Easter Seals TriState

TriState Update Special Points of Interest: United Way Campaign • Photography Policies • Our Serve Event

August 2016

Here Comes the Steeetcar!

Connect With Us! Follow us on Facebook!

When you like or share Easter Seals news, you increase our visibility across the Cincinnati community. And shouldn’t everyone know the great things happening here?

The Cincinnati Streetcar is set to launch September 9. The new streetcar and stations include accessibility features that make it so much easier to ride than a bus, especially for a person using a mobility device. Get safety tips for people with disabilities, and learn all about the new streetcar at a special open house event. When: Saturday, July 30 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Where: Streetcar station at 14th & Elm, next to Washington Park

For more info, visit cincinnatistreetcar.com >>>>>> A Cincinnati Streetcar representative visited Easter Seals TriState to talk about how to use the new streetcar. We’re looking forward to getting on board!

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Staff SPOTLIGHT on YouthBuild’s Don Wittrock

Don Wittrock is the Manager of Easter Seals TriState’s Hamilton County Youth Services. He has led our YouthBuild program, based at our Morgan Street location, for a year and a half. “When our participants reach their goals, this grumpy old guy gets all chocked up and super happy. It is always amazing to witness our participants graduate and get their diploma. I am always so proud of them and so happy they achieved this success. Also, because of my life-long love of building things, it always makes my day to see a young person learn how to work with tools and build.” Don grew up in Westwood, then lived in Colorado, back to Cincinnati (Price Hill), then to New Jersey and now back to Cincinnati (Delhi). “Can’t get away from the West side,” he says. Before joining the Easter Seals team, Don managed youth programs

in Camden NJ. “That is a pretty rough town, known for high crime and murder rates,” Don says. “I worked with young people to explore career and college opportunities in aquatic science and conservation. It was amazing to be involved with these young people - tremendous growth and connection took place.” Don has worked with various youth programs for 25 years. He also worked in construction, remodeling, and as a fabricator for the Cincinnati Museum Center. He dreamed of a career which could utilize both his construction talents and his passion for inspiring youth. The job at Easter Seals is perfect! “I was eager to move back to Cincinnati, as I did not like NJ very much and I wanted to be closer to my mom, who has extensive hearing loss and now has Cochlear implants. Outside of the hearing difficulty, my mom is spunky and active, and I wanted to be near for some great family times.” Don and his wife bought a camper for all of the family to get wonderfully lost and create adventures together. He enjoys hiking, backpacking, camping, and kayaking with family and friends. When he wins the lottery, Don will buy a bigger camper/rv and together with his wife, mom, and dog would visit all 52 national parks! Don loves music and plays the bass in his church band. “I don’t know how good I am, but heck I thump and make some bass sounds and get my groove on as best I can.” Favorite books or movies are any-thing Star Wars. He likes to make people smile, bring some humor, point out the positives, and enjoy everything. There’s an Ella Fitzgerald tune in his head, telling him “Just direct your feet, to the Sunny Side of the Street!”

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Visualizing Success - a mission moment from our staff

Amazon Smile

Get yourself a nice new dress from amazon.com! Start at smile.amazon.com and select Easter Seals TriState as the charitable organization you want to support. We will receive a donation from Amazon of 0.5% of the price of your eligible AmazonSmile purchases! Tell your friends and family, too! It’s an easy way to support the great work we do.

Last month, I met with an individual to draft her Service Plan, and she was emotionally drawn. She had been asked to do extra work at her job, but she did not feel she received the recognition she deserved. She was in emotional turmoil and did not know how to get hold of herself. I asked her to participate with me in what’s called Guided Imaging. I asked her to tell me what a success-

ful and powerful woman looks like in her mind. She told me this woman wears a very colorful dress with a beautiful necklace that looks like a rainbow, short hair, and high heels. Next, I asked her to imagine her-self looking like that every time she gets ready for work, and mentally “wear that dress” when she is at work. I told her that she will feel like she is that woman if she tries hard enough, and that would help. I just visited her at her job yesterday. While I was observing her and she was talking to me about what she does, she said she feels better. All of the sudden, she said “I am wearing that dress.” I was confused for a few seconds, not quite remembering, and I asked “What dress?” since she was wearing her uniform. She replied, “the dress you told me to wear at work!” and all of the sudden it clicked. I was enormously happy and I told her so. She looked very pleased with herself. She said she was able to feel more power-ful and more able to handle frustrations and even communicate her needs more clearly with her supervi-sors... wearing THAT dress!

Submitted by Laura Kamesar

Easter Seals TriState promotes our veterans program on August 15 at Military Appreciation Night at the Western & Southern Open tennis event. We’re expecting hundreds of people to join us for a special evening of the world’s best tennis as we celebrate America’s veterans. Ticket sales and sponsorships will raise significant funds in support of our veterans services and other programs.

Sponsors include PNC, Red Bull, Kroger, Heidt Family, W&S, Anheuser-Busch, E.W. Scripps, Modern Office Methods, Sun Products, Messer, Recruit Military, BHDP Architecture,

Mitsubishi, Katz Teller, NextStep Networking, Hixson, Zest, Oberson’s, Tyson, TJ Dyer, Kiesland, Woodward Construction, Neyer, Eukles, TVCA, Union Institute, ASAP Events, and Process Construction.

The event features an exhilarating military flyover, special exhibit, VIP tent, and guest speaker Kris “Tanto” Paranto, Army Ranger and CIA Contractor featured in the movie 13

Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi. A limited number of volunteers are needed to help with this new event. Contact Erica Busch for information.

Our Serve: Military Appreciation Night at the W&S Open

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Donors Take Us Out To The Ball Game

June 29th was a perfect game day, with no sunshine glare and a beautiful 75 degrees! Thanks to a generous donation of game tickets from San Antonio’s Church on Queen City Avenue, the Carl H. Lindner YMCA crew was able to join the many other Reds fans (and yes, a few Cubs fans too) during the afternoon game. The Reds perpetual losing streak did nothing to dampen the spirits of our group outing - a great time was had by all! ESTS would like to extend a special thank you to San Antonio’s church for their kind donation. The Carl H. Lindner YMCA Tuesday crew have been regulars at the church’s “Lunch on the House” free lunch program two Tuesdays a month since last September, and the two groups have quickly become friends. As if that wasn’t enough, San Antonio’s Church also provided goody bags for all our individuals to take to the game. We are truly grateful for such a wonderful community!

Let’s Go Krogering!

The Carl H. Lindner YMCA group and the Blue Ash YMCA 2nd shift recently took tours with Registered Dietitians with The Little Clinic at the Kroger Marketplace in Oakley . We learned a lot about what's in our favorite foods and how to be creative with meals and make them healthier. All the individuals were very engaged and had a great time! These tours were made possible as part of the Hatton Foundation initiative to address health disparities.

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Happy August Birthdays!

Make Your Moment with United Way

Jeanette Adkins OES Rossplain 8/1 Megan Barrett Clermont County TANF 8/1 Heather Jarrett WorkLink/Community Link 8/1 Kristen Humbert Project Search 8/3 Stephanie Brown Production Gilbert 8/4 Sean Brown Youth Build 8/5 Kathleen Mitchell CPS Career Services 8/7

Doris Huff Production Gilbert 8/8 Jennifer Michna OES Rossplain 8/8 Antonio Taylor Landscaping 8/8 Diane Huntsbarger Project Search 8/9 Mary Pierson Project Search 8/11 Scott Beard Occupancy Rossplain 8/14 Margie Adams Occupancy Gilbert 8/19

Christopher Govan Deconstruction 8/19 Donald Stammer OES Rossplain 8/19 Lakita Brown Home Choice 8/22 Sherry Wells BC Enclaves 8/22 Teresa Willis WorkLink/Community Link 8/22 Erica Busch Development 8/23 Crystal Kupar OOD Programs Morgan 8/23

Nadyne Hawthorne Project Search 8/27 Jennifer Hartbarger Veterans Services 8/28 Tina Lindsay Project Search 8/28 Jill Cates Neighborhood Hubs 8/29 Erin Travis OES Symmes 8/29 Fearghal Reid Development 8/30

August isn’t just a great month to celebrate a birthday (see above), it’s also time to kick off our United

Way fundraising campaign! Watch your emails for messages from UW ePledge. These messages will link to your individual donation page, where you can easily sign up to contribute to United Way through payroll deduction, credit card, or a one-time gift. (If you don’t receive these United Way emails, contact Renee Russell). Easter Seals TriState is a United Way partner agency. The work you do helps United Way reach Bold Goals that will make Cincinnati a better community for everyone. Our goal is to raise $15,000 this year. Make your pledge early and get in on a raffle to WIN a day of PTO! See the email from Pam Green for details.

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Compliance Corner

Easter Seals TriState

COMPLIANCE HOTLINE

513-347-1587

Robin Totsch,

Compliance Officer

“If it’s not documented, it didn’t

happen.” That statement could be the compliance theme for the month! It is an absolutely true statement that, if you work at Easter Seals TriState, there is A LOT of documentation that must be completed, whether it be paper or electronic. I, like you, would rather focus on actually providing services than filling out forms. Unfortunately, documentation is required not only by our funders, but other types of auditors as well, to ensure that we are doing everything by the book! With all of the audits we have had recently I was reminded of the importance of a bunch of little things that all of us should keep in mind. Write legibly! We can have the

best documentation in the world, but if no one can read it, it doesn’t help.

Documentation is a form of

communication – and should be completed in a timely fashion.

Abbreviations can lead to errors.

Do not use an abbreviation that is not commonly used in your department, and watch for “text speak”… you know, the abbreviations we use in text messages so we don’t have to type. Those may not hold up in a court of law.

Remember to record the facts. Good documentation doesn’t have to be longer, it just needs to be accurate! If a person not familiar with the individual, the staff, the service, the incident, etc., was reading the note could they figure out exactly what happened? Make sure you don’t insert your opinion into the document.

Complete the form all the way! I

guarantee there is a reason for every single question or box that is on a piece of Easter Seals documentation. Often times we run into trouble because only half of a document is completed and important information is missing. If you don’t understand why something is there, make sure to ask.

Respect other department’s

need for documentation. We are all constantly asked for documentation of one type or another, and a single piece of documentation may serve more than one purpose. While your own department’s documentation is important, so too are the items that Human Resources, Facilities, etc. require.

If you have questions about any of these items please see your manager or give the Compliance Hotline a call at 347-1587. I’m always happy to answer questions and explain the reasons behind the request.

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Healthy Habits

Eating Better For Children and Families Start the day with a healthy breakfast. It refuels your body and gives you energy for the day.

Let kids help plan one meal each week and eat together as often as possible.

Eat slowly. It takes 20 minutes for your brain to register that you are full.

Eat more vegetables and fresh fruits. Aim for a total of 2 cups of fruit and 2 1/2 cups of vegetables every day.

Eat more whole grains (e.g., oats, brown rice, rye, crackers, whole-wheat pasta). Try to eat at least 3 ounces of whole grains every day.

Drink plenty of fluids. Choose water, low-fat or nonfat milk and low calorie or diet beverages.

Serve a variety of foods. For Parents Reward children with praise rather than with food.

Serve food in smaller por-tions. Do not demand or reward “a clean plate.” Let your child ask for more if he or she is still hun-gry.

Read nutrition labels for serving size and calorie information. The information on the labels can help you select foods that best fit into your family’s meal and

snack plans. Bake, broil or grill foods to reduce fat. Rather than cooking with butter or vegetable oil, try healthier versions like olive, canola or sunflower oil.

Snacks should provide nutri-ents and energy, which are es-sential for active, growing chil-dren.

Do not give your child vita-min supplements unless they are recommended by your doc-tor.

Children imitate their par-ents, so set a good example by eating healthy foods.

Keep a variety of snacks in the house, such as fresh fruit, vege-tables, whole-grain cereals and crackers. Try lower calorie or lower fat foods, like baked chips, reduced-sugar cereals or low-fat dressings. Being More Active For Children and Families Move more. Try to get be-tween 30 and 60 minutes of physical activity every day. Sev-eral 10 to 15 minute sessions of moderate activity each day add up.

Include regular physical ac-tivity into your daily routine. Walk as a family before or after meals.

Limit TV, computer and vid-eo game time to a total of one to two hours per day. Encour-age physical activity instead.

Balance energy calories with ac-tivity calories. The energy you get from foods and beverages should equal the calories you burn in activity every day. Increase household activities (e.g., walking the dog, dusting, vacuuming, gardening). These activities are good ways to burn calories.

Include an activity like hiking or bike riding when you go on vacation.

Make playtime with your family more active by shooting hoops or walking to the park.

For Parents Move more. Walking is an easy way to be more active every day.

Park the car in a spot farther away from the store or your of-fice and walk.

Take the stairs instead of the elevator.

Get off the bus one stop ear-lier and walk the rest of the way.

Use an exercise machine or lift weights while watching televi-sion.

Walk to do errands.

Be a role model for your children. Do something active every day.

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Healthy Habits: Recipe

Kroger Community Rewards

Before you go shopping for the ingredients to make this month’s recipe, visit https://www.kroger.com/communityrewards/ to have Kroger give a portion of your grocery bill to Easter Seals TriState!

Kroger Community Rewards® makes supporting Easter Seals TriState easy. All you have to do is shop at Kroger! Register your Kroger Plus Card for Community Rewards, choose Easter Seals TriState as your favorite charity, and every time you swipe your Plus Card, a portion of your bill goes to Easter Seals TriState.

Elote Asado with Cilantro Lime Ranch Ingredients ELOTE (CORN)

5 ears of corn, unchecked

butter for brushing the corn (optional)

strips of soaked husk for tying the bulk of the husk

CILANTRO LIME RANCH

1/4 cup reduced fat mayonnaise

1/4 cup non fat plain greek yogurt (or sour cream)

1/4 cup almond milk (or regular milk)

1 Tbsp buttermilk ranch season-ing mix

1/4 cup cilantro (about a small handful)

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Juice of 1/2 lime

Tajin (recommended) or Chili Powder

Instructions HOW TO GRILL THE CORN

1. Soak the ears in water to cover for 15 to 20 minutes.

2. Pull the husks back from the corn, remove the silk and pull the husks back in place.

3. Heat the grill to medium high (about 350°F to 450°F)

4. Place the corn directly on the grill rack and close the lid.

5. Turn the corn every 3 minutes and cook about 15 minutes total.

6. Transfer corn to a platter and without detaching the husks, peel them back completely, turning them inside out so they form a han-dle.

7. Brush the corn with some butter and return the corn to the grill for about 5 minutes, turning it frequently.

8. Return to the platter and brush with the Cilantro Lime Ranch & sprinkle with Tajin or Chili Powder.

CILANTRO LIME RANCH

1. Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Store in refrigera-tor until ready to use.

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The Branding Beat

COMING

SOON!

As we move forward with rebranding, things can get confusing. There’s no magic wand that magically updates everything all at once. And there’s a lot to update: exterior signage, the website, lobbies, posters, business cards, letterhead, etc. Fortunately, Easter Seals national headquarters has provided a comprehensive timeline that will update things in a logical way. The biggest guideline from headquarters is that the smaller items should not appear until there is an official public “reveal.” We have elected that our big reveal coincide with our Brighter Futures Celebration on

November 9. At that time we will reveal an updated website, a selection of new exterior signage, refreshed lobbies, and one or two updated print materials. All other updates will appear periodically throughout the following year with a goal of having all updates completed by September of 2017. We appreciate your patience and understanding as we try to adhere to recommendations from headquarters. The next few months may be a little awkward as we strive to find a balance between keeping the old brand and moving to the new. If you have any questions about which brand style to use on an upcoming project, consult with Development and Marketing. Until further notice,

it will generally be best to stick with the old brand. Don’t forget that we want your input! Kate Elliott, Communications and Marketing Specialist, will be forming an internal Marketing Committee.

This committee will share insights and impressions of new messaging proposals. The committee will also determine how to define and track whether or not the marketing of our message is “successful.” What will that mean to programs? What will that mean to development? What will that mean to the people we serve? The committee should be comprised of individuals from various locations and services. Please contact Kate Elliott ASAP if you are interested.

kelliott@eastersealstristate.org

Operation Vets Thrive is making progress!

In 2013, Easter Seals TriState joined forces with other area veterans service agencies, and compiled a report that assessed the needs of our area’s military veterans. This research led to the formation of our Community One Source phone line, (513) 878-2200, where veterans and their families can call Easter Seals TriState’s Operation Vets Thrive for assistance with anything from help paying utilities to employ-ment leads and help translating a military resume into civilian terms. A new report issued by the TVCA finds that since 2013, the unemployment rate for veterans in our region has gone down, and veteran homelessness has been reduced by 22%! We’re very proud of the progress being made, but there’s much more to do! You can read the 2016 report here: https://www.tristatevca.org/assets/documents/tristate-veteran-community-report-2016.pdf

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Today’s world is very visual and loves to share, and it’s awesome! We have all become accustomed to snapping photos at family barbecues and immediately sharing them with friends across the country through various social media platforms.

Unfortunately, as much as we love the individuals we serve, as service providers we simply cannot treat photography the same way around them. Here are some basic rules to keep in mind:

1. Any individual in any photo must have an active media release at the time of the taking of the photo.

2. The media release is good for up to one year for the time period indicated on the form. This means that any picture taken during that year is eligible for use by Easter Seals, even past the expiration of the release. At the end of the year, a new release must be signed in order for any future pictures to be taken.

The release does not cover the use of the photos by an entity other than Easter Seals. If a partner (ie the YMCA or a community employer) wants to print a photo we took of an individual, that individual must sign a separate release specific to that use.

4. Obviously, in the moment of an exciting group outing or a great day in an employment

center, someone taking photos may not know who has a signed media release. Take photos as you wish, but before doing anything else with them, find out who knows the

media release status. Go through the photos with them. Delete any photos with an individual lacking a signed release. Only then should you save the remaining photos to common drives or send them on to me for the TriState Update and other uses. It is especially helpful to label each photo with the names of people in them, for later searches and inquiries.

By following these practices, we will always know that any photos stored in ESTS archives are available for use within the organization. Thank you for your cooperation and support in making sure that our individuals are celebrated in a manner respectful of their and their families’ privacy wishes.

Photography Policies

Helpful hints for getting the best picture:

2-4 people – Not only does this mean fewer media releases to check, but studies show that photos impact their audience more when you can see eyes and teeth. So unless it’s a “Look at how many people showed up to this event!” picture, keep it small.

Skip the Cheese – If you can, get candid photos. We love smiles, but posed smiling pictures don’t always show what was happening at the time of the photo.

Focus – Candid photos are the best, but they’re often blurry. Since we want to see eyes and teeth, try to wait for a calm moment. If your candid photos keep appearing blurry, then take a face-the-camera-and-say-cheese photo.

TriState Update Page

Actions For Excellence

Going out on a bit of a limb this month, let’s talk about Pokémon

Go and the Actions for

Excellence. Yep, we believe there are similarities…. so here it goes. Much like the popular game, the committee has been asking all of you to “catch” something. In this case, we are asking you to catch your co-workers when they are demonstrating an action for excellence. Unlike the game, this is far easier (and safer) to do! Each and every day there are a tremendous number of examples of staff going the extra mile to support co-workers and individuals served. Fortunately for everyone, there is a nearly limitless supply of pokeballs nomination forms to catch these examples. Forms can be found on the S: and V: drives in the Easter Seals TriState forms folder >Action for Excellence sub-folder or displayed in breakrooms and common areas across the organization. Don Wittrock shared an awesome example of teamwork that exemplified bringing our talents and abilities together to achieve our common goals:

“David Rich and Building Value organized a team to come help the

YouthBuilders with our project house. Chris Govan and two

associates arrived onsite at the Brewster location and demolished

the old chimneys and patched the roof. This work was out of the

skill level of our current participants, and the staff of BV showed

outstanding teamwork for the ESTS organization by coming to our

aid. I know BV is very busy and has many things going on. These

chimneys were a continued problem as they consistently leaked and

were causing continued damage to our project site. David Rich

offered the crew and Chris Govan lead the team, helping us to

continue our success.”

Don’t delay, nominate today!

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Employee Anniversaries

Welcome New Hires!

Do you have a story idea you would like to submit for TriState Update? We’d love to hear from you! Email kelliott@eastersealstristate.org

Alfred Baugh WorkLink/Community Link 08/07/1996 Vanessa Beaujour Adult Day Services 08/28/2007 Latasha Bell WorkLink/Community Link 08/12/2002 Nicole Boreing OES Rossplain 08/21/2003 Michael Burnett Transportation-Rossplain 08/28/2014 Jill Cates Neighborhood Hubs 08/17/2010 Madeleine Crenshaw Adult Day Services 08/12/2008

Rich Davis OES Rossplain 08/24/1981 Agnes Davis Production Gilbert 08/01/1996 Patti Dunbar Administration Gilbert 08/03/1987 Jason Earhart Veterans Services 08/18/2014 Steve Emmel OES Rossplain 08/10/2006 Chelsea Engel Clermont County WIA 08/27/2012 Yvonne Gale Project Search 08/17/2010 Phil Gray Transportation-Rossplain 08/20/2012

Nadyne Hawthorne Project Search 08/19/2011 Diane Huntsbarger Project Search 08/05/2013 Randy Joseph Agribility 08/17/2010 Brian Losekamp Building Ability 08/09/2007 Ryan Maloney Career Pathways 08/02/2012 Kathleen Mitchell CPS Career Services 08/13/2014 Mary Pierson Project Search 08/17/2009 Sarah Rihm Project Search 08/03/2012

Alyson Roeseler Project Search 08/30/2011 Michael Rummler Project Search 08/05/2013 Debbie Scudder OES Gilbert 08/12/2004 Rachael Shepler Project Search 08/31/2015 Jennifer Sparks Project Search 08/26/2015 Angela Vantrease OES Symmes 08/27/2007 Teresa Zimmerman OES Symmes 08/19/2013

DeLora Wilson, Cost Reimbursement Accountant, Gilbert

Gene Bennett, Transportation Specialist, Symmes

Johnnie Simpson, Job Coach, Community