NEWS FALL 2020 VOL. 69 ISSUE 3
AHRC Executive Director Stanfort Perry Tapped to Serve as NYSID Board Chair Congratulations to AHRC Nassau Executive Director Stanfort Perry who was elected to serve as Board Chair of the New York State Industries for the Disabled, Inc. (NYSID). Headquartered in Albany, NYSID is a statewide nonprofit creating employment opportunities for New Yorkers with disabilities. Perry most recently served as Vice Chair of NYSID's Board of Directors. “COVID-19 has impacted all of our lives and contributed to the obstacles separating New Yorkers with disabilities from gainful employment. New Yorkers with disabilities are ready, willing and able to work, and in doing so, create outcomes that benefit us all, from retaining essential workers to lessening taxpayer dollars,” said Perry in a statement. “As Board Chair, I look forward to advancing NYSID's mission and creating a more inclusive and diverse workforce throughout New York State, now and in the years to come.” A transformational leader who seeks to empower employees, Perry began his career as a residential direct support professional at the United Cerebral Palsy Association of Western New York. Prior to AHRC Nassau, Perry served as executive director of Arc of Onondaga and Hopevale, Inc. Image Courtesy of NYSID
Staff Appreciation Day 2020 Celebrates Team’s Excellence
Overnight Visits Capped Due to Budget Cuts
In the midst of a pandemic, AHRC Nassau refused to cancel its annual Staff Appreciation Day event for its 2,000+ employees – many of whom are frontline workers who cared for over 100 disability group homes across Long Island. Instead, the nonprofit decided to create a new socially distanced event with the same team spirit – a drive-thru party! Cont. on page 9.
For Amanda Broderick, who lives in AHRC’s Syosset House, the weekends are what she looks forward to most. She stays with her sister, Karen, where she has her own room, movie nights with her nieces, and long family dinners. Amanda’s weekend visits will be fewer, in the coming months. Cont. on page 3.
!!!!! Your voice matters!
Table of Contents Leadership Perry Tapped for NYSID Board Chair Staff Appreciation Day 2020 Celebrates Team’s Excellence
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Letter to the Agency
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Advocacy/Events Overnight Visits Capped Due to Budget Cuts 1 Advocacy Issues 3 AHRC Virtual Walk Energizes Community 11
Community Highlights The Power of Direct Care; Agency Recognizes Work of DSP Team Joslin Award Nominee Joe Mandella Recognized for Dedication TD Charitable Foundation Grants $15,000 in Support of Telehealth Richard Infante Recognized at The Arc New York Art Competition DDPC Grants $15,000 for Remote Learning and Online Resource Center Costco Supports Jordan Seilback’s Success
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Donate to the Angel Campaign
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Staff Spotlight Direct Support Professionals Week Staff Appreciation Day
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Volunteer Spotlights Staff Appreciation Day Volunteers 10
Letter to the Agency (Excerpt)
This check represents the proceeds from the sale of Timothy B. Quist’s dad Eddie H. Quist’s Eagle Scout Merit Badge Sash and Eagle Scout Badge. Eddie earned this distinguished Boy Scout award in the 1930s in Norfolk, Virginia. The enclosed picture shows Eddie, on the right, with a friend, wearing the sash and badge. We thought in the spirit of the Eagle Scout high standards, the sale and donation of the proceeds would be appropriate and meet with Eddie’s approval. Thank you for everything you have done for Tim and our family. Sincerely, Ron and Barbara Quist Timothy Quist was supported by the AHRC Nassau Guardianship Committee since 1985 and became his primary guardian in July 2014 until his passing on July 8, 2020. His family was very appreciative of the support Tim received throughout his life from AHRC Nassau. AHRC Nassau acknowledges the financial support of NYSARC Trust Services and the AHRC Foundation for their grant awards to support guardianship services through AHRC Nassau.
www.ahrc.org !Mission AHRC Nassau empowers people to live fulfilling lives. Together with Family – Friends – Community
!Vision: A world where people of all abilities are valued.
!Value Statements At AHRC, we believe that… – All people must be treated with dignity and respect – Partnering with people, families and communities creates the best opportunities – A competent and compassionate workforce is vital – Commitment to diversity and cultural sensitivity is essential – Innovative approaches promote advancement and growth – Financial sustainability is critical for organizational success
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Eddie H. Quist Eagle Scout (right) with a friend. 2
Cont. from page 1.
Since October 1, the independence of adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), like Amanda, have been further limited due to New York State budget cuts arising from COVID-19. For AHRC Nassau board member and mother, Harriet Traversa, this is equally devastating, when she considers how these budget cuts will impact her son, Sal. “Imagine telling your son or family member they can’t come home. For my son, he’d wonder ‘What did I do? Why can’t I come home?’” Adults with IDD who reside in group homes have had overnight visits away from their residences capped at 96 days – during which time disability agencies will receive half their funding rates from New York State. When a person spends more than 96 days away, the agency will not receive funding from the state when their bed is empty – regardless of whether it’s a hospital visit, family emergency, or life milestone. “This is an institutional mindset, that effectively places a price tag on a person’s presence in their own home,” says Stanfort J. Perry, executive director of AHRC Nassau, the Nassau County Chapter of The Arc New York, an agency dedicated to supporting people with IDD. “A 20% funding cut from New York State to all non-Medicaid services are destabilizing for the people we support and for agencies like ours seeking to offer consistent staffing and service provision.” AHRC Nassau is joining an advocacy campaign with other Arc New York chapters to demonstrate how a vulnerable population like people with IDD should not be included in such unilateral cuts. • The residential stability of our friends and loved ones is in jeopardy. New York State funding cuts have impacted the reimbursement rates for residential providers operating under the New York State Office for People With Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD), putting a price tag on the time. https://p2a.co/bABMXzE Continue to Advocate for Change During times of challenge and change, it’s important to remain connected as a community. Standing together, our advocacy can powerfully impact local, state and federal legislation and policy. Join us at www.ahrc.org/advocate to address: • COVID-19 funding and ensure staffing and necessary health care and home life for people with IDD. • Residential funding and explain to lawmakers why vacancyrate cuts for certified residential programs disrupt the quality of care and home life for people with IDD.
! ! ! ! Become an AHRC Angel An unrestricted gift to AHRC Foundation provides flexibility to direct funds to where they are needed most. Your support provides vital financial resources for programs and services across our family of organizations, as well as to communitybased providers who share the Foundation’s mission and vision for the future. In 2019, AHRC Foundation awarded over $250,000 in grants impacting over 5,000 children and adults across Long Island and their families. It also provided funding for affordable Trust Services, protecting entitlements while promoting quality of life. Send your donation to
www.ahrcfoundation.org/angel/
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By donating to the AHRC Foundation, you create more options and innovative supports for children and adults with developmental disabilities.
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! ! ! ! ! ! ! Community Highlights The Power of Direct Care; Agency Recognizes Work of DSP Team With warmth and gratitude, the agency celebrated National Direct Support Professionals (DSPs) Week highlighting DSPs’ essential contributions to people with developmental disabilities and our community on the week of September 13. Throughout this pandemic, DSPs have made a meaningful impact on the lives of people with developmental disabilities and their families. Because of them, the agency is able to achieve our mission: empowering people to live fulfilling lives, together with family – friends – community. To celebrate DSPs’ achievements, directors planned on-site celebrations, gift baskets and delicious meals were sent, community members shared their thanks on social media, and team members wrote essays recognizing their colleagues.
Celebrations
Staff across AHRC residences and day sites took time to celebrate.
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Words of Thanks
Friends and colleagues across the agency shared their thanks. Thank You From Behavior Intervention Specialist Soosan Happel. “These staff members worked in our residences, but they also worked to support our guys that were home with their families. They dropped off activity packets and individualized activities. They did senior food shopping for our seniors who were afraid to go to the supermarket even though we stopped doing those jobs. They stopped by to see them from the front yard. They called and called and called to stay in touch with the guys. . . Many of our guys felt comfortable reaching out to them day and night. Much of the staff became a second family to them. Many of these responsibilities were not assigned to them, but came out of creative thinking.”
! ! ! ! ! ! ! Read
more at ahrc.org/thankyoufromsoosan
Thank You From the AHRC East Meadow Art Gallery Management Team: Lisa Moosmueller, Leotha “Leo” Montano and Margaret Dunor-Collins. “We could never express how proud we are to manage the DSP team at the East Meadow Art Gallery. The past few months have shown us what these ladies are made of. The courage, the compassion, and the concern that they showed for the people we support during this COVID crisis has been so inspiring. At the beginning of the crisis, these ladies worked to make care packages for our guys living at home and in the IRAs and put smiles on their faces delivering the items while showing them that we were still there.”
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more at ahrc.org/thankyoufromema
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! ! ! ! ! ! ! Community Highlights Delicious Meals and Tasty Treats For DSP Week, Café 230 prepared meals for approximately 30 AHRC houses, while day program administrators sent gift baskets to day sites and DSP staff.
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Joslin Award Nominee Joe Mandella Recognized for Dedication Joe Mandella loves his job. One of 51 nominees for the NYSID 2020 William B. Joslin Outstanding Performance Award, Joe currently works as a commercial cleaner for AHRC Nassau in Freeport and through AHRC’s NYSID contracts — the Department of Labor in Hicksville. “Being nominated for this award makes me feel special and very happy that my supervisors know I am doing my best,” said Joe. Always early and rarely taking time off, Joe has worked with AHRC for the past 24 years. “When the going gets tough, Joe gets going” is how AHRC’s team leader, Jose Portillo describes Joe’s work. As soon as Joe finishes his work, he is ready to support his co-workers. During this difficult and unprecedented time of COVID-19, Joe has overcome many challenges. The most significant being his inability to visit his wife in a nursing home. This was part of Joe’s daily routine and he desperately missed it. Talking on the phone was just not the same. But as with most challenges, Joe’s determination won out. As soon as he realized that she had a window in her room and they could see and talk to each other with the window slightly cracked, Joe was back to visiting his wife daily. When Joe finally returned to work, he found more changes to his daily routine. Wearing a mask was an adjustment but this was a challenge Joe overcame. Now more than ever, Joe understands how with his work he makes a difference. “I like my job because I feel I am helping to keep people safe by doing a good job cleaning,” shared Joe.
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“Being nominated for this award makes me feel special and very happy that my supervisors know I am doing my best,” said Joe.
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TD Charitable Foundation Grants $15,000 in Support of Telehealth AHRC Nassau recently received a $15,000 grant award from the TD Charitable Foundation. The grant will support telehealth for residents of AHRC’s houses. iPads will be purchased to assist direct care and medical staff with ensuring the health of residents.
Richard Infante Recognized at The Arc New York Art Competition Congratulations to Richard Infante for winning second place in the The Arc New York Art Competition with his painting, “A Day in the Park.” The painting was inspired by Richard’s fond memory of a school playground he enjoyed as a child. Richard sketched the playground from memory, gathered his paint colors and supplies, and painted the canvas completely independently. Richard’s painting was chosen by the AHRC community to be entered into the competition.
DDPC Grants $15,000 for Remote Learning and Online Resource Center
AHRC Nassau recently received a $15,000 grant award from the Developmental Disabilities Planning Council (DDPC) to support the creation of an online Learning and Resource Center that will seek to reduce the social isolation of people with developmental disabilities and increase their social engagement.
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Costco Supports Jordan Seilback’s Success For National Disability Employment Awareness Month, AHRC Nassau and ACCES-VR recognized Costco as an outstanding employer. AHRC is proud to share how Costco offered Jordan Seilback of AHRC’s Supported Employment Program opportunities to be successful. Jordan has worked at Costco for over 22 years. Jordan started his career as a cart attendant. As Jordan showed interest in exploring new responsibilities, he was encouraged to apply for unpacking and bagging customers’ items. As soon as a position became available, Jordan was promoted. This would not have been possible without Costco’s engaged management team, who embrace job coaches and support staff. Costco created a workplace, where team members are encouraged to be proactive and take the next steps in their career. As a result of the pandemic, Jordan’s responsibilities have grown: limiting the number of people in the store, keeping the members patient, ensuring the carts are disinfected, keeping all refrigerator and freezer surfaces sanitized, checking customer receipts on the way out and always thanking them as they leave. Jordan has done all this, while remembering to social distance, adjusting to wearing gloves and mask as well as keeping a friendly smile on his face.
Staff Appreciation Day 2020 Celebrates Team’s Excellence On a bright sunny day, more than 400 staff from across AHRC Nassau and its family of organizations were welcomed to a party celebrating their dedication and hard work. This year's event was held in a new socially distanced format with a drive-thru that brought smiles and cheers for our hardworking team! Once under the arch, cars tuned into our very own radio station and took part in 10 pit-stops that delivered activities, gifts, words of thanks and even do-it-yourself pizza. Rounding out the offerings, staff members had their windows washed squeaky clean sending staff on their way knowing that we have a bright future in working together.
! ! !For photos,
video and more, visit www.ahrc.org/staffappreciation
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! ! ! ! ! ! ! Staff Testimonials
“I liked that the senior staff was out there totally involved with other staff.” – Robert Rizzo “It was so much fun and thank you!” – Renee D'Avanzo “This experience made my day honestly because it made all the hard work we do feel acknowledged and appreciated. Overall, even though it was over quickly, I had a great time and left with a smile on my face!” – Sydney Claussell “The whole thing was awesome. I was actually very touched.” – John J Clements “My favorite part of the Staff Appreciation Drive Thru was seeing all the familiar faces of staff members that I greatly appreciate. Also, everyone was in a positive uplifting mood which is well needed during these unprecedented times. Thank you!” – Emonie Mcdaniel
“I was very excited to see people who I haven't seen due to the pandemic, the directors and executive directors. Chris and Barry cleaned my windshield. It was amazing.” – Dionne Bennett-Ruiz
! ! ! ! ! ! ! Volunteer Spotlight This year’s event was the result of months of planning from the Staff Appreciation Day Committee. Thank you for your leadership, thoughtfulness and care taken to show staff that what they do not only matter, but is appreciated.
!Thank You to All Staff Appreciation Day Volunteers Event Co-Chairs: Barry Donowitz Chris O’Connor
Committee & Volunteers: Deanna Allen Nancy Anzalone Johnathan Biasi Ahman Butt Don Bynum ★ Gina Chason Janice Concannon ✽ Elisa Coppola Justin Danzler Paula Devita
Dolores Doxey Debra Doyle Marceline Ellis Leigh Fanuzzi ✽ Laura Franzen ★ Dalton George ★ Eileen Graham* Tessa Guillaume Alexandra Gross Adris Hamid Adina Hanley Cara Hayman Safoora Juman Nikki Katz ✽ Joanna Kilkenny Michelle Laspina ✽ Keith Lewis
Sue Limiti ✽ Justine Litras Sean Luberto Monica Montoya ★ Timothy O’Hara Sean Pelc Rosary Remigio Li Rinaldo Diane Makowski Maria Marin Anne Miller Natesha Bull-Ofoegbu ★ Roberta Romano ★ Eric Rosen Linda Rosen ✽ Christine Schulte ✽
Savita Sharma Patrick Sherrard ✽ Hannah Shin Sean Stallings Jim Stock ★ Alexis Swiatkowski Karen Tanzillo Elsbeth Thomas Marianne Thorsen Nicole Uterano-Ferrar Jerri Walker ✽ Sean Weathers ✽ Robert White Chris Williams Craig Wolfson Ulzhan Yeshengazina ★ Committee Chairs ✽ Committee Members
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! ! ! ! ! ! ! Events – Keep Us Connected as a Community
AHRC Nassau Makes Strides at 2020 AHRC Foundation Virtual Walk This year may have been like no other, but the AHRC Nassau community continued its annual traditions at the AHRC Foundation Walk, supporting children and adults with developmental disabilities, and helped the Foundation raise just over $90,000. AHRC Nassau’s community of families and friends showed up in full force – sharing images of #AHRCWalkYourWay from across Long Island. Eighteen teams also entered the AHRC Walk Banner Contest. As always, there were many creative designs submitted for the Foundation team to consider. It was a difficult choice, but the winners of the 2020 AHRC Walk Banner contest were: 1. For first place: The Elmwood Chicks with Kicks 2. For second place: Team Amos 3. For third place: The Levittown Hub Site While each of these teams will receive a prize, the first place banner will be displayed with pride in our Plainview building. In case you missed this year’s celebration, the event video is available at ahrcwalk.org.
Check out how the community came together to #AHRCWalkYourWay
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189 Wheatley Road, Brookville (Glen Head), NY 11545 inspire@ahrc.org
Calling All AHRC Angels
Non-Profit Organization U.S. Postage PAID Permit No. 31 Glen Head, NY
‘Tis the season for Champions for Charity! Americana Manhasset Champions for Charity® holiday shopping benefit is December 3 - December 5, 2020.
Hosted by the AHRC Manhasset Auxiliary
Your gift to the Angel campaign creates more options and innovative supports for children and adults with developmental disabilities and turns today’s aspirations into tomorrow’s reality.
! !To make a gift or see a listing of 2019 angels, please visit
www.ahrcfoundation.org/angel
Help support AHRC Nassau by doing your holiday shopping at participating Americana Manhasset and select Wheatley Plaza stores during these three days, when 25% of your designated full-price, pre-tax purchases will be donated back to us! To register for your complimentary CHAMPION NUMBER or for more information, visit championsforcharity.org or visit the Americana Manhasset Concierge storefront location. When it’s time to make a purchase, simply present your CHAMPION NUMBER with any form of payment. Donations will be made on full-price merchandise only, subject to individual store policy. Your purchases are not automatically eligible. Your CHAMPION NUMBER is required to allocate your donation and must be presented at the time of each purchase. Donations on participating store gift certificates and special order merchandise are subject to individual store policy.