer Satisfaction Survey for all of the Program Approved Service Agencies (PASAs) in Boulder and Broomfield counties.  The purpose of these surveys is to assess how satisfied our customers are with the services we provide.  Our primary customers are the individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities we serve.  We ensure that every consumer in our services has the opportunity to complete a survey.  If they are able to complete the survey independently, we encourage them to do that.  If they need assistance, we will provide the minimum amount necessary for them to complete the survey.  For our customer satisfaction surveys we also reach out to the people who support the individuals in our services.  This group includes family members, guardians, staff, providers, and other people who support the people we work with.  We highly value all of the feedback we receive from this survey.  It gives us an opportunity to evaluate the effectiveness of our supports and services, to find areas of success, and to locate areas for improvement and innovation.

The survey period runs from April 1st through June 1st, so if you have received a Customer Satisfaction Survey, please make sure to return it within that time frame to ensure that it is counted.  We will announce the results of the survey sometime in June, so look forward to that.