Mainstream Living

Stories of Impact

Six months ago, Jace was having some difficulties and was dependent on staff for a lot of assistance. He did not know how to deal with other people on the bus who were bothering him, and was struggling with interactions with his roommate. We started by helping him increase his independence by using his resources, developing coping skills such as wearing ear buds on the bus and communicating better with his roommate. He has worked really hard on these strategies and has learned several independent skills around the house such as cleaning his room, doing laundry and using bigger kitchen appliances. He is able to tolerate the bus rides and now seems to look forward to working at Hach. At a recent therapy appointment, Jace did not have any concerns. He is using his coping skills successfully and says he knows who to talk to if he has any concerns.

Jason lives at Del Matro and is a brittle diabetic. His blood sugars are often difficult to control and staff have had to master his diet as well as his insulin protocol. Some of this is on a sliding scale and requires numerous checks throughout the day. On one recent Tuesday, he started out in the 400s at breakfast, ate his breakfast and snack and at lunch he had plummeted to 50. Staff was able to get it up to 100 and then by 2pm he was back down to 40. While this is not an unusual scenario for Jason, it can be a scary one. Serena, the Team Leader, has great knowledge of the protocols and needs of Jason.  She does a good job of leading the team to keep Jason safe whether giving instruction, working with doctors, or providing support to Jason and his staff. Serena credits her team, though, and believes it is their diligence and communication that keeps Jason safe and healthy. She has some long-term staff at the house who do a great job monitoring Jason's diet and blood sugars.  This includes Michaelia Forbush, Geofrey Ssali, Gracie Danilson, Deqo Hassan, and Holly Fitch

Melinda, an hourly member, completed her warehouse training at Goodwill with glowing reviews from her supervisor.

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