John's Softball Game Photos

This blog post is a photo album taken at John’s softball game last Tuesday evening. John is in a Unified Softball League through the City of Boulder's Parks and Recreation EXPAND program in which teams are comprised of people with and without developmental disabilities.

John is a resident at Imagine!'s Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome and had invited the photographer to the game in an audio email last week. Residents at that SmartHome have access to an email program that allows people with limited writing and/or typing skills to send audio emails to their friends and family.

John getting a hit.

John throws the ball to his coach Jill, who works for Imagine!'s
Innovations department and is a volunteer for the
EXPAND program's Unified Softball League.

John plays first base while opposing player Lou Ella, who works
in Imagine!'s Innovations department and is a volunteer for the
EXPAND program's Unified Softball League, stands on third base.

John uses perfect form getting his glove down to field this ball.
John's coach Jill, behind him, had just been instructing John to put his
glove all the way to the ground on ground balls and John
shows he knows how to play shortstop.

John and his coach Jill are pots of gold at the end of the rainbow.

John And Chantelle Play I Spy

This photo came to us in an email from Chantelle, the Site Supervisor at Imagine!'s Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome in Boulder, where John is a resident.

“While John and I are waiting for the bus to softball we play a little game called I Spy. John tells me ‘I spy with my little eye something on four legs and it’s a forest animal.’ He saw the deer! The deer were just hanging out in someone's backyard on Iris Street.”

Check out the deer lying on the ground behind John.

SmartHome Highlights

This updated was provided by SmartHomes Manager Sterling Wind to Imagine!’s Board of Directors in late May. We’d thought we share it with our blog readers as well. Enjoy!

Here are a few SmartHomes project highlights from this last quarter!

In addition to our regularly scheduled public tours, the SmartHomes team continues to provide additional tours to small groups from Colorado state, county, and municipal governmental officials, advocacy groups, and service provider organizations representing aging and elder care, cognitive and physical disabilities care, and special education groups across Colorado and the United States.

Recent special guests touring the Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome and the Charles Family SmartHome have included a parents group with the Community Life Project (who have school age children who are not eligible for State funded services through Imagine!, but have benefited as participants in Imagine!’s Autism Spectrum Disorder program). Additionally engineers with PLEXUS Engineering Solutions in Louisville toured to learn about our project, as they are interested in donating company time and talent to assist our SmartHomes project. Other recent “tourists” include several individuals who are considering joining the Imagine! Foundation Board, colleagues from Albany, New York, and family members who have young children who are currently being served by Imagine!, and are interested in how SmartSupports might be used to support their loved one at home, at school, and in the community.

Interest in the Imagine! SmartHomes project continues to grow, as members of the Imagine! SmartHomes team continue to be invited to speak at conferences, meetings, and to consult with providers from around the United States. Our team is currently engaged in consultation services with providers in Minneapolis/Saint Paul, Minnesota, Long Island, New York, and Bangor, Maine. You can learn about presentations associated with the Imagine!’s SmartHomes project by clicking here. 

Consumers at the Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome and the Charles Family SmartHome are connecting with their family, friends, and members of their support team via an accessible email system (Endeavor Email). SmartHome consumers are currently using a newly developed accessible Facebook application with great excitement as they further connect with family, friends, and co-workers. These tools have been developed by one of our main technology partners, AbleLink Technologies in Colorado Springs, and this partnership continues to evolve thanks to the input from Imagine! consumers and staff members. SmartHomes consumers are sharing their experiences through a variety of blogs: I’d recommend that you check out my current favorite, Imagine! Voices.

Now that our SmartHomes have been in operation for several years, our team is focusing some of our attention on how we can best transition into the next phase of the project to demonstrate how technology and SmartSupports can be implemented in typical residential settings, out in the community, and at work to create a more sustainable long-term care service delivery system.

Happy Birthday, Mandy!

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

Chris Had Fun At The Zoo

This post came to us recently in an audio email from Chris, who is a resident at the Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome in Boulder.

“Hey people, This is Christopher. I just want to let you know that I had a good time with Joan today. (Joan Handley is the founder of “Just for the Fun of It!” which offers tours and trips for people with special needs). I went to the zoo. I had a good time but got home a little bit late. OK, goodbye.”

Imagine! SmartHome Resident Employer In Clover Hosts Open House on June 13

In Clover is hosting an Open House on Thursday, June 13, from 11am – 3 pm at 3133 Indian Road in Boulder, and you are invited. Come ready to have fun, learn, and possibly win prizes!

In Clover, a Boulder company that makes pet supplements, has employed members of CORE/Labor Source work crews, including residents of Imagine!’s SmartHomes, for more than six years. In Clover employs crew members to weigh and package the pet supplements, and more recently has hired another crew to do janitorial work. In Clover employs up to 15 individuals who receive services from CORE/Labor Source and has been very supportive of the people we serve and great to work with. Pictured is Donna, a member of one of the In Clover CORE/Labor Source work crews, carefully sealing one of the packages of a pet supplement.

In Clover is dedicated to holding their products to the highest standards and is one of the few companies to receive the bench mark of quality from the National Animal Supplement Council (NASC). All products are made in the USA, and all ingredients are purchased from tested suppliers, and then undergo independent lab tasting to further check the quality.

Guess Who's Touring The SmartHomes?

Scheduled to tour the Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome today: Steve Valente, Katy Dappen, Leslie Fredrickson, and Heather Baughman from Dungarvin, a national organization of privately owned companies that are dedicated to providing high quality, community-based supports to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.