January, February, March 2009

PROGRAM OF THE QUARTER

Hardyston Group Home

The staff as well as the individuals at The Hardyston Group Home have gone above and beyond during a weekend storm. Hardyston Group Home accommodated the ladies form the Vernon Group Home. Vernon Group Home had no power, then no water and then no power yet again. The ladies stayed at Hardyston all weekend long.

The men at Hardyston were true gentlemen. Jim and Dick even gave up their beds for the ladies and were very attentive during their stay. The Hardyston men love visitors and are very social but this was more than that this weekend.

Way to go Hardyston Group Home!!

October, November, December 2008
PROGRAM OF THE QUARTER

Supportive Living Program

The Supportive Living Program has fulfilled a goal of licensing almost all or our apartments (15 out of 16) in one day! This was achieved even being down staff. SLP has been preparing for this moment for 2 ½ years.

Last year the program redefined the staff job duties to include a standard of care for the individuals. This standard included ensuring a clean living environment. In addition, SLP challenged themselves to live up to the standards of a group home. This is difficult as unlike a group home, the supportive living program supplies an average of ten hours a week to support each individual. An apartment checklist was created and monthly inspections initiated. In addition, SCARC’s Quality Assurance has been coming out on a monthly basis, and the apartments have been incorporated into this process.

SLP has treated each day as a day in which licensing might come out. The team has prided themselves in providing the best services possible to the individuals we serve. SLP has had an open door policy at each apartment and welcomes a white-glove inspection at a moment’s notice. Each individual now receives rental assistance and with the exception of our married couple, each person lives on their own in one bedroom apartments throughout the town of Newton. The most exciting aspect of this is that all of the individuals are so proud of their apartments! Everyone was happy to have licensing and wanted to know if they got an “A+” or if “they passed”. While we have not received the official licenses yet, we can safely say that both the individuals and staff at the Supportive Living / Supervised Apartment program deserve an A+ for all their efforts.

Job Well Done!!

July, August & September 2008
PROGRAM OF THE QUARTER

Branchville Group Home  

Would you like to go on a “Bear Hunt?” Maybe Karaoke is more your speed, or perhaps testing your bowling skills on Wii. And for those of you who prefer a more sedentary life, there’s always book time at night. Just curl up on the couch with a blanket and listen to “Anne of Green Gables,” “Fried Green Tomatoes” or “The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants.” If you’re lucky enough, you’ll be treated to homemade cookies made by our own residents. Still not enough? Well, you can join in scrap booking, creating recipes for exciting new dishes for dinner, and various arts and crafts activities. There are also walks in the park, bird watching and picnics on the porch. And where, you might ask, can you do all of this? Branchville group home, of course.

Ten amazing SCARC staff are responsible for supporting the six individuals who live there. And what a tremendous job they are doing. Working like a well-oiled machine, they are providing a myriad of activities that have our residents looking forward to getting up in the morning and coming home in the afternoon. They celebrate birthdays, every conceivable holiday, and each other. It’s amazing to watch. The Branchville staff are “on fire.”

They have earned the title “Program of the Quarter.”