Check Out Donna’s Latest Blog Post

Have you visited Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome resident Donna’s blog lately? She put up a new post earlier this week where she writes about what she did for her birthday, classes she’s taking through Imagine!’s CORE/Labor Source program, and why her job at In Clover is so important to her.

Check it out!

Check Out The Latest SmartHome Newsletter

The latest Imagine! SmartHome newsletter is available online. Check it out! 

Thank You, Lynn and Helen Clark Fund!

Today, we’d like to say “thank you” to the Lynn and Helen Clark Fund for their recent grant of $1,000 for the Charles Family SmartHome in Longmont.

The Lynn and Helen Clark Fund is Fund is administered by Guaranty Bank in Longmont, and was created to benefit individuals living in the St. Vrain Valley School District.

The Lynn and Helen Clark Fund grant will support one of Imagine!’s most ambitious projects. Over the past five years, Imagine! has built, and is currently operating, two SmartHomes. Imagine!’s SmartHomes provide permanent affordable housing for individuals with physical and developmental disabilities, and they incorporate cutting edge technologies to improve the quality and efficiency of services and supports for the residents.

As the first such homes in the nation, Imagine!’s SmartHomes are serving as a model for the future of residential care for people with developmental disabilities. They enhance the lives and independence of residents, augment the effectiveness of staff as caregivers, and provide cost and energy savings to Imagine!.

In addition, the SmartHome model has enormous potential to impact groups of people with related concerns (dementia, autism, chronic mental illness, and Alzheimer’s), as the homes are serving as living laboratories to create and test “SmartSupports” – assistive technologies that can be used in family homes to keep individuals with any kind of cognitive impairment living in their own homes for as long as possible.

Residents of the Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome sign “thank you” using American Sign Language.

This is the third grant the Lynn and Helen Clark Fund has given to the Imagine! Foundation for a total of $4,000 in support of our SmartHomes over the years. We are so grateful for their continued generosity.

SmartHome Finalist For Green Award

Imagine!’s Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome in Boulder is a finalist in the Colorado Green Building Guild (CGBG) and the Boulder County Business Report (BCBR) Best of Boulder Valley Green Buildings awards. The SmartHome is a finalist in the Best Green Multi-Residential Building category.

What a great recognition of the efforts we put into making the home environmentally friendly and to meeting our commitment to our community!

Thanks CGBG and BCBR!

Read more here.

Adjustable Countertops Make Cooking a Breeze!

Sometimes simple technologies can make all the difference. Imagine!’s SmartHomes feature adjustable counters and stovetops. For residents who use wheelchairs for mobility, this can make all the difference when it comes to preparing meals – because they can adjust the stovetops to a level where cooking is a comfortable (and enjoyable) experience for them instead of a tricky (and unnecessary) barrier-filled challenge. This increases independence and a sense of control over one’s life. Enjoy these pictures of Charles Family SmartHome in Longmont residents Anthony and Shelly using the adjustable countertops to fix a meal.

Other cool technology note: the stovetop is an induction cooker, which is faster, more energy efficient, and safer than traditional stovetops.

Happy Birthday, Donna!

Wishing the happiest of birthdays to Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome resident Donna. Make it a great one, Donna! 

Presentable

Today, SmartHomes PR guy Fred Hobbs and tech expert Alex Andrews will be presenting to a group of high school students on the history of services for individuals with developmental disabilities as a prelude to projects they will be working on this summer to create some simple adaptive technologies for people served by Imagine!. We’ve shared the PowerPoint below before, but it is worth revisiting to remind all of us why we are doing our SmartHomes project in the first place – to create opportunities for a population that historically has been hidden away and ignored by society. 

A Brief History of Services for People With Developmental Disabilities in Colorado – And a Glimpse at the Future

View more PowerPoint from Fred Hobbs

Mandy's Birthday

A couple of weeks ago, Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome resident Mandy celebrated her birthday with her friends and housemates. Enjoy some pictures from the party below.

Alex brings Mandy her cake so she can make a wish and blow out the candles.

Donna and Gerald were glad to wish their housemate Mandy a happy birthday.

Lana enjoyed her birthday hat.

Claudette is giving Chris a hand getting his hat on.

“Guess what I’m wearing tomorrow” said Mandy when she opened up this present, a shirt with Snoopy on it. 

Rebecca had a great time giving Mandy presents.

It was a pretty neat coincidence that this birthday card from Rebecca had a blue butterfly on it, just like the shirt Mandy is wearing.

Guess Who's Touring The SmartHomes?

Exciting news! On July 25, 20 people from the University of Wyoming and the Wyoming Institute for Disabilities will be touring the Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome in Boulder to learn about the project and explore possible collaborations. We really hope to create SmartHome partnerships with universities to help test and refine the technologies we are using in our SmartHomes, and to develop new ones as well. We’re so pleased that our neighbors to the north are open to exploring the possibilities that technology brings to serving some of our most vulnerable citizens.

Millennium Harvest House FAC 2012

Residents of both the Charles Family SmartHome in Longmont and the Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome in Boulder enjoyed a night out last Friday at the Boulder Millennium Harvest House FAC, where Imagine! was the featured non-profit. There was music, dancing, art, good food, and fun had by all!

Chris shouts for more music!

Donna shows off her new temporary tattoo behind the bandstand

Gerald gets ink done.

Na na na na na na na na na na batman!

John poses with the singer from Soul School, who brought the house down with thier great dance music.

Lana gets a tat.

The Longmont crew shows up in style!

Rebecca and Rae.

Rebecca is very talented!

Rebecca shows off her new tattoo.

SmartHome Softball

Residents of the Charles Family SmartHome in Longmont recently took time out from their busy schedules for a game of softball. Enjoy the pictures!

Shelly, Toby, and Sarah wait by the dugout for the game to start.

The players take the field.

Shelly rounding third and heading for home!

Sarah is safe at home!

Anthony, Wes, and Loren cheer their housemates on.

Guess Who's Touring The SmartHomes?

Touring the Charles Family SmartHome in Longmont today: Marc Cowell and Emmy Anderson, good friends of ours from the Tiny Tim Center.

Check Out Donna's Latest Blog Posts

Have you checked out SmartHome resident Donna’s blog lately? She’s got a couple of new posts. In one, she talks about running the Boulder Bolder, and in another, she talks about her dad’s recent surgery. Donna is really getting good at being expressive in her writing! Check it out here.

Thank You, J.M. McDonald Foundation, Inc.

Today, we’d like to say “thank you” to the J.M. McDonald Foundation, Inc., for its recent grant of $5,000 to Imagine! in support of Imagine!’s Assistive Technology Lab.

Imagine!’s Assistive Technology Laboratory is Imagine!’s new headquarters for helping individuals served by Imagine!, but don't live in our SmartHomes, to identify, obtain, and learn to use the specific assistive technology devices that will allow them to reach their full potential. Learn more about Imagine!’s AT Lab here.

The J.M. McDonald Foundation, Inc. was created in 1952 by Mr. J. M. McDonald. Over the past 60 years, Trustees of the Foundation have sought to uphold J. M.'s desire to improve education and social programs.

This is not the first time that the J.M. McDonald Foundation, Inc. has supported Imagine!’s goal of using a variety of technologies to improve the lives of individuals with intellectual disabilities. In past years, the Foundation has made generous grants to support both the Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome in Boulder and the Charles Family SmartHome in Longmont.

Thank you, J.M. McDonald Foundation, Inc. for your continued support of Imagine! and the people we serve!

Presentable

SmartHomes super staffers Kevin Harding, Greg Wellems, and Sterling Wind are presenting the third part of their American Network of Community Options and Resources (ANCOR) webinar series “Strategically Implementing Technology in Your Organization” on Wednesday, June 27.

This webinar is the final in a three-part series of webinars to introduce a strategic process for helping providers incorporate technology into their organizations to strategically succeed in an ever-changing world. Combined, these webinars cover the five steps an organization should follow: education, prioritization, planning, implementation and maintenance.

The webinar will discuss why it is essential that an organization develop a "distributive innovations group" for successful implementation and to establish a systematic process to maintain, evaluate and improve the plan over the long haul for independence of persons served and an enhanced ability to direct and manage organizational resources.

The webinar will also cover why is also important to ensure that you have the right people working together to create a priority list, process and plan. Finally, the webinar will prompt attendees on the next steps needed to take in implementing technologies and in creating a process to improve organizations' internal competencies, which involves creating, developing and constantly improving a systematic process that will have the greatest impact on current and future operations.

Interested in attending? Sign up here.

Shelly's Skiing Adventure

Editor's Note:  This story was submitted by Shelly, who is a resident of Imagine!'s Charles Family SmartHome in Longmont, Colorado. 

.. the day started early, I got up, got dressed, ate my breakfast and sipped my coffee in a hurry. I was ecstatic about the adventure that awaited me a few hours from now. After Pramila and Kristin loaded me in the van, along with Sarah and Wesley, we set out on the road towards our destination.

Just the word “SKIING” makes me jump with excitement. Yes, we were off to go down the snowy hills of The Winter Park, go skiing. Priyanka and I had gone a few days back to go get my ski pants, down jacket, gloves and a warm hat. I have been looking forward to this trip for what seemed like forever.

We reached there and parked in an empty parking lot. No one there ?? I saw Kristin call someone and then we were driving again, wrong parking lot, I smiled. When we finally reached the correct parking lot there were 15 volunteers there to welcome us. They were all smiles and so was I. They started fitting me into the ski gear, it was very exciting to experience the warmth of everyone's care and how comfortable they made me feel throughout the fitting process. We then had lunch and after lunch we got back into our ski gear and there we were --- READY, SET, Wheeee!!! Down the hill we went, my heartbeat was racing, the thrill and excitement was amazing!! We then went down a second time and I raced my roommate Sarah. I WON!! I can't say How thankful I am for this incredible experience and hope to do it again!!

Presentable

Imagine’s SmartHomes project was well represented at the National Association of State Directors of Developmental Disability Services Conference held in Sacramento, CA June 6 – 8. Director of Public Relations Fred Hobbs presented on using social media to improve the lives of individuals with developmental disabilities, and SmartHomes guru Greg Wellems was part of a panel on implementing emerging technology.

Also, longtime SmartHomes supporter Dr. David Braddock, Executive Director of the Coleman Institute for Cognitive Disabilities, was today’s keynote speaker at the conference, and gave a nice shout-out to our SmartHomes.

Happy Birthday, Mandy!

Here’s wishing the happiest of birthdays to Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome resident Mandy. Make it a great one, Mandy!

SmartHome Artists On Display

Last Friday at the Dairy Center for the Arts, there was an art show opening featuring art created by SmartHome residents, as well as a performance featuring music, dancing, and singing. Enjoy the photos!

P.S. – even if you missed the opening, the art work will be on display through June 15.

The walls were full of fantastic pieces of art!

Wes, Loren, and Toby pose in front of their art.

Lana proudly points out her artwork.

Toby’s painting got rave reviews.

Sarah is all smiles.

Donna and Gerald rock out!

Donna and Gerald making beautiful music together.

John’s enthusiasm was apparent throughout the performance.

Shelly poses in front of her lovely paintings.

Gerald shows off his artwork.

Gerald, Lana, and Rea all contributed pieces to the art show.