Service Alternatives 2022 Annual Review

A Message From the CEO

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

Everything we do at Service Alternatives (SA) is about people. As employees, we are 375 individuals united in our belief in SA’s vision, mission, and values; aligned in how we work. Together, we serve people with unique preferences, skills, and desires to fulfill their dreams. The very nature of our work is purpose-filled and holds deep meaning. A substantial measure of our effectiveness lies in the outcomes achieved by our clients.

In this annual review, you will read about Mike donating funds to his community and Logan E. pursuing his dream of becoming a video game developer. You will see stories about Logan’s successful employment with Grocery Outlet and Josh’s upcoming red-carpet premiere. You will find a story about an amazing team of people we call ‘SA Leadership’ who came together in September for our inaugural annual gathering. You will also read about SA teaching a class to caregivers that supports people with developmental disabilities in adult family homes and assisted living settings.

This small sampling of meaningful stories provides a snapshot of the human lives impacted; a snapshot of the work we have the privilege of doing every day at SA. The successes achieved by our clients reflect their hard work, determination, and drive to reach their goals and ultimately improve their communities. The truth is that their individual successes have a compounding effect. Whether they are donating money, working in a job, going to school, or inspiring those around them, they are contributing. One life at a time, one impact at a time, leads to communities being strengthened. Stronger communities make for a stronger world.

This web we weave of committed SA team members partnering with clients to meet their needs and desires is powerful, impactful, and simply inspiring. I am left with a heartfelt appreciation for all who have contributed.

Thriving communities that empower, and are powered by, each person’s unique contributions.

Mission

Advancing the potential of our communities, customers, and ourselves through exceptional service. Values

Personal Growth and Giving Back

Mike has been supported by SA for over 30 years. In 2015, he was in a bike accident, which lead to his retirement from full-time work.

Mike is a very organized, routineoriented individual. The transition to retirement was not easy for him. One way he responded to the change was by increasing his involvement in his community. Over the years, he has made many wonderful connections with local businesses and organizations that he frequents as part of his daily routine.

In May 2022, Mike received an unexpected lump sum of social security back-pay funds. With the help of Rachel Harbaugh, Financial Specialist, and Jean Walkuw, Residential Manager, he planned how to best allocate the money.

“Mike has a very big heart. His first instinct after receiving the funds was to spend it on others,” Rachel shared. Working with the many community connections he made in retirement, Mike made donations to the Oak Harbor Senior Center, North Whidbey Help House, and the Pacific Northwest Naval Air Museum.

379,532 Hours of direct service to adults

66 Respite stays provided

363 Children, youth, and families served

When it came to spending money on himself, Rachel and Jean did a lot of coaching to help Mike feel comfortable with the idea of treating himself. They worked with him to embrace small luxuries, instead of things that were only “good enough.” After brainstorming, he decided to purchase an electric bike. Mike also purchased new furniture, authentic cowboy boots, new glasses, and used the remaining funds to create an ABLE savings account.

Rachel, Jean, and others who support Mike worked hard to encourage and build his self-esteem, reminding him it was okay to set himself up for the future, as well as give back to his community. In the end, Mike saved, splurged, and donated. His most rewarding choice though: donating funds to support his community.

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“Mike’s first instinct after receiving the funds was to spend it on others”

Fulfilling the Dream of Higher Education

For youth in foster care, individual service plans are centered around setting goals for personal and educational growth. Whenever a youth meets their goals, it is something to be proud of. That’s just what happened for Logan E. when he not only graduated from high school, but also became a college student in 2022. Logan was a child in foster care for many years. He lived in group homes before transitioning into an SA licensed foster home.

Shortly after moving into his foster home, Logan began to demonstrate radical, positive changes in his behavior. When asked what turned things around for him, he shared he realized that his ‘acting out’ behavior

was keeping him from seeing his brother as much as he would like. He made the decision to turn things around for the better and began to create goals for his future.

102 Families received Evidence-based Practice services

38 Youth received emergency placements

9 Youth moved to permanent homes

36 Licensed foster homes

Logan’s goals continued to grow. As a junior in high school, he decided that he wanted to attend college. Even though the journey was not always easy, he never waivered from his decision. During his senior year, his Case Manager, Emmanuel Camarillo, began meeting with him every week to help him stay on track to complete all the necessary steps for graduation and college preparation. They worked on applications, essays, financial aid, and scholarship applications.

Logan’s senior year was challenging at times, and there was concern he might not have enough credits to graduate. With support from his foster parents, the school, and SA, he was able to successfully earn his high school diploma. Logan is now a college student studying computer science and has dreams of becoming a video game developer.

“He made the decision to turn things around for the better and began to create goals for his future.”

Leading in Unity

In September 2022, SA held its inaugural Leadership Gathering. A time where SA’s managers, administrators, and executives, from across departments, came together to learn, celebrate, and build relationships. Through participation in this event, leaders were honored for their roles within the organization and were given a greater sense of their part in moving SA toward its goals.

In the months leading up to the event, attendees were assigned to breakout groups that met via Zoom to get

acquainted and build a larger sense of “team” before gathering in person, then breakout groups were seated together at the event. Having all SA’s leaders together in one space created a powerful energy and brought perspective to the wide variety of work SA does.

One particularly valuable experience was the line of topic-specific tables for different services provided by SA. At these tables participants connected with other leaders to learn more about the services provided across the organization.

“Having all SA’s leaders together in one space created a powerful energy and brought perspectives to the wide variety of work SA does.”

The Legacy Wall was another memorable experience. It illustrated the timeline of SA’s history since the company’s inception and was impactful in showing everywhere the organization has been, how it has grown, and visualizing where things may go in the future. Michael Wallace, Program Manager, shared that “it was meaningful to see [the] wall length of accomplishments and the exponential growth since the beginning of the company.”

These activities really brought the “why” into focus and brought attention to the heart of the work SA does. The 2022 Leadership Gathering was the first of many to come, bringing energy, intentionality, and collaboration to SA’s diverse teams.

17

1,306 hours trained

20

1,733 people trained

Putting the Heart in Training

In 2022, the Training Institute completed its first full year of providing the Developmental Disabilities Specialty Training (DDST) for those supporting individuals with developmental disabilities in adult family homes and assisted living settings throughout Washington State. This training emphasizes the importance of respect, dignity, and partnership between caregivers and clients. “The heart of the training is to accentuate a sense of people helping people,” says Summer Simpson, DDST Trainer.

In previous years, SA contracted with external trainers to complete this

training. In 2021, seeking to provide consistency in the training and to improve fiscal responsibility, SA took steps to utilize our own trainers to provide DDST. As part of the transition, an onboarding plan was developed for all new DDST trainers which outlined milestones and goals that must be completed before becoming a certified trainer.

Through the virtual delivery and trainer onboarding process, SA employees showed incredible cross-departmental collaboration to complete complex tasks and provide customers with a quality product. This collaboration led to

373 Events coordinated

17,648 RIGHT RESPONSE® certifications

83 DDST trainings

20K+ RIGHT RESPONSE workshop hours

positive trainer evaluations, matching outcomes from other DDST providers.

In the 3-day course, SA trainers teach the balance between caregiving and empowerment, showing that support should be relationship-based, not task-based. One training participant shared, “ [The trainer] pulled from her own personal and professional experiences to communicate concepts in honest, engaging, and relatable ways.”

During the training, a client advocate joins the class and shares a presentation. Participants love the opportunity to learn directly from client advocates who share their perspectives. A training participant shared how enlightening it was “seeing the clients we support not just from their medical diagnosis but as their hopes and dreams as a human.”

“The heart of the training is to accentuate a sense of people helping people.”

Success Beyond High School

Over the last couple of years, Service Alternatives has had the opportunity to be part of the Job Foundations and School to Work pilot programs.

Clients begin with Job Foundations during their post-high school transition-based schooling. The goal of this service is observation, assessment, and connection to continued services. SA employees observe and assess clients through their day-to-day activities, including in the classroom, at internships, in their homes, and when they participate in community activities.

Through observation, an assessment is made of the individual’s strengths, activities they enjoy, and potential barriers. This information is compiled, shared, and the client takes the report to the next step – the School to Work program.

The School to Work program helps individuals connect with employment before graduating. This program decreases the chance of a gap after graduation, resulting in individuals being more prepared for the future. One individual supported in this program is Logan.

8 New relationships developed for clients in community inclusion

279 Employment Services and WorkFirst clients served

215 Businesses partnered with for employment services

$136k+ Accumulative annual wages earned by clients served

Logan has an internship with Grocery Outlet and is working at two locations. The program has allowed his team to identify that he is determined, hardworking, and detail orientated. Through his internship, he is making great progress towards working independently.

Logan’s team shares that he is kind, respectful, and hardworking. When he is not at work, he is in the classroom learning life skills such as cooking, interview preparation, and resume

building. He enjoys spending time with friends, is an avid snowboarder, and has shared that one day he has a goal to walk the Camino de Santiago, a walking trail that runs from France to Spain.

SA’s clients in these programs have experienced incredible success, with most individuals completing the program with top marks. Logan is no exception. As he works towards his independence, he is eager to begin working full time.

“SA’s clients in these programs have experienced incredible success, with most individuals completing the program with top marks.”

Becoming a Star

Josh has a big personality and is not shy to share his dream with those in his community. He dreams of being a movie star. He is often seen taking on the persona of his current interests, whether that be acting like a DJ, a dancer, a Bruno Mars fan, or a polar bear doing the New Year’s Day Polar Plunge.

Over the last several years, Josh has worked hard to reach his acting goals. In 2011 he had a role, alongside Sam Sanabria, Residential Administrator, in The Rogue Saints, which went on to be featured on Netflix. In 2017 he had the opportunity to star in the RIGHT RESPONSE learning videos, which are

108 DBT groups facilitated

75,242 Direct service hours provided to children and families

89 Clients receiving adult residential services

now shown worldwide. He continued to perform on stage in The Little Prince and Midsummer Night’s Dream. He also starred in police instructional videos as a person in crisis with the Renton Police Department.

In 2022, Josh connected with a European documentary film crew working on a documentary about individuals with disabilities and the arts. The goal of the documentary is to talk with adults with disabilities who want to get into different art mediums. The crew met with Josh a couple of times this past year.

During these meetings Josh had the opportunity to share why he loves acting, his goals, and name the barriers he’s encountered in reaching these goals.

The film crew is talking with several different people across the United States. When it is all done, Josh is invited to attend a red carpet premiere in Seattle for a viewing of the film. To say he is excited is an understatement. Josh already has plans to pick out a baby blue tuxedo and take his girlfriend to walk the red carpet!

“He had the opportunity to share why he loves acting, his goals, and name the barriers he’s encountered in reaching these goals.”