Category: Community

May 27, 2020

Everything’s Cancelled and I Feel Sad

 It’s been two months since we were put in quarantine. In two months our world has changed. We watched spring bloom from the confines of our couch. We saw Easter and Mother’s Day come and go. Maybe we got to see some family. Maybe we didn’t. And as the counties move from ‘red’ to ‘yellow’, we can’t help but wonder,...

Categories Community/General

May 13, 2020

Making a Shift Towards Gratitude

In a period of time that for many is plagued with fear and uncertainty it is difficult to stay focused on gratitude.  Many of us may fear for our health or for those we support and feel a generalized instability. But is there a way to push that fear into a different direction? Is it really possible to shift our...

Categories Community/Everyday Life/General

April 29, 2020

Spring in to Gardening

With spring just around the corner, I find myself looking forward to all outdoor activities. Maybe it is a long walk or feeding the ducks at the park, or just watching all the flowers and trees come to life after a long winter.  The one activity I truly enjoy is planting a garden!  I usually end up with a variety...

Categories Community/General

April 22, 2020

Laughter is Good for the Body and Soul

In a time when everything that is happening is changing the way we live, communicate, and see others, it is very easy to not see humor in anything.  The anxiety from seeing people ill and the threat of becoming ill has caused many of us increased stress and anxiety.   It is so important that we do laugh and keep a...

Categories Community/General

April 15, 2020

Being Prepared: Remote Support

Keeping people safe and healthy is always our goal.  What happens when the person we support must be hospitalized?  The hospital is not always aware of how the person we support communicates, takes medication, what their health history is, or what type of diet the person requires.  Many times, we can provide input and even staffing to help the person...

Categories Community/General/Resources

April 1, 2020

Give Yourself A Hand

All of you who are using purell, and/or scrubbing for twenty seconds, raise your dry and possibly cracked hand! Our hand hygiene habits are changing and that is good.  Because so much irritation has been caused, hands become dry and cracked to the point of being raw in some cases.  The good news is you’re doing a good job of...

Categories Community/General

March 25, 2020

Women’s History Month & Developmental Disabilities Month – There’s a reason it’s called MARCH!

Get out your sneakers. Grab your picket signs. Sturdy your convictions. It’s time to MARCH! Or is it the month of March? Maybe both? In a day and age where every day is a celebration of something (I personally like “talk like a pirate day” and “national pizza day”), we stop to pay homage in March to two populations that...

Categories Community/General

March 18, 2020

Cheers to the Future

Sometimes I forget what it was that led me to this field.  In all honesty it doesn’t matter.  It matters more to me what keeps me in this field.  I won’t earn a million dollars, most likely won’t win a presidential award, and I can kiss an Oscar goodbye.  So no, it’s none of those things.  It’s seeing the good...

Categories Community/General

February 19, 2020

Time to reflect… It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood

I was saddened by Mr. Roger’s passing in February 2003 as it hit home for me. It got me thinking about all the good he did in his life time.  When you think of Mr. Rogers, you think of all the joy and comfort he brought to many lives. Mr. Rogers grew up in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, a small town between...

Categories Community/General

February 12, 2020

For the Love of Horses

I recently had the opportunity to experience Elliott Acres Therapeutic Riding Center in Butler, PA. The Center offers therapeutic riding opportunities to adults and children with physical, intellectual, and emotional disabilities. The owner, Deb Campbell, was nothing but delightful. She and her staff were patient in offering instructions on how to groom the horses. Riding will be offered again beginning...

Categories Community/General/Resources