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Spring Greetings,
With one last dusting of flurries late last week, I think we can finally shake winter off and look forward to the warmer weather of spring.
Across our organization, vaccination education and efforts continue, and I’m happy to report higher percentages of individuals and staff having received at least one dose of the vaccine as eligibility has continued expanding. We’re proud of our work driving to these outcomes and remain committed to ensuring that we’re getting vaccines and information to anyone who expresses interest.
Through these successes, we’re able to continue evaluating a long-term reopening plan, including bringing greater numbers of individuals back on site, and reopening our Tioga Day Habilitation. While we wait on updated guidance modifying restrictions for congregate healthcare providers from New York State Department of Health and the Office for People with Developmental Disabilities, we’re actively collaborating with individuals and their families to ensure all who are enrolled in ACHIEVE programs continue to receive high quality, meaningful supports and services.
Out of an abundance of caution we have made the difficult decision to transition our upcoming Annual Dinner Dance and Awards Ceremony to virtual again this year. The 2nd Annual Virtual Awards Ceremony and Dance Party will take place on Thursday, June 24th at 5:45 PM, and will include our Annual Membership Meeting. Last year’s virtual broadcast saw over 2,000 people tune in for a night of fun and recognition, and we hope you’ll join us again this year. Stay tuned for more information on this event.
Again, I’d like to remind our supporters that our 2021 Membership Campaign is in progress and will run through August. For $1, you and your family can become a member of ACHIEVE which demonstrates your support for our organization and the individuals we serve. I personally ask you to consider becoming a Member and recruiting others to join as well.
As always, thank you for your continued support. Have a wonderful May!
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Amy Howard
Chief Executive Officer
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We’d like to send a huge congratulations to our March Employee of the Month, Mackenzie Cafferty, an Assistant Residence Manager at Patterson!
Mackenzie has gone above and beyond for Patterson and Wildwood. Anytime she’s needed, she steps up without complaints or hesitations. Her commitment and dedication for the job and individuals served is extremely clear, and she puts the residents' needs above her own and cares for them like they are her own family.
Congratulations, Mackenzie!
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#WhyIACHIEVE recognizes Jack Lezotte, Community Habilitation Provider, who has been with ACHIEVE for eight years.
Jack came to ACHIEVE looking for a way to supplement his income, working with individuals that are eager to learn, grow, understand and be understood. He provides these supports while working on challenges, goals and projects, and he experiences disappointment, excitement and the thrill of accomplishment alongside those he supports.
Jack uses his abilities to help identify and develop skills, while laughing, crying, learning, growing and adjusting along the way.
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#WhyIACHIEVE, is proud to feature Josh Niles, Medical Residential Aide at Wilson Hill IRA.
Josh believes his years working at ACHIEVE have given him the opportunity to help those in need in an environment he wouldn't have had access to in the past.
To Josh, working with individuals is a very humbling experience, and he feels that being able to celebrate their everyday successes, big or small, has given him a new perspective on what's important in life.
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Congratulations!
Jeffrey Evans, Line Leader CWS
Robin Linger, QA QC Technician, CWS
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We Have Amazing Staff!
You may remember the story of our RealBabies and the happiness that they're bringing across our organization. When she read that story, our Director of Performance Improvement, Julye Bush, donated two Joy For All Companion Pets to bring joy to our individuals who want a furry friend!
Thank you so much, Julye! We appreciate your generosity and all that you do to support our organization!
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Juliana Gosney has been employed by Binghamton University for 25 years at the Einstein Café. Juliana is in charge of the coffee station, creating crafted coffee drinks for the students and faculty. She always has a positive attitude and greets everyone with a smile on her face. Juliana's positive attitude and uplifting spirit make the wait worth the while as she makes conversations with the students and faculty as they are waiting for their beverages.
Juliana's managers praise her work ethic and customer service skills. She is always willing to jump in to assist a coworker who may be struggling or to help make them feel like a part of the Einstein family. Juliana’s manager Zoey has stated that Juliana is an asset to her team and a hard worker. She takes her job seriously and loves to go to work every day. Juliana takes safety and sanitation seriously and is always keeping busy, even when there's some downtime, ensuring all levels of sanitation are consistently being followed. Juliana is the first to offer to stay later on her shift to ensure that the customers are all taken care of. She is also responsible for the dining area, keeping it safe and sanitized.
Juliana relies on and enjoys the supports and services of ACHIEVE's Supported Employment program in assisting her with any new task that she may need assistance or guidance on. Juliana is successful in her job and extremely grateful for having the resources that have enabled her to be meaningfully employed for the last 25 years.
Submitted by Jourene Coolidge-Cardoza, Employment Services Professional
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CWS Packaging Services Partners with Yerbae' |
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We're excited to announce our newest partnership at CWS with Yerbaè Sparkling Water!
Yerbaè Sparkling Water is packed with all-natural vitamins and minerals that provide all-day energy. While most caffeinated drinks utilize synthetically processed caffeine in their beverages, Yerbaè uses plant power for a natural caffeine boost that won’t leave you crashing later.
With plenty of flavors to choose from, zero calories and no added sugars, Yerbaè is the best choice for Smart Energy!
We at CWS are excited to explore this opportunity with Yerbaè while helping to provide a healthier, tastier, and more natural way to energize!
Does your business have filling or packaging needs? Find out how CWS Packaging's creative solutions can help meet your needs at www.cwspackaging.com.
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This beautiful lady was very surprised that she got to be on the
Price is Right for her birthday! Mary celebrated with her housemates, enjoying a delicious dinner from Red Lobster and chocolate cake!
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Meet Rosco, Clarkson's New Family Member! |
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Individuals at Clarkson are proud to announce that they have a new family member!
Clarkson virtually adopted a new dog named Rosco and are excited to video chat with him and send him letters, pictures and care packages!
Everyone is so thrilled to start their new journey with their virtual pet!
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Rosco is a virtual pet adopted through the Animal Care Sanctuary. ACHIEVE has partnered with Animal Care Sanctuary to provide all IRAs with the chance to enjoy their own virtual pets, and giving back with donations and care packages for the dogs and cats waiting for their forever homes. Keep an eye out in June's newsletter for updates to this story.
To learn more about the Animal Care Sanctuary, visit them at:
https://www.animalcaresanctuary.org
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Across the agency, everyone celebrated their favorite planet with crafts and other activities that encouraged reducing, reusing and recycling! |
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Recreation Respite celebrated Earth Day by making seed bombs, and going on a scavenger hunt around
Cutler Pond!
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Rose Lane Cookout
Rose Lane had a blast taking in the warmer weather by having the BEST cookout, and wanted to share a couple pictures from their afternoon!
Everyone is so happy that Spring is finally here!
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With the arrival of Spring comes all the hungry birds! Helen Street decided to help our feathered friends and made some bird feeders to give them a break from all the worms!
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Clarkson's Spring Preparations |
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Everyone at Clarkson IRA spent some time getting ready for Easter and the outdoors, making sun catchers that they gave to their families for Easter, and planting seedlings for their backyard garden. Everyone is looking forward to some fresh veggies and herbs in a couple weeks, and are excited to make salsa from scratch!
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Everyone in Core Room 9 were all smiles making their own puppets! Everyone had so much fun putting them together and coming up with fun names! |
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Courtly Circle residents welcomed Spring with a butterfly craft to add nice touch of color to the house, and had fun competing against each other in some friendly games of Bingo! |
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When there were a couple rainy days and individuals at Main Street were stuck inside, they channeled their inner Monet and painted these beachy paintings. They came out great and everyone had fun getting excited for beach weather! |
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"We are each unique and beautiful, but together we are a masterpiece"
Individuals at Helen Street worked together as a team to make this beautiful poster with such an empowering message!
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Core Room 8 had a blast making these beautiful butterfly magnets,
with one honeybee thrown in!
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Chef Kurt's Adventures in Cooking Continue!
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Everyone at Wildwood has been enjoying all of the meals Kurt has been cooking lately! It is a new passion that he has been working on developing with staff, like Genevieve Thatcher, pictured above assisting Kurt in making breakfast pizza for his housemates. He recently started baking as well. Cooking and baking have really improved his confidence, and have been a tremendous source of pride for him. Cooking has also helped Kurt to make healthier food choices when he has the opportunity to decide what he'd like to cook for himself.
Submitted by Trista Parker, Program Manager
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Thanksgiving dinner in April? Everyone at Carlton was craving some turkey and the fixings, so staff pulled together to get the orders in, cook, serve and clean while individuals enjoyed some time socializing over a nice dinner! |
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Who doesn't love pizza!? Everyone at Helen Street continued their celebration of food recently on National Deep Dish Pizza Day by putting together some delicious looking plain and pepperoni pizzas! |
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National Grilled Cheese Day |
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Residents at Carlton Street also joined in on the celebration of food, and celebrated National Grilled Cheese Day! There's nothing better than a good grilled cheese and some tomato soup! |
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Thank you to the Mildred Faulkner Truman Foundation and George and Margaret Mee Foundation for your generous grants to our organization!
The Mildred Faulkner Truman Foundation provided a $660 grant to our Courtly Circle IRA to help them purchase biometric safes. Not only are we able to improve the security of individuals' money and other valuables, but these safes offer an opportunity to continue financial literacy and skills development.
Through the Mee Foundation's $25,000 grant, we've been able to improve site security at a number of our IRAs with upgrades to camera and access control systems, continuing to prioritize the safety of our staff and those they care for across the organization.
We appreciate the support of both Foundations!
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Your Legacy, Our Future
Planned Gifts to ACHIEVE
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The ACHIEVE Foundation seeks to support ACHIEVE’s mission to improve the lives of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The growth of the Foundation is determined by planned gifts from our community and family members. These gifts are the cornerstone of our Foundation and allow us to continue to offer a wide range of programs and services.
Every year, more donors are discovering the benefits of supporting ACHIEVE through their estate plans. These planned gifts are the cornerstones to the ACHIEVE Foundation and support the programs and services of our organization.
Charitable Bequest through Last Will or other Estate Plan
Individual Retirement Account
Stock and Securities
Real Estate
To learn more about Planned Giving, or to make a donation, please contact Preston Evans, Vice President Development and Donor Relations, at (607) 352-3280 or pevans@achieveny.org
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Annual Appeal
Thanks to the generosity from our community, ACHIEVE has
reached 93.7% of this year's Annual Appeal goal of $70,000!
Thank you to everyone who has donated!
But we still need your support. In order to keep that momentum going and continue providing exceptional services to those we serve, we rely on generous gifts from supporters, like you, who want to make a difference in thousands of lives.
Your Gift Matters.
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