Now You're Saving - On Gas

For Imagine!, creating a new, sustainable way of assisting some of our most vulnerable citizens meant creating a comprehensive plan for increasing efficiencies while improving services at the same time. The development and construction of our SmartHomes using green technologies and building techniques was a natural extension of this effort.

Our use of green technologies embodies the core of Imagine!’s mission, which is to provide tools and supports that allow people with developmental disabilities to become active members of their community and contributing citizens. Living in a home designed to limit impacts on the environment and human health, and enhance their neighbors’ lives, certainly enables SmartHome residents to contribute in a tangible and meaningful way to their community.

And saving money on energy costs means we are using our funding wisely, and also means we can direct more of our funds to providing innovative services.

Now that the homes have been in operation for awhile, we are getting data that indicates our approach was, well, smart!

Here’s a quick snapshot of one example of energy usage at the Charles Family SmartHome in Longmont compared to a similar home operated by Imagine!. The comparison home does not have many of the energy saving features that make the Charles Family SmartHome so efficient. The difference is significant: the average cost of natural gas per day at the comparison home is $7.86, while the average cost of natural gas per day at the Charles Family SmartHome is only $3.01.

Donna’s Diary March 2011

Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome resident Donna has been keeping an online diary of her experiences living in her state-of-the-art home. This month, find out how a new program on her husband (and fellow SmartHome resident) Gerald’s assistive communication device is helping Gerald prepare to enter the workforce for the first time – at the age of 49! And you can see all of her diary entries by clicking here.

Some big news I have this week is that my husband Gerald and I are both getting our power chairs back from the shop. What a difference it makes to be able to be independently mobile. Gerald will once again be able to move about the home and community using his head switch. We’re both excited about that.

Another cool thing going on is that Gerald is in the process of learning to count to 100 as part of the preparation for his upcoming job. He’s going to counting inventory at Twisted Pine Brewing Company, so as you can see, being able to count to 100 is an important barrier for him to conquer. He is really up to the challenge and has been working hard. When he began this process, he was able to identify numbers one – nine, but now he’s improved to correctly identifying double digit numbers too and is up to getting 40% correct. Megan Witt, a teacher at CORE/Labor Source, set up a program for Gerald which tests him and then scores how he did. The computer program reads a number out loud, and Gerald has to type it in correctly.

Some numbers are tougher than others. He really loves numbers like 44, 66, 77, and 88, and 99, but it’s the numbers like 10, 12, and 60 that are tough, because they don’t sound like they’re written. Another problem that he had but is overcoming is when he’d hear a number like 36, he’d type in the 6 because that’s the last thing he heard. When you think about it, it’s a wonder ANY of us knows how to count. It’s not easy to learn.

Gerald is a smart man though, and he’s working hard on this. I have a lot of confidence in him to continue to improve. I can’t tell you how proud I am of his effort, and I enjoy being able to help him when I can. I can also see how proud he is when he improves his scores. There are not many people who want to put forth the effort to learn how to count at the age of 49.

For leisure, we’ve been watching a show called Weeds. It’s about a family that helps other people out. We watch it together and really enjoy it. If it’s late at night and one of us wants to watch another episode and the other one wants to go to sleep, we’ve agreed to keep the TV on because we can both sleep with the TV on anyway.

On Saint Patty’s Day we stayed home and shared a beer (Twisted Pine beer of course). We also continue to talk to Gerald’s mom on the phone about once or twice a week. She is an absolute delight, and has welcomed me into her family which means so much to me.

Well, that’s it for now. Thanks for keeping up with me.

Donna

Mandy's Cooking Class

Computer task prompters are helping SmartHome residents learn to cook more independently. Imagine!’s CORE/Labor Source department is supplementing and enhancing that skill development by offering cooking classes to residents and others served by Imagine!. Here’s some photos of Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome resident Mandy at a recent cooking class.

Presentable

On March 30, Imagine! SmartHomes guru Greg Wellems and Mark Davis, President of the Ohio Provider Resource Association, will present on Remote Monitoring and Technology-Enabled Support at the Ohio Provider Resource Association 2011 Spring Conference. You can take a sneak peek at their presentation below.

It is predicted that technology will fundamentally change our service delivery system over the next one to five years. In this presentation, attendees will hear about cutting edge, technology-enabled supports that are in place now, learn the status of Ohio’s request to add remote monitoring to the Individual Options waiver, develop a better understanding of the components of the remote-monitoring service as requested by Ohio, and find out how they may position their agencies to leverage this service for the betterment of those they serve.

Way to go Greg and Mark!

Remote Monitoring and Technology-Enabled Support

View more presentations from Fred Hobbs

Mandy's Short Story

Mandy lives at the Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome in Boulder, and is using some of the technology in the SmartHome and in her classes at CORE/Labor Source to write articles for the Imagine! employee newsletter. Mandy is a valued contributor to the newsletter. Check out her latest contribution below.

Kristin and five of her friends decided that wanted to do something together. They hadn’t figured out what to do yet. They kept throwing ideas to each other. They thought it through for quite some time. They couldn’t come up with an idea that all five people could agree on. One day, Kristin finally went to the rest of her friends that helped her do the planning of this activity. She told them that she had come up with an idea. They asked her what her idea was. They were very curious and interested in knowing what she had come up with. It took them all such a long time to come up with an idea. They were so happy that all of them were finally able to agree on something. They all wanted to be a part of the fun. Kristin was very glad they decided on something. She told her friends that she was tired of planning everything they did. She asked them if they could help her next time. They asked her what she had planned for them to do. She told them they were going to see the musical ANNIE. She asked her friends to go pick up the tickets. They told her they would help her with that. She said they were not paid for yet. Everyone was all ready to go have fun.

Kristin had a babysitter for her daughter Camille and was ready to go. At the last minute, Kristin’s babysitter cancelled. Kristin did not know what to do. Camille is still very young. She is at the age where she’s just learning to talk and explore and getting into everything. Kristin couldn’t think of anyone. She was beside herself. She had done a lot of planning and paid for her ticket. The babysitter could have given more notice than what she did. Kristin was angry because now she didn’t have anyone to watch Camille. Kristin was going to have to cancel her plans. Kristin thought of another idea. She called Tyler and Julia and asked them. They were happy to help out. Kristin was so happy. She found a sitter and she could still go and have fun with her friends.

The night of the play finally came around. Tyler and Julia went over to watch Camille. Kristin always left a chore list for Tyler. It’s Julia’s job to watch Camille. Tyler realized he forgot his wallet at home. He dropped Julia and Camille at the park. When he got to his house, he pulled into the driveway and realized his tire was flat. He called Julia and told her he was going to be late. Julia and Camille waited a little bit. They went down the slide a couple times. Julia was tired of waiting. Julia said she and Camille were going on the bus to McDonalds. She bought her a happy meal and an ice cream. She loved it and got it everywhere. Julia was starting to wonder what was going on. She called Tyler again. She asked, “What is wrong now?” He said, “I got stuck by a train.” They took the bus to the toy store. They bought Camille a toy. She called Tyler again and asked him, “What is wrong now?” He said, “I lost my keys in the trash, and I have to rummage for them.” They took the bus again to the bookstore. They bought her a couple of books. She called him and asked him what was up. He said the brakes went out on the car. Tyler had to have the car towed to the garage. She called him and asked him, “What is the problem now?” He said, “Take the bus home.”

When they got home Julia gave Camille a bath and then they read the books they bought. Tyler came home and fell asleep on the couch. Julia tried to put Camille to bed, but she wouldn’t go to sleep. Kristin came home, Camille fell fast asleep.

Springtime Hike

The weather is getting nicer here in Colorado, and the SmartHome residents are taking full advantage. Here’s some nice pictures of Charles Family SmartHome resident Anthony enjoying a springtime hike with his good friend Jim.

Thanks, Dr. Braddock!

We mentioned last month that Dr. David Braddock, Ph.D., was recently named a 2011 recipient of the University of Colorado's Thomas Jefferson award, one of the university's highest honors. Dr. Braddock is Executive Director of CU's Coleman Institute for Cognitive Disabilities, and has been a longtime supporter of Imagine! and our SmartHomes project. Learn more about Dr. Braddock and this prestigious honor by clicking here.

During his acceptance speech, Dr. Braddock said some very nice things about Imagine!’s SmartHomes project. Take a look below:

Were Thomas Jefferson living today, I believe he would stand for equal protection under the law and basic fairness and opportunity for the 55 million people with disabilities living in our country. He would likely stand as well for the additional one billion persons with disabilities living as outcasts primarily in the developing nations of the world. In recent years, we have finally begun to make promising strides toward equality of opportunity for people with disabilities and their families in the United States and in the Western World generally. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, however, has been ratified by 98 countries, but it has yet to be ratified by the United States.

For enlightened disability policy and practice, we need look no farther than the local developmental disabilities service provider here in Boulder and Broomfield Counties known as Imagine!. Under John Taylor and Mark Emery's exceptional leadership, Imagine! recently opened the nation's first two SmartHomes for people with developmental disabilities right here in Boulder and Longmont. These homes were explicitly constructed to empower people with developmental disabilities through the application of advanced support technologies.

Thanks, Dr. Braddock, for the kind words and your dedicated support for some of our most vulnerable citizens!