Programs and ServicesNewsSupport DDRCContact Us
spacer

News: Fall 2009 News Magazine


(print version)

Contents:


Eric Krickbaum Receives Dan B. Davison Award for Excellence in Inclusion

Eric Krickbaum Receives Dan B. Davison Award for Excellence in Inclusion Eric Krickbaum, consumer, was selected to receive the Dan B. Davison Award for Excellence in Inclusion. The award is designated for individuals who have defied the odds. The DDRC Self-Determination Committee nominated Mr. Krickbaum for this award as he demonstrated beating the odds after being told he was not yet ready for community employment. Eric disagreed and was determined to get a job in the community to fulfill his dream. He learned about the Self-Determination Initiative at DDRC through his Planning Alternative Tomorrows with Hope (PATH) planning process. The idea of the Self–Determination Initiative at DDRC is to facilitate a process of exploration and discovery for people to find creative and innovative ways to work on personally unique goals. Through the Self–Determination Initiative, he got support to hire a documentary artist to create his video resume. Eric’s video resume ended up replacing the second assessment, awarded to him after an appeal, and put him in a place where professionals immediately saw him as a person ready to work in the community. His video resume is action packed showing different marketable skills and comments from people who know him. This video resume helped him get a job at a coffee shop.

Beverly Winters, Associate Executive Director presented the award to Eric at the DD Planning Council Awards ceremony. This award and story/video is a real positive example of the success of the DDRC Self-Determination program funded by County Mill Levy money.

Congratulations Eric for receiving the prestigious Dan B. Davison Award from the Colorado Developmental Disabilities Council.

If you would like to know more about the DDRC Self-Determination Initiative feel free to contact Katie Taliercio, DDRC Self Advocacy Coordinator at 303-233-3363.

Back to Top



Budget Update ~ Dealing with the Recession

We have been fortunate that while we were not granted increases in the 2008/2009 or the 2009/2010 budget year, unlike many organizations, we did not receive funding cuts. Our good fortune now appears as if it will be changing in the coming months.

When the Colorado Legislature created the FY 2009/2010 budget, they did so based upon an estimate of the revenue they would receive from tax collections and other funding sources. The ongoing recession and economic downturn from which Colorado was partially immune has now caught up to our state. As fewer people are employed, consumer spending has declined. This has caused a decrease in employment and sales taxes. Recently, the Office of State Planning and Budgeting has determined that Colorado’s 2009/2010 revenue will actually be 320 million dollars less than previously predicted. This led Governor Ritter to order all state agencies to prepare cuts of 10%. On Budget Update ~ Dealing with the Recession September 1st he put into effect varied cuts to state departments ranging from 0% (education) to 28.8% (Health Care Policy and Financing). The Colorado Department of Human Services received a cut of 3%, one of the lowest of any state department. This reflects a sincere desire on the part of the Ritter administration to continue to shield human service programs such as DD from the worst effects of the recession.

Specifically, DD received reductions of 2.5% in the area of Medicaid adult comprehensive services, Medicaid adult Supported Living Services, Targeted Case Management and Children’s Extensive Support. The Division for Developmental Disabilities will likely modify the exact percentage mix of these cuts, but the final total aggregate will reach 2.5%. At this printing, the direct cut to the DDRC service area is $781,000. Of this $165,000 represents direct client dollars and $289,000 is a pass through to providers. DDRC operated programs will receive a $326,000 cut.

These changes will affect DDRC, but we have fared much better than other organizations. How our present budget is adjusted to deal with these issues will be up to our Board of Directors. However, we think it is safe to say due to DDRC’s size, economies and reserves we will be able to minimize the effects on employees, programs and people we serve.

The unknown is what will occur when future state fiscal revenue is evaluated. On September 22, 2009, December 20, 2009 and March of 2010, new evaluations of state revenue will be revealed. If tax collections continue to decline, it is reasonable to expect further revenue loss to the state budget. It is possible we could receive further cuts to our budget; however, we are likely to continue to receive some favored status compared to other entities. If such a scenario develops, we will certainly communicate to you what is occurring and what to expect. In the mean time, DDRC administration will maintain operations from a fiscally conservative point of view. This approach has greatly assisted us in riding out many of the troubles others have experienced and will help us remain secure in the coming troubled months.

This is DDRC’s 45th Anniversary and the board, families, staff and friends usually have a dinner and celebrate each 5th anniversary of helping others. This year, the board has decided to not hold a celebration and simply have our regular Board meeting and small annual corporation meeting in keeping with our efforts to save where ever possible.

Back to Top



U.S. Senate, Governor Ritter Declare National Direct Support Professionals Recognition Week

National Direct Support Professionals Recognition Week Resolutions highlight service of direct support workforce the week of September 14
During the month that features a national holiday to celebrate the achievements of American workers, it seems only appropriate that the week beginning September 14 was designated as “National Direct Support Professionals Recognition Week” by both the U.S. Senate and Colorado Governor Bill Ritter. Direct Support Professionals, often referred to as caregivers, personal assistants, or home care aides, are the lynchpin to the ultimate success or failure of community-based long-term supports. The DDRC Board of directors also issued a proclamation acknowledging the hard work and dedication of Direct Support Professionals.

“DDRC highly values the assistance its direct care workforce gives to people with developmental disabilities in their daily lives including personal care, meals, medication, household management, community participation, employment support, transportation, and many other activities,” said Beverly Winters, Associate Executive Director.

Acknowledging DSPs is especially important in Jefferson, Clear Creek, Summit and Gilpin Counties, where more than 183 serve more than 2700 individuals with developmental disabilities. These dedicated individuals often work long hours with little pay. The recognition of DSP U.S. Senate, Governor Ritter Declare National Direct Support Professionals Recognition Week Resolutions highlight service of direct support workforce the week of September 14 week was an opportunity to educate and build awareness to the vital role they play in the quality of services individuals with disabilities and their families receive.

A great example of a dedicated direct support professional is Diane Turano, Vocational Instructor Supervisor at Gray Street, one of DDRC’s Adult Vocational Service facilities. In her 17 years with DDRC, Diane has worn many hats. She began at DDRC’s Margaret Walters School as a Teacher’s Aide in 1983, took a break to be a mother, then returned to assist teachers through the 1990s. In August 1999, Diane agreed to work with adults at our Gray Street site in Arvada in a special assignment providing one-to-one support to individuals.

A key strength of Diane’s is her ability to be observant and tuned in to the needs of individuals. Diane’s peers often seek her out for advice regarding the best ways to work with specific participants. Diane is keenly aware that most of the people served in the Gray Street program are non-verbal. She networks in the local community and seeks activities that provide wonderful sensory experiences, such as tasting freshly baked bread at a bread store, or a birthday breakfast at a restaurant. These are just two examples of Diane’s daily commitments and her many efforts to enhance the lives of individuals in DDRC programs. She was nominated and received the prestigious Peg Johnstone Direct Service Award in 2008. Our community is fortunate to have Diane and many other direct care professionals provide such excellent care to people with developmental disabilities.

Back to Top



Success was In the Air! 17th Annual DDRC Charity Golf Tournament

Success was In the Air! 17th Annual DDRC Charity Golf Tournament Developmental Disabilities Resource Center and the Developmental Disabilities Foundation
The tournament was held August 10th, 2009 at Red Rocks Country Club. Once again, the DDRC community came through with flying colors and helped make this a great event. DDRC relies on the generosity of friends like you and community businesses to continue to support individuals with developmental disabilities and their families. This was the only major fundraising event in 2009 and the hard work and focused effort made it a big success.

DDRC now has hundreds of adults with developmental disabilities who are waiting many years for services. State funding has simply not kept up with people’s significant needs. Proceeds from this event will be used to help folks on the waiting lists get connected with their communities. We are calling this a bridge between the years of waiting and getting needed services. The nearly $30,000 that was earned will help, but is not nearly enough to meet all the needs of the 500 people on the wait list.

In order to make any event a success, it takes many dedicated volunteers and the following people gave many hours and hard work:

Susan Saito, Jacquenette Jaramillo, Pattie Valdez, Marilee and Lou Bruno, Bobbi Lopez, Kathy Lowsley, Jackie Pyatt, Catherine Crisler, Sharon Molloy, Skip Jutze, Erlen Marsh, Megan Martin, Dianne Hitchingham, Nancy and Jim Geiger, Josh Stransky, Helen Pietranczyk, Byron Frinnefrock, Stacy Deul, Phyllis Parker, John Roeske, Adam Wimmer, Peg Thomas and Ron Marquez. And special thanks go to Shelly Richardson and Alice Sanford for their valuable advice.

In spite of the recession, community businesses and friends came through to provide the resources to have a successful tournament. Please frequent the businesses and personally thank the following contributors:

Tournament Sponsor: 1STBank

Eagle Sponsors: Qwest Business and Dennis Low

Birdie Sponsors: Bank of Choice, Black Creek Group, Community Advantage, Cigna Healthcare, Buchner Wadsworth & Associates, LLP, Alan Tedeshi, Center Point Insurance Group, and Anthem Blue Cross/Blue Shield

Par Sponsors: Sooper Credit Union, Carmel Community Living Corporation, and John Roeske

Golfer Sponsors: Ralston Creek Sertoma Club Arvada & Focus 12, Inc./ Wobble Wedges

Hole Sponsors: Mile High Banks, Lewan & Associates, Pat Hott–EON Office

Club House Sponsor: United Healthcare

In-Kind Sponsors: Lets Frame It Arvada, Village Roaster, Fast Signs Arvada, Jim Broomhall, Golf Smith, Pepsi, Great Harvest Bread Company, Kenz and Leslie



Back to Top



Mexican Fiesta at the Robert Weiland Center

Mexican Fiesta at the Robert Weiland Center AVS Graduate Activities Program Provided Food, Fun, and Friendship
Last year their annual fest was wonderful, but this summer they outdid themselves! The staff, families and participants of the Adult Vocational Graduate Activities Program (GAP) worked as a team cooking, decorating, and entertaining their guests. The food was delicious or as the Mexicans would say delicioso! The flamenco dancers shared their skills and taught everyone how to dance, and then danced elegantly in their beautiful dresses as all watched in appreciation.

Back to Top



Legislative Barbecue Continues to be Effective

Legislative Barbecue Continues to be Effective On September 15th the combined efforts of Family Tree, Jefferson Center for Mental Health, Seniors’ Resource Center and DDRC had another successful event. Thank you DDRC families and friends, elected officials and candidates who attended and made this a time when you can share information, make new friends and increase awareness of the many needs in human services, especially in difficult economic times. DDRC again did its part in getting out an impressive number of people. Thanks for your continued support!

Next year will be a big election year and many seats will be up for election, so if you didn’t come this year make sure and watch for the date, put it on your calendar and tell your friends. We want to make sure that anyone running for office or elected officials know that this event is a must, since the average attendance is 500 registered voters.

Back to Top



Dynamic Paint Ball Tournament

Dynamic Paint Ball Tournament To Support DDRC & The Autism Society of Colorado September 2009
Thanks to Mike, Sherry and Grant O’Lear and DYNAMIC PAINTBALL!

This is the second year that Mike and his family have donated the proceeds to DDRC and the Colorado Autism Society. Mike said that this is their way of giving back for all the help DDRC and the Autism Society have given them throughout the years.

Back to Top



Workplace Giving Campaigns this Fall

DDRC is a member agency of the Caring Connection, a workplace giving federation made up of 45 nonprofits that help people with basic human services. Throughout the fall, Caring Connection represents DDRC and the other members to employees— and sometimes we are invited to speak to groups. Many employees make automatic monthly deductions from their paychecks and these donations go to support nonprofit organizations like DDRC.
  • If you are an employee of the Federal government, you can support DDRC in the Combined Federal Campaign. Our CFC number is 68436.
  • If you work for the state, you can participate in the Colorado Combined Campaign. DDRC’s CCC number is 1824.
  • If you are employed by the City of Denver, our DECC number is 0524.
  • If your workplace participates in a workplace giving campaign of the federation that includes the Caring Connection (we call this federation the Partnership for Colorado), you can give through the Caring Connection and our number is 1025.
  • If your workplace participates only in a United Way campaign, you can support DDRC by writing in our full name, the Developmental Disabilities Resource Center, as a donor choice option on your pledge card.
  • If your business or workplace is interested in starting a workplace giving program, please call Dianne 303-462-6584.
  • If you would like a speaker from DDRC to visit your work place, please contact Dianne.
  • If you want to designate your contribution to a specific part of DDRC, please request an acknowledgment so we have the name and can communicate with the donor.
Please encourage others to support DDRC. Working together, the incremental giving of monthly workplace deductions creates monumental change for nonprofits.

Back to Top



Ruth Eitel Honored by JCAR

Ruth Eitel Honored by JCAR On September 9th at the Jefferson County Association of Realtors (JCAR) annual meeting, Ruth Eitel was honored with art supplies and a check for $5,000. The art supplies will be used by the individuals involved in the Art & Soul program and the $5,000 will be used to repair a deck that is very much in need of repair at DDRC’s oldest group home. Dianne Hitchingham was on hand to share information about the Hero Alliance that she helped start and Ron Marquez described the history and value of DDRC to their community.

Ruth’s ideal volunteer job would allow her to “be creative and wouldn’t feel like a job but a purpose.” Ruth’s dedication to being a volunteer mentor with DDRC’s Art and Soul program has provided that purpose. She works oneon- one with developmentally disabled artist Paul Thompson. Over the years Ruth has watched him grow, both personally and artistically, and gain respect and confidence as an artist. Ruth has been employed as a graphic artist and illustrator with the National Park Service since 1977. She lives in Golden with her husband Steve and, in addition to her volunteer art mentoring, enjoys working in her garden.

Paul Thompson has been an active member of the Art & Soul Program sponsored by Developmental Disabilities Resource Center since 1999. He has been working with his volunteer art mentor, Ruth Eitel, for over 9 years. Together they explore and develop Paul’s creative interests in a variety of art mediums. In addition to his art, Paul is an avid skater and has competed in the ice skating competition of the Special Olympics for over 20 years. Many of his pictures combine his love for art and ice skating. He is also very interested in computer animation. In 2004, one of Paul’s pictures was selected and purchased by the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF-CCAC) in Washington, D.C.; it remains on permanent exhibition. Paul’s artwork has been shown at: the Cherry Creek Art Festival, Foothills Art Center, Lakewood Cultural Center, Access Art Gallery and the DDRC Gallery in Lakewood.

Back to Top

 

 

spacer
Contact Us Services and Programs Offered News Support DDRC