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This year Access North proudly celebrated our 30th anniversary as a Center for Independent Living in Northeastern Minnesota. Our staff had a great time meeting everyone at the Hibbing and Duluth picnics, the many fundraisers and all the other activities throughout the year. It has been an honor and a privilege to serve the people of northern Minnesota for 30 years and we want to thank the people of Minnesota for your support this past year. This year Access North provided supports to about 2000 people between our various services and provided 5781 instances of distinct service throughout the year. More than 31,000 people visited our website this year and just over 1400 people receive this newsletter in either electronic or hardcopy. We have a great team here at Access North and everyone would like to wish you all a safe and happy new year!
Access North Partners with Home Depot
Many thanks to Home Depot of Grand Rapids, MN for their donation of the building materials for the construction of a home access ramp for a military service veteran. Home Depot has committed to future ramp projects for our veterans involving the donation of lumber and participation by Home Depot staff in project construction. Thank you Home Depot for your commitment to our veterans!
Medica Foundation Grant Awarded to
Access North
to Support Home Access Programs
Access North has been awarded $5000 from the Medica Foundation for home modification and home access ramp projects. These dollars will be used to support our Home Modification Mini-Grant Program. This program awards up to $500 to homeowners to improve home accessibility and allow homeowners to remain within their homes through the elimination of accessibility barriers.
Give a Gift of Home Modification or a Ramp
Throughout this past year Access North has given out
45 home modification mini-grants to people totaling over
$13,000.00 to improve home access. These grants typically range from $100-$500 and provide home owners assistance for projects improving accessibility like grab bars, railings, lever door knobs, accessible faucet handles, raised toilets, shower chairs, etc. Access North also built 64 home access ramps in 2015 (over 1193 ramps since the program started) for homeowners in northeastern Minnesota. The cost of a home modification or a home access ramp can be a significant burden upon a family. Access North is committed to finding other payment sources for families experiencing hardship whenever possible. When state or county funding isn't available for families, other options such as grants or dollars raised from Access North fundraising activities can also be an option. Access North relies on the generosity of our friends, neighbors and business associates to support these programs and make a difference for the people of Minnesota. You can make a difference for
Minnesotans
in need...
Please consider a charitable donation to our home modification/ramp program today.
Thank you!
Don Brunette
Executive Director
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HOLIDAY HOURS:
Christmas Eve
Thursday, December 24 -
CLOSED
Christmas Day
Friday, December 25 -
CLOSED
Monday, December 28 through
Thursday, December 31
OPEN 8:00 a.m. - NOON
New Year's Day
Friday, January 1 -
CLOSED
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Meet Tina Bush,
Independent Living Specialist in Hibbing
Hello, My name is Tina M Bush, I
am excited to announce my new position as an Independent Living Specialist in the Hibbing Office :) I had worked with Access North as a PCA for the PCA choice program for the last 4 years.
Previously I had been working on the Iron Range area as a Mental Health Practitioner providing ARMHS and CTSS services for the last 8 years. I have met some incredible people along the way and I am happy to be a part of such a wonderful team of people here at Access North and look forward to continue on with my journey and help others reach their goals!
Thanks to everyone here at Access North for the warm welcome (and the donuts)...:)))
I like to have fun! My hobbies include, spending time with my family, being outdoors, painting, drawing, and of course, watching football - I'm a Green Bay packers fan, Whoop Whoop!
Welcome Tina!!
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A great story of Nursing Home Relocation Services and Independence
Gerald has been living and working in the Duluth community for most of his life. Before going to a local rehabilitation center, Gerald was renting an apartment and participated in a variety of community events. Unfortunately, Gerald had a significant fall in his apartment, which would require one year of extensive therapy to regain some mobility with assistance of a wheelchair. During the process of recovery, Gerald made the decision to give up his apartment, as he no longer felt safe living independently. To help develop a discharge plan the nursing home social worker contacted Access North to provide nursing home relocation services (NHR). Gerald met with Steve, a NHR Specialist from Access North to discuss his needs and wants in his discharge plan. With assistance from Steve, Gerald was able to identify and prioritize his housing preferences. By creating a variety of plan options, Gerald was able to advocate his preferences to his support team during his discharge planning meeting. It was determined that Gerald wanted to live in a place where he had privacy, had access to public transportation and access to homemaking services.
With the support of Access North, Gerald began to search for a variety of housing options that fit his preferences. After many phone calls to inquire about facility availability, several tours and screenings were scheduled. Gerald and Steve toured facilities and met with the staff. Many facilities did not meet Gerald's minimum requirements. Others had a waiting list extending out months or years. Gerald was becoming discouraged and was tempted to discharge against medical advice if he had to stay in the nursing home any longer. Gerald and Steve continued to collect more housing resources to keep moving forward with his discharge plan. Steve contacted a residential assisted living provider that was slightly out of the downtown area but on the bus line, and approached Gerald with this option. After a tour and meeting the staff, Gerald had decided this would become his home. He was happy to move to this residential setting in which he had the freedom of living independently but with the safety of 24-hour in home care. Steve then coordinated the move, packed and assisted Gerald in getting settled in his home.
Gerald stated after his move, "I am getting the assistance I need and most importantly I have my independence back." Gerald is very happy living in his new home. This is but one example of the numerous hours of coordination and persistence it takes to successfully provide nursing home relocation services. Access North is committed to supporting the people in northern Minnesota to remain in their homes and communities and would like to thank Gerald for sharing his success story with the people of Minnesota!
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Welcome Kevin Dahler, our new Training and Personnel Support staff in the Hibbing office
My name is Kevin Dahler.
I started at Access North on December 14th, 2015. In fact, as I write this, I am only a few days into my position as Training & Personnel Support. I'm a native of Minnesota having grown up in the northern suburbs of the Twin Cities. Since the cities area was never appealing to me, I enjoyed spending time visiting other family members whom lived away from the cities, as well as family vacations in northern Minnesota. I set my sights on a place to call home in northern Minnesota 11 years ago, to find that country setting that I enjoyed visiting. I attended the Minnesota School of Business and received an AAS in multimedia design. After having worked for a few companies I decided to start my own marketing and design company. Having spent 15 years operating my own company my thoughts were always on more rewarding work that provided more than just monetary benefits, my sights were set on a change, to become part of an organization and a team in which the work is rewarding. I was excited to see an opening within Access North and am very thankful for the opportunity to be a part of the team.
Outside of work I enjoy volunteering with animal shelters and have been a part of animal rescue groups as well. I am also a certified first responder. My hobbies include fishing, snowmobiling, woodworking, and any type of do it yourself projects. I enjoy being outdoors and exploring the entire northland area and having originally been from the cities I am very lucky to be able to step out the door and enjoy the outdoors. Once again I am very thankful for the opportunity to be a part of Access North and I appreciate the warm welcome I have received from everyone.
Welcome Kevin!
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| ~ Update from the Duluth Office ~ |
In November, our Duluth branch office experienced significant water damage. Currently space for meetings and availability of computer/ internet use for consumers is very limited while renovations are being complete. Please contact our office at 218-625-1400 for questions or to schedule a time to use a computer if needed and please note that some phone extensions have been updated.
Duluth area winter group and class details will begin in late January and information will be available on our website and sent out very soon! Here is an update on one of our groups ...
GAME OF LIFE
Winter 2016 Game of Life season will begin on
January 11, 2016
. The dates will be January 11, 25, February 8 and 22. The Game of Life is a social/rec group on Mondays for young adults (14-22) with fun activities planned. Locations vary. Cost is $40/season. Scholarship applications available by request. Preregistration required, please call (218) 625-1400 to sign up!
The first meeting will be at the Incline Station Bowling Alley. We will have Pizza and Meeting then bowl our hearts out until
7:00 p.m.
We will plan the rest of the season's activities at this time.
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Consumer Story:
Helping a family apply for Social Security |
I started working with the mother of a (child) consumer who has Klinefelter Syndrome, Mood Dysregulation Disorder, ADHD and numerous learning disabilities in April of 2015. We met to fill out an application for SSI for her child. She and her husband were both working at the time trying to find quality child care and appropriate schooling for her child. Since then the child's father has stopped working to care for their child.
Over the next few months we worked together diligently to get all the necessary documentation requested by the Social Security Administration (SSA) turned in on time. In August the family had not yet heard anything and the family was becoming frustrated with the wait as it was becoming much more difficult to get the required medical equipment/treatment for their son. We made a call to the SSA. As it turned out her application was being processed in a field office that had a lot of staff turnover recently and we found it difficult to get answers about the status of the claim. After a lot of searching and inquiring of the SSA, they told her she would get notification soon.
The end of September the family was notified that their son was eligible for SSI and they would begin receiving payments. I closed the file and chalked this up to just one more successful claim.
November came and I received another call from the mom. She said the child's SSI has stopped coming due to an overpayment issue. We worked hard getting yet more documentation to the SSA field office to prove the father has stopped working to care for the child. Another waiting period, more lost paperwork on a desk that no one longer works at in the SSA office. After much communication with that office and eventually another field office who was taking up the overflow on claims in the first office. We seemed to have found a Representative at the SSA who told us he would follow this claim to the end! It turns out the overpayment waiver was granted and the family received a letter on December 4th stating they would be sending not only his monthly allotment of $733.00 per month, but also back pay that should have been sent when the overpayment issue arose.
I recently spoke with the mother, and she seems to finally be able to breathe and relax a little about the family's finances. Going forward Access North staff will continue to assist in this case as the mother and father are now this child's rep payee
and they will be required to send reports to the SSA about where and how they are spending this child's SSI.
-- Kathy Kruger, Branch Office Coordinator/Independent Living Specialist
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| ~ Assistive Technology Corner ~ |
THE BENEFITS OF WEIGHTED BLANKET THERAPY
A weighted blanket is a therapeutic blanket that is made with weights to provide proprioceptive input to the body. Proprioceptive input means awareness of one's body position in space. The effect is similar to when you swaddle a baby.
USES FOR WEIGHTED BLANKETS
- Sensory Processing Disorder
- Autism
- Asperger syndrome
- ADD/ADHD
- Fetal Alcohol Syndrome
- Dementia
- Alzheimer's
- Down's Syndrome
- Restless Legs Syndrome
- Cerebral Palsy
- Anxiety
- And more!
WHAT CAN A WEIGHTED BLANKET DO FOR YOU?
- Help you or your child sleep through the night
- Reduce anxiety and stress
- Ease restlessness and irritability in the elderly
- Prevent or short-circuit a meltdown
- Improve focus
- Ease transitions
If you would like more information on trying out a weighted blanket from our Lending Library, please get in touch with our Assistive Technology Specialist, Sheri Cooke. You can reach her at (888) 625-1401 or (218) 625-1400. You can also email her at
[email protected].
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| ~ Ramp Program in Transition ~ |
Bob Brown, long-time Ramp Coordinator steps down - Jason Worlie to take over
On December 3, 2015, Access North constructed one more ramp - this time for Bob Brown on his retirement cake! Bob has been our Ramp Coordinator for many, many years and built over 1,000 ramps in his time. This has helped countless individuals stay in the their homes! Bob will stay on in a consultant role and transition the program to our new Access Coordinator, Jason Worlie. Jason also works with our home modification program.
Happy retirement, Bob! Thank you for everything you have done for so many!
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| ~ Brainerd and Walker Office Updates ~ |
The Brainerd/Aitkin office is currently working with 96 consumers. We have increased our IL/VR consumer caseloads this year after the recent marketing at Aitkin and Crow Wing county offices. In addition, John Hoge was chosen to speak to new Central Lakes College students and their parents entering the Occupational Skills Program at the college about our services, which brought new VR students to our caseloads. Our Brainerd reception staff (Patricia Ross and Diane Stienkopf) have been taught how to enter new consumer intakes into CIL Suite and how to close consumer files. They keep our office running smoothly helping with projects and ordering of supplies, in addition to the numerous other tasks asked of them by IL staff.
Our deck was built by Greg Christensen and Sentence to Serve team over the summer and just needs a few finishing touches in the spring. Keith Bennett is the Representative working for the Disability Linkage Line in our Brainerd office. Having the Disability Linkage Line in house has been very helpful to our staff for many of our health insurance questions including MA, MAEPD and Medicare, in addition to other resources. We have been getting more referrals from Erik Steen at the Crow Wing County Public Health Department, VR counselors from other counties who plan to have students attending classes at the local college (CLC) and even a few from Medica Care Coordinators who have heard about our Fee for Service IL who have waivers that want some IL services.
Staff are always busy and IL staff constantly on the go. Access North staff travels to Aitkin County and work out of the shared space at the Birch Street Center in Aitkin every Monday and on an as needed basis with appointments. We currently have two groups ongoing in the Brainerd office including a social group facilitated by John Hoge for young adults needing assistance with those skills. That group meets the first Monday of each month serving pizza and pop to the consumers, with help from a collaboration with Crow Wing County DHS. We also offer space in our Brainerd office for a Multiple Sclerosis support group. They meet the 1st and 3rd Thursday of each month in the evening to discuss various issues facing people living with MS.
The Brainerd and Walker staff met with our Board of Directors the end of October, which was a great opportunity to explain more about what we do and to allow our Board members the opportunity to get to know the staff. Thank you Board of Directors for listening and giving us this wonderful opportunity! It's great to have a Board who wants to be involved in this capacity!
The Walker office is also very busy with only one IL staff in place, Steve Backholm. Kudos to Steve for working so diligently. In addition to the 44 active consumers he has been working with, he has managed to complete a series of "Advocating for Yourself" classes and start a cooking class in the Walker office. He has hired a Peer to help him with the cooking classes over the last few months. Steve has also been working with just one reception staff for a short period of time. We have now hired a new Receptionist, Amy Batson, who we think will fit in well and brings an abundance of office skills after her recent work of 8 years in a church office. Amy will begin training on December 9th. I'm sure both she and Rita Ray (morning reception) will work well together and help Steve keep the office running smoothly. The Walker office had an accessible door installed this past fall by again Greg Christensen. Thank you Greg for all your hard work in both offices!
We all are working very hard and love what we do to assist our consumers in remaining as independent as possible.
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| ~ Winter Preparation & Safety ~ |
It
looks like winter has finally arrived! With winter comes the possibility of emergency situations, power outages, bad weather, etc. People with disabilities can have special considerations in preparing for what might happen. Here are some ideas to prepare for emergency situations.
Make a plan for what you will do in an emergency:
- Develop a Family Emergency Plan
- Create a personal support network
- Create a plan to shelter-in-place
- Create a plan to get away
Be informed about what might happen:
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Some of the things you can do to prepare for the unexpected, such as assembling an emergency supply kit and making an emergency plan are the same regardless of the type of emergency. However, it's important to stay informed about what might happen and know what types of emergencies are likely to affect your region. Be prepared to adapt this information to your personal circumstances and make every effort to follow instructions received from authorities on the scene. Above all, stay calm, be patient and think before you act.
For more complete preparation details on the above information, please visit ready.gov.
To see an example of an emergency checklist for your car and home, visit the Minnesota Department of Health website.
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LUMPS OF COAL
Hopefully we don't get too many lumps of coal
in our stockings (unless they are like this) ...
16 oz. bag of oreos
1 bag of large marshmallows
4 Tbsp. butter
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Warmest Wishes for a wonderful holiday
from the staff at Access North.
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