Guess Who's Touring The SmartHomes?

Touring Imagine!’s SmartHome yesterday: UPS Foundation Charitable Giving Committee members. The UPS Foundation has a long history of supporting Imagine!, both financially and through volunteering, and we are delighted that they are so willing to remain actively involved in our mission of creating a world of opportunity for all.

Technology Tuesday

This week's Tech Tuesday takes us to the Art Lab at our CORE/Labor Source hub in Longmont, where they're putting a new spin on a (relatively) old twist. Some time ago, we had implemented adaptive brushes for people to use in Art Classes, allowing individuals with mobility challenges to reach the canvas with their paintbrushes and create their own masterpieces (see Shelly painting pictured above).

Now, we've added a little conductive tape, and voilà! An adaptive stylus for painting on an iPad. Now project the image on the iPad through a projector, and Toby (pictured below) can see what he's doing in fine detail right in front of him. Excellent work, team!

Technology Tuesday

Imagine!’s Annual Community Forum is scheduled for next Tuesday, April 25. We understand that not every is able to attend this event in person. Some people have family or work obligations, while others may have mobility or health concerns that make traveling to our headquarters difficult.

That is why we are using some simple technologies to ensure the forum is accessible to as many people as possible.

If you can’t join in person, you can attend by phone by calling 1-877-668-4490 and using access code: 800 999 446. While listening in, you can view the corresponding slideshow presentation at http://imaginecolorado.org/online-multimedia-events. 

And if you can't join in at that particular time, the event will be recorded and available online (same link as above) afterwards.

You can even submit your questions/comments online in advance: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/ImagineForum2017

We hope you will be able to join us, whether in person or virtually.

Below are some other details about the upcoming event.

You Are Invited to the Annual Imagine! Community Forum

Tuesday, April 25, 2017 from 7:00-8:00 PM

Imagine!’s John Taylor Conference Center 

1665 Coal Creek Drive, Lafayette, CO, 80026 

Join us for our Annual Community Forum on Tuesday, April 25. Representatives from Imagine!’s staff and Board of Directors will be on hand to answer questions and receive input from families and local community members.

Topics to be discussed include:

• The State of the State 
• Legislative Update/Budget Perspectives 
• Workforce Capacity 
• Boulder County Pay for Performance 
• Housing Survey Results 

To attend in person: R.S.V.P. to (303) 665-7789

Guess Who's Touring The SmartHomes?

Touring Imagine!’s SmartHome this morning: Andrea Hall, staff member for Ken Buck, US Representative for Colorado’s 4th District. Andrea asked some great questions about our homes and how they positively impacted the lives of the people we serve, and we appreciate her time and interest. Andrea is pictured on the left with Imagine! Ambassador extraordinaire Leona Stoecker.

Technology Tuesday

This week's Tech Tuesday takes us to our Longmont CORE/Labor Source (CLS) location, where participants are collaborating on a "Day in the Life of CLS" project, which catalogues the day to day happenings at CLS. Participants of all abilities can join in the fun, even participants with limited mobility, through the use of a simple switch. Users can employ the switch to start and stop recordings, toggle between photos and videos, zoom in and out, and even control the camera’s flash. It's another fun way to catalogue all the great things going on in Longmont CLS. Keep up the great work, everyone!

Technology Tuesday

We’ve got some pod people here at Imagine!.

Imagine!’s CORE/Labor Source department hosts a Radio class that, thanks to instructor Jonny Brennan and the assistance of our good friends at KGNU radio (including use of their studio), gives participants the opportunity to learn how to produce their own radio show/podcast.

In their most recent episode, class members Mandy, Bruce, and Brian discussed the importance of self-advocacy as well as the difficulties we face when standing up for ourselves.

Listen here.

You can also check out previous podcasts here. 

Technology Tuesday

Periodically we like to use our Technology Tuesday posts to remind people about the Coleman Institute’s Declaration of The Rights of People with Cognitive Disabilities to Technology and Information Access.

People with cognitive disabilities have an equal right to technology and information access. A coalition of disability organizations and individuals asserted this right in a formal declaration, announced at the Thirteenth Annual Coleman Institute National Conference on Cognitive Disability and Technology, held October 2, 2013, in Broomfield, Colorado.

The declaration remains as important today as it was four years ago, and we still have a way to go before the goals outlined in the document become a reality. We encourage our friends and supporters to read this declaration and to affirm their commitment to the equal rights of people with cognitive disabilities to technology and information access by endorsing it.

Can’t see the video? Click here.

Want to learn more? Check out:

Implementation Tools page for tips on how-to successfully implement The Declaration. 

Frequently Asked Questions about The Declaration. 

Read the article published in Inclusion [pdf] to learn more about why and how this declaration came to be. The article was written by David Braddock, professor of psychiatry and director of the University of Colorado's Coleman Institute, with four co-authors associated with the Coleman Institute.