Greetings, friends and family of Imagine.

The life of Imagine was sombered this month by the loss of Stan Parry, father of Chris and an important member of the Imagine family.  Stan passed away August 19 and will be missed.   See below for our appreciation of his life with Imagine.

In September we welcome Eliot to our family. He will be making family with Cissi, a consultant and caregiver with Imagine and the founder of one of our partner agencies.

As ever, if you have any questions, concerns or feedback, I'll be glad to hear from you.  You can write me here.

The Imagine family lost a friend and a parent when Stan Parry passed away on August 19. First, and most importantly, as the father to our friend, Chris, about whom he careddeeply. Second, he was a real advocate for people with developmental disabilities having worked with, helped to start and supported a variety of agencies on both sides of the Santa Cruz Mountains.  

He, with his wife, Melinda, have also been great supporters of Imagine- generous in many ways with time, thought and financial support.  Most of my conversations with Stan began with an email "please call." I learned that the phone call might be very focused on a new plan for his son's welfare or on the long-term impact of some new policy on Imagine's business model and what we planned to do about it. Stan's counsel was as solid and appreciated as all the other ways he supported Imagine. We're less wise without him, but we've learned a lot through him.

Many important things have been made possible by Stan and Melinda's generosity including the low-cost high-quality meals at the annual Gathering of Extraordinary People, holiday and birthday celebrations at no cost for people with developmental disabilities, trips and activities that made life more meaningful for the people we serve. It's fair to say that Stan and Melinda's gifts to Imagine have been foundational to the generosity our culture.

We bid a sad and grateful farewell to our friend and commit ourselves to caring for his sons, his son's peers and our community as Stan always encouraged us to do. 

-Submitted by Doug

If you've thought about supporting Imagine with time and energy and thoughtfulness, please consider applying to join our board. The qualifications are fairly basic and the board is particularly interested in new members who add to the skills and diversity available and who have a history of community involvement.  If you are interested, you can start by contacting   Lili or  me. Don't be shy, either.  We'd like to hear from you.

-Submitted by Doug

This is a note to individuals and providers and anyone who would like to bowl.  We are looking into developing or joining a bowling league and we're interested in who might be interested in rolling thunder with us.  I'd love to hear from anyone who thinks this sounds like something they'd like to participate in.  Please email me with your interest, questions and ideas.

This was actually a suggestion from Stan Parry so we'd really like to find a way to make it happen if there's interest.  (Stan was much too practical to want it to happen anyway if there isn't.)

-Submitted by Doug

Our Person-Centered Services Incubator Project has been a program of Imagine's for almost two years, but thanks to a grant from Monterey Peninsula Foundation, host of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and the PURE Insurance Championship, we will soon start promoting the project in hope of helping two or three individuals or groups found new programs.

The principle behind this project is to improve access to needed services by sharing resources and mentoring people to start their own agencies or programs. The state has noted substantial disparities in service usage among people with developmental disabilities, especially along ethnic, language and geographical lines.  Our goal is to help individuals, families and groups who know what they need, but can't find it, to confidently pass the barriers to establishing their own services.

If you know of anyone who is not receiving needed supports or not receiving the support they need in a fully inclusive manner, and who might want to take the initiative, please forward them this newsletter or invite them to write to me at [email protected].

Ryan has been an unexpected joy in my life, and I know he is well loved throughout Imagine. It's been inspiring getting to know him over the last few months while I've been blessed to be his housemate in Aptos. I've never known anyone more ready to giggle, generous with hi-fives, happier about pajamas, or as immediately thrilled to greet the morning. And I'm not exaggerating at all! In fact, he was recently awarded "Happiest Morning Person" at Camp Harmon summer camp and I can tell you, that was probably clear by a mile. 

Ryan is a dedicated fan of the Harry Potter movies, enjoys long car rides, walks in the woods, and outings for pizza and beer. He also has a really incredible team, and I'm sure Heather, Julianna, and Elizabeth will agree that Ryan's lovely personality really rewards anyone who gets to spend time with him (one-on-one and and in pleasant silence, that is). (And welcome, Patrick, Ry's new housemate). If you see Ryan around, lucky you, and keep your eyes out for a hi-five opportunity.

Alexis with Ryan

Alexis has excelled in applying our mission statement within every aspect of their work here at Imagine since the day they came on board. Alexis has been a blessing in many clients' lives by maintaining a strong, committed support foundation for services and by providing thoughtful feedback on how to improve specific client programs. Additionally, in a broader sense, Alexis has been a passionate advocate for this population and other marginalized groups by raising awareness and challenging people's perspectives on certain topics that often go unnoticed. I have personally worked alongside Alexis for many years and they truly made my daily work experience more enriching and colorful. At one point I had the pleasure of supervising them and let me tell you, they are the true definition of going above and beyond. So much though went into Alexis' work here, both in the office and in client programs, and it is seriously so inspiring. I have never met anyone in this field with as much compassion and understanding as Alexis, and I know that will shine through for all their future endeavors. With that said, we will certainly miss Alexis in the office and at many of the houses Alexis has graced with their kind attitude and immense dedication.

-Submitted by Cherice