Fall/Winter 2020
COVID-19 UPDATE Over the past 100 years, Easterseals Michigan has faced many challenges. As with all these challenges, we quickly adapted to ensure that the high-quality services we offer would continue for the people we serve. It was this same commitment to the community that helped us through the COVID-19 outbreak. Immediately we expanded our ability to provide telehealth services. We were already piloting our telehealth platform and this early start allowed us to transition to more telehealth services quickly. We provisioned nearly 350 staff to continue providing essential services to those in need. Since March, we onboarded thousands of people we serve to our telehealth platform providing almost 90,000 sessions, while the demand for our services is ever increasing. The pandemic did not reduce our ability to innovate. We created and hand-delivered dozens of customized kits for the children and their families in Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) therapy, held daily sessions with families so their children wouldn’t regress in treatment; and creatively introduced successful virtual potty-training sessions! Our Contact Center responded to thousands of phone calls and emails from concerned community members and successfully coordinated and connected them to needed resources and services, including onboarding thousands of new people in our services. We never closed our offices; we never stopped serving people; we remained committed to providing life-saving services. This crisis has and will continue to influence how we meet the needs of the community. We have successfully integrated telehealth services into our home, office and community-based services. This greatly enhances our ability to perform outreach and needed services to areas and people that otherwise would not have had access. We thank our supporters, partners, staff, and families for their amazing support. Together we faced a historic event, and together we continue to strengthen the community for generations to come.
EVENTS This year’s outbreak resulted in us shifting our events from “in-person” to virtual. It allowed us to develop some outside-of-the-box ideas that resulted in some fun, engaging events.
HOCKEY, HOPS, AND HOPE This event turned into a fun online auction. We offered items from Gordie Howe, Steve Young, Emmitt Smith, Lawrence Taylor, Wade Boggs, Barry Bonds, and more. We also offered great items from Vineyard Vines, Amway and more. The event raised over $10,500. Plans are underway for 2021.
YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL On June 25, we turned our annual fashion show into a virtual celebration of the beauty that makes us different. The event featured world-renowned mentalist, Ryan Oakes, and Karyl Eckerle, an award-winning advocate for confidence, author, and image & branding speaker. The event was hosted by 98.7 The Breeze’s Kim Adams. Plans have already begun on our 2021 event, which we hope will return to an in-person fashion show.
NATIONAL DEPRESSION SCREENING DAY October 8th is National Depression Screening Day. To recognize the day, Easterseals Michigan partnered with EOTECH for “Check-Up from the Neck Up”, a free, anonymous, online mental health screening. The campaign featured the support of over 30 different community partners. To encourage people to take the screening, EOTECH, Amway, and Easterseals Michigan board member, David Benoit, and his wife, Jean, each offered $1 for every screening that was taken. We set a goal of 1,000 screenings in 24 hours and ended up with 1,526 screenings. We also saw in increase in phone calls from people looking for services. The screening is still available at www.EastersealsMichigan.com.
Big Things ARE Happening! ROUND UP FOR EASTERSEALS MICHIGAN With the pandemic forcing us to adjust our fundraising, we partnered with the accredited fundraising program, Cheerful. Now when you make a purchase using your credit card, you can Round Up for Easterseals Michigan. This safe, secure, program is easy to use and can help support Easterseals Michigan’s life-changing programs. Learn more on our website homepage at www.EastersealsMichigan.com. Look for the Round Up for Easterseals Michigan image to learn more.
EASTERSEALS WEBCHAT This year we heavily focused on our website. One of our wish items included a chat option so we could help our visitors in a fast and efficient manner. Now, when you visit www.EastersealsMichigan.com, you can speak directly with our Contact Center which will be able to answer questions, provide resources, and point people in the right direction.
CRISIS STABILIZATION TEAM The Easterseals Crisis Stabilization Team (CST) provides prevention, crisis response, and postvention services to youth and families served by Easterseals. It utilizes a proactive and preventative approach that engages staff to support the youth and families who are at risk of a crisis or post crisis. The CST consists of a multi-disciplinary team including case managers, behavioral health clinicians from both Easterseals children’s outpatient and home-based services teams, a parent support partner, youth peer support specialists, a consultative BCBA, and administrative staff. The team is designed to support the youth and their families with resolving crises and remaining in the community, thus preventing emergency room visits or psychiatric hospitalizations. The team can be accessed at the point of intake or for youth that are currently receiving services. Once the crisis stabilization team is notified of the referral, a member from the team reaches out to the family within 24 hours to offer additional supports and services. The crisis stabilization team is a short-term approach designed to assist with resolving a crisis and provide follow up support for several weeks following their initial intervention.
EASTERSEALS MICHIGAN BONFIRE SITE Easterseals Michigan has partnered with Bonfire to offer a limited-edition series of Easterseals Michigan shirts. A portion of the proceeds are donated to Easterseals Michigan. This holiday season you can wear some great Easterseals gear while supporting the lifechanging services that Easterseals offers. Start shopping at http://bit.ly/EastersealsShirts.
GETTING IT DONE! Since the start of the outbreak, we have been committed to maintaining our services. If the people we serve miss an appointment, they could regress in their treatment. We didn’t want to let that happen. This meant increasing our number of telehealth appointments and getting creative with other services.
MEET ERROL Errol has been getting services at Easterseals Michigan since 2017. The outbreak in March caused him to become more anxious, stressed and depressed. He feared leaving his house and wondered how he would be able to continue his services. We got him set up with telehealth services which allowed him to keep his appointments while also minimizing his stress and anxiety. “When the COVID pandemic hit Michigan, I was petrified about the virus and treatment. Luckily, Easterseals was prepared with a telehealth system that could connect me with services without disruption. I do not want to go anywhere that has people going in and out all day. It gives me anxiety not knowing who is and is not infected. I’m also high risk due to other health issues. Telehealth for me has been a great life saver. I’m able to connect with people that I’m currently in treatment with, which makes it very comfortable. Continuing services for folks like me is critical. Making services available to individuals is saving lives.”
MEET MICAH This is Micah! He became the first person Easterseals Michigan has ever virtually potty trained! This is a big deal for all kids, but for kids on the spectrum this is a HUGE deal! Easterseals Michigan ABA tech, Kaitlyn Inkpen spent 5 consecutive hours working with Micah and his mom to make this happen. We provided training to Micah’s family and dropped off all of the materials to the family’s home. Micah’s mom is very excited and very thankful for this unique opportunity. Since Micah, Easterseals has successfully potty trained several other children, making virtual potty training one of our newest service offerings. This outbreak may have altered the way we do services, but it didn’t change our determination to deliver our services to the people that rely on us the most.
PRESIDENTS’ COUNCIL To be a member of the Presidents’ Council, an individual or company must donate at least $1,000 during the fiscal year (10/1 - 9/30). This list represents donors from 10/1/19 - 9/30/20. Independence Level $25,000+ Alpha Gamma Rho-Tau Chapter 022702 Amway Empowerment Level $10,000 - $24,999 AFCO Manufacturing Corp. AIG Financial Distributors David & Jean Benoit^ Flagstar Bank Foundation IBOAI International, Inc. Michigan Farm Bureau Insurance PCE Systems Samuel L. Westerman Foundation The Optimist Club Foundation Opportunity Level $5,000 - $9,999 John D Barrett, Jr. Matthew W Becker Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan John & Nina Byrne CIBC EOTECH Burgess & Traci Foster Greater Muskegon Area Women’s Pocket Billiards League Joseph Kallabat Tim Kenrick Peter & Rachel Smidt The Suburban Collection Michael & Erica Thurman Jim & Lee Uhlig^ Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. Beverly Willing Dignity Level $2,500 - $4,999 Benno Amormino Spence & Dorothy Babcock Bank of America Charitable Fund Chris G Brady Cambridge Consulting Group Centria Healthcare LLC Chase Bank Kimberly Fanelli Faurecia North America Fred L Gibson James Marion Gray, Ph.D. David Haas Helix Diagnostics Robert Hillson Thomas M Hogan Angela D. Jones Don Klinck Laurencelle Properties, Inc.
Marsh & McLennan Agency LLC Mike Murano Frank Pace Nolan Q Passick Diana L. Peterson Aaron Reisner Christopher J Sanchez Segal McCambridge Singer & Mahoney Sigma Alpha Sorority 101118 Rick Swartz John R. Szlenkier Sherman Taylor UHY Advisors Ultimate Software David R Vanderhovel Susan Welker White Pine Investment Co. Ability Level $1,000 - $2,499 David T Albee Mark Anderson Steven Anderson Arctaris Lester Austin Sr. Charles W Avis Charles B Baker Baker-Hopp Insurance Daniel Bakerman Thomas J Baldwin Mark J. Ballo Troy & Brooke Barnhart Anthony Bauriedl Jeffrey Bayko BDO Mark Beauchamp Ken & Kurtis Beethem Joseph J Bell Richard Berkfield Jr. Matthew D. Binkley Chris Bishop Jack J Boak Jr. Gregg Boehlefeld Michael T Borla Dolores Boruch Robert Bowen Peggy Britt Linda Browning Oreste J. Bruni George & Marlin Bubnes Barbara Buda Larry A. Bujdos Bessie Burton Kevin Buss Jeffrey Cahill Barbara Cantrell Kevin Carlisle & Rachelle Valdez Mygene L Carr John A. Carter Martha Cassell Perry Casselle Chase Business Banking
Nicholas Chrzan Gerald Cleer Steve Clinkenbeard Cloud 4 Good Ronald N Cober David Corey CSM Mechanical, LLC Cunningham-Limp Victoria Ann Dailey Margaret Davis Darlene Dawood Frances T. DeBasco Rick Depauw Stephen Destefano John Dickerson Tim & Susan Dunaitis Marylynn Early Bradley Ellis Epsilon Sigma Alpha Foundation - Alpha Kappa Chapter Evolution Pools Frank Ewasyshyn Ruben & Diana Familia Jeffrey Fetterolf Robert Figurski Dr. Samuel J. & Suzanne Flanders^ Clifford Forris Patrick J Fox Norbert Froeschke Jeremy L. & Alysun Fulks William & Diane Fuller Lisa Galiatsos Genoa Healthcare, LLC Ronald J. Gerken Michael Giangiordano Calvin Gleaton Milton E Glodek Michael Goldstein Antonio Gonsalez Isac Gradinariu Michael Graham GreenStone Farm Credit Services Kathy Greff Steve Gretchko Joyce E Griffin Dr. Jeff Guina* Wendy Haerens Larry Hall John L. Harkins Health Alliance Plan of Michigan Charles & Pamela Hensley Ralph Herman Sandra A Hertz Louise Hitchcock Mark Holt Honigman Miller Schwartz & Cohn LLP Anthony Iaquinto Jason Iras James R. & Diana Irons Jordan N Jones
Gerald P Kadlitz Chui Karega John & Jennifer Keegan^ Bryan Kieler Ken Klaft Stephen T Klucka Knights of Columbus West Bloomfield Kenneth Kozlowski K. P. Construction LLC Michael & Nancy Krisfalusi Thomas R Kunz Michael Kupinski Elizabeth E Lakin ODell R Lechevalier Moon Lee Daniel J. Lennon Norman & Carol LeRoy Matt Leuchtmann John & Rosalie Lieblang^ Allen R Linson Steven Locker Jan Mack Richard J Marakovits Ray & Annette Marcath^ Barbara Mayo-Johnson Navid Mazloom Todd McCallum Verna M McClure James McCuish Stephen McGinley Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Inc. Jeffery Meyers Microsoft Mark Mikaelian April R Miller Leo Mitchell Jr. David Moellring Mike & Nancy Monsour Diane Montemarano Craig Monterosso Greg Moore John P Mordach Mulder & Horan PLLC Tato Munoz-Bergman Mary Murphy Dennis Murray Gagarin Natarajan Jonathan Neumann James P O’Rilley Gary J. Oshust Sr. Brian & Noreen Pannebecker Milind Pant Kelley J. Parish Stephen Patoka Jr. Clay C Perrine Mike Peters Chad Phinney Russell G Pipia Sam Pizzo Donald & Lynne C Pratt Rapaski Capital Group, LLC Valiya Veetil Ravi James S Reed Jr.
Cheryl Reich Charles Reinhold Reiter & Walsh, PC Rose Rennells Anthony & Althea D Richards Rochelle and Randolph Forester Foundation Rockbridge Growth Equity Management Ronald Rose Steve M Rudnik Mary Jane Rumble Stanley A Rutkowski Glen Scharpf John & Helen Schodowski Stephen Servison Nancy Shafer Earl E Shaw Signature Associates Ralph Sirek William Sizelove William Skaleski Bernard A Skotzke Steve Slater Smart Ride Andrew & Sonia Smyk John P Spatafora Neil Springer Warren H Stansberry III David W Steffes Donald M Stutrud Symetra Naomi Taylor Anthony Telenta David Teske Larry J Thomas Dean Thurman Jr TI Fluid Systems Elizabeth Traver Todd Trayner Dr. Robert Tremblay Michael Treske Mary E Tye United Shore Financial Services, LLC Michele Vachon Matthew & Courtney Van Haaren^ Randall & Jane Varcoe VTC Insurance Group John Jeffrey Watson Phil Watts Glenn & Diane Williams Thomas A. & Rose M. Wisneski Greg Wittman Danny Youmara ^ Easterseals Michigan Board Member * Easterseals Michigan Staff Member
DID YOU KNOW? Easterseals Michigan has been providing life-changing disability services in Michigan since 1920. When we started, our services were for children with physical disabilities however we quickly added more services based on the growing needs in the community. Today, Easterseals Michigan is one of the state’s largest mental health providers with services that also include autism, substance use, veterans’ services, services for farmers with disabilities, and a baseball league. Here are some fun Easterseals Michigan facts that you might not have known:
THIS PAST YEAR, We provided 91,899 telehealth/telephone sessions. Our Contact Center received 19,966 calls from the community. We sold 30,655 raffle tickets. We provided 4,162 online mental health screenings. Since the COVID-19 outbreak, we onboarded 45 new employees to help us serve the community. In the last fiscal year, Easterseals Michigan served 15,009 people, an increase of previous year!
9% over the
Upcoming Events COMING IN 2021!
Support Easterseals Michigan by purchasing tickets for these upcoming raffles and events. All proceeds go towards Easterseals Michigan’s services for individuals with disabilities.
SPRING 2021 SPRING 2021
Board Updates WE’D LIKE TO RECOGNIZE TWO OUTGOING MEMBERS OF OUR BOARD OF DIRECTORS. THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE. Liz Kersten has been a board member since 1996. Her husband, John Kersten, was instrumental in creating the famous Easterseals Michigan car raffles which have raised nearly $15 million for Easterseals Michigan services. Mrs. Kersten has contributed to numerous committees over the years and was most recently involved in the development efforts at Easterseals where she helped lay the foundation for “The Cheers Gala”, “Over the Edge”, and “You Are Beautiful”. Ruben Familia has been a board member since 2018. During his time on the board, Mr. Familia, played a role on the development committee where he was integral in the success of the “Hockey, Hops, and Hope” and “Over the Edge” events.
Liz Kersten
WE WOULD LIKE TO OFFER A SINCERE THANK YOU TO LIZ KERSTEN AND RUBEN FAMILIA FOR THEIR YEARS OF DEDICATION AND SERVICE. If you are interested in joining our board, please go to www.easterseals.com/ michigan/who-we-are/leadership. As a reminder, all board meetings are open to the public. Go to www.EastersealsMichigan.com to see meeting dates and locations.
Ruben Familia
Raffle Winners Thank you to everyone that participates in our raffles. Your support helps us to serve thousands of families every year. February – Pete R. from Roscommon, MI won a 2020 Corvette Stingray and $40,000 on February 15, 2020 with ticket number 1367. May- Christopher S. from Averill Park, NY won $100,000 on May 2, 2020 with ticket number 1089. May- Bud G. from Grosse lie, Ml won a 2020 Audi and $50,000 on May 30, 2020 with ticket number 1511. July- Dave T. from Concord Township, OH won a Dream Car and $50,000 on July 11, 2020 with ticket number
3139.
September - Anonymous Winner of Northridge, CA won $100,000 on September 12, 2020 with ticket number
1820.
October- Dan K. of West Bloomfield, MI won a 2020 Porsche and $50,000 on October 24, 2020 with ticket number 2404.
Easterseals Michigan 2399 E. Walton Blvd. Auburn Hills MI 48326 www.EastersealsMichigan.com
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