September 2025
Announcements
Who's ready for Autumn? We are!
- Let's start by officially welcoming our newest team members: Eric, Alicia, & Madison!
- Please help us recognize August's Perfect Attendance awardees: Ben, Burt, Catheleen, Crystal, De'Shaun, Jayse, Katie, Kristina, Kyle, Megan, Ramona, Raven, & Robert! Way to go, guys!
- The deadline to order holiday shirts is 9/20.
- We just received an order of polo shirts. If you did not receive one at orientation, please see Kayce.
- We're having a surprise birthday party for one of our individuals at the Respite Center at 5pm on 9/12. Everyone is welcome.
- We're hosting a Fall Festival on 9/26 & 9/27 at the Respite Center. Please bring the individuals you're working with 8a-8p ion those days. There will be games, prizes, & snacks! (If you have questions about this, please clarify with your House Manager.
- Resumes for the new ISL House Manager must be submitted by 9/30/25. We will begin scheduling interviews October 1st. (We'd really love to see one of our DSPs get this position. Bring your "A Game.")
Staff Spotlight
De'Shaun Frazier
We are pleased to announce De'Shaun Frazier as our August 2025 Employee of the Month! De'Shaun has excelled in the following areas:
- Attendance
- Timeliness
- Documentation
- Performance
- Training Completion
- Shift Coverage
- Team Event Participation
- Positive Feedback from Teammates & Immediate Supervisors
- Displaying Company Values (Compassion, Respect, Integrity, Trust, & Teamwork)
Great job, De'Shaun!
Supporting Families Best Practices Series: Respite for Families
The Supporting Families Best Practices Series took place on November 21st with the topic of Respite for Families.
Sheli Reynolds from UMKC Institute for Human Development welcomed the group and Jill Kagan from ARCH National Respite Network and Resource Center set the stage by defining respite, how to access respite, funding streams and strategies, and enhancing respite and building capacity.
The following panelists joined to discuss their National and State Organizations that provide different types of respite:
Will's House: Andee Cooper spoke about the respite care they provide for children and young adults in Will's House respite home in Oklahoma
Family Respite Care of Nevada: Korine Viehweg and Jada Leon discussed their center and community-based respite care that serves qualifying children and their siblings
Community Connections: Courtney Leach shared about the extracurricular activities they offer for children and family support in Arkansas
Caregiver to Caregiver Respite Network: Val Pedersen and Beth Bostic discussed the respite provided through their network in Massachusetts which matches caregivers with other caregivers who share similar experiences
To view the recording of the webinar, click here. To see the slides, click here. (You can use the panel on the left to skip to areas of interest.)
The webinar references the National Agenda for Supporting Families, which can be accessed at www.supportstofamilies.org/national-agenda/. This website also contains information about the history of the Supporting Families Movement and the National Collaborative for Supporting Families.
Birthdays
Megan Scott 9/2
Lisa Jennings 9/17
Anniversaries
Channelle Sharpley 9/1/21
Lisa Jennings 9/9/24