May 2014 - Harry Meyering Center

May 2014
Harry Meyering Center, Inc.
Employee Newsletter
We make a
difference in
people’s lives.
The time has arrived!!
The 2014 Inservice Schedule is Now Available
There are a lot of changes for training requirements for this year due to 245D. Please review the list below carefully and let me know if you have any questions.
To highlight a few of the changes…
 TRAINING HOURS: If you have 5 or more years of documented training you will need 12 hours annually. If
you have less that 5 years of documented training you will need 24 hours of training annually. We will continue with a calendar year from January 1st to December 31st.
 Rule 40 has been replaced by Emergency Use of Manual Restraint (EUMR) and Alternatives to Physical Intervention has been replaced by Physical Intervention Techniques (PIT). These two classes are combined and
are required for all Program Staff Therapeutic Relationships – this is a new class and is required for all
Program Staff
 CPR and First Aid are now required ANNUALLY! If you are currently certified from Red Cross or American
Heart, you can maintain that certification by taking the CPR/First Aid Recertification Class which is offered
quarterly. If you are not currently certified or if you do not need to be or want to be certified, you can take
the CPR Training (which is a face-to-face class) and complete the First Aid module on Direct Course. New
employees must be trained in CPR and First Aid before they are done with their orientation and working
unsupervised. This is required for all Program Staff
 NO CHANGES to Roundtable Values or SLS Med Admin and Signs & Symptoms of Illness
 Several inservices will now be available on-line through Direct Course – you will receive notice when these
have been assigned to you (don’t hesitate to call if you are missing an assigned training)
o Infection Control – due in May
o Vulnerable Adults and Maltreatment of Minors – due in May (for staff at Homestead, you have already completed Vulnerable Adults, so you will only be assigned Maltreatment of Minors). ALL staff
will complete this training
o Confidentiality – Data Privacy & HIPAA – due in June. ALL staff will complete this training
o Rights - due in June. ALL staff will complete this training
o Workplace Health and Safety – due in July. ALL staff will complete this training
o First Aid Training (this is not a certification, but is what is required under 245D). This is required
ANNUALLY for all Program Staff and needs to be completed before taking the CPR Training
o Emergency Procedures (for Homestead and Prairie’s Edge Staff ONLY) – must complete each quarter
o Defensive Driving – required every three years
Over the summer months there will be a lot of training to complete – mainly online courses. When classes are assigned you will receive a notice. Please make sure to adhere to the assigned deadlines for completing the classes.
I would strongly advise that you get registered for the face-to-face classes AS SOON AS POSSIBLE – it is never a
good idea to wait until the end of the year to try to complete everything.
Contact Judi Leibbrand, Staff Development Director, if you have any questions.
What’s Happening at Harry’s
Page 2
Painting Club
Painting club is a great time for clients of HMC to explore a different medium of art - paint. Paint is a
great activity because there are so many different
ways of displaying it. Over the past two months, we
have tried out two new ways of painting - finger
paints and egg shell painting.
In the spirit of St. Patrick's Day, we decorated various
themes of the holiday. We did rainbows with pots of
gold, shamrocks, and even used watercolors to display a hidden message that had been written in
crayon! We tried out finger paints, which were not a
big hit among most that attended . The texture of the
paint and the thought of getting dirty were some of
the hindrances! The sensorial experience that it
brought helped to broaden the scope of what clients
are "used to," and certainly brought smiles and laughs
along the way.
This month, we had an Easter theme. Everything we
painted revolved around eggs. We painted empty egg
shells and planted grass seed in them and also made
bunnies out of hard boiled eggs. The last project we
did involved some destruction - which again brought
mixed reviews. We smashed egg shells and glued
them to paper in the shape of an egg. The members of
Painting Club were then able to paint and add glitter
to the egg shells to provide a dimensional aspect to
their painting.
One of the amazing things about Painting Club is the
ability of members to explore and create whatever
they feel like. While examples are provided to them,
they are still able to act individually and decide how
they want to make the project their own.
Our next session is coming up soon - if you would like
to try it out, please contact Laura!
Above:
Rosemary proudly shows her latest painted creation.
Left:
Allen and John hard at work with their newest projects.
Page 3
Harry Meyering Center,
FROM THE DESK OF THE GRAMMAR GURU…
Each and every day we prepare and send out a lot of written documents, reports, emails, memos,
etc… How we write and what we say in these documents and communications have show a great
deal about the level of professionalism we have within our organization.
At HMC, we want to not only do our best, but we want to look and sound our best as well. Not all
of us excel in the world of grammar and written language. We hope to help that with this new
segment that will appear from time to time in the newsletters to help give some tips and techniques, as well as some do’s and don’ts when it comes to how we write things.
Of late, we are seeing the misuse of dates and want to help people with how to use properly. It is
understandable how this frequently happens, because Word has a wonderful feature that changes
the dates for us automatically. However, we need to remember that Word is just a computer program and although it is programmed to identify some grammar issues, it does not know them all.
Here is some helpful information about how to write dates correctly.
We have been seeing a lot of this: May 15th, 2011. The ordinal (th) is improper.
It should be: May 15, 2011. This is the proper form.
Here are the rules from my Gregg Reference Manual.
The following rules apply to dates.
Rule 408:
Express complete dates in month-day-year sequence.
Example: on March 6, 2011 (notice no ordinal)
Rule 407:
When the day precedes the month or stands alone, express it either in ordinal figures (1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th) or in ordinal words (the first, the twelfth, the twentieth).
FOR EMPHASIS: This year’s international sales conference runs from Monday the 2nd of August, through Thursday, the 5th.
When the day follows the month, use a cardinal figure (1, 2, 3, etc.) to express it.
Example: On March 6
NOTE: Do not use the form March 6th or March sixth, even though those versions reflect the way
the date would sound when spoken aloud.
Harry Meyering
Center,
What’s Happening
at Harry’s
Page 4
2014 HMC Summer Softball Schedule
Take me out to the ballgame…
Co-Rec Division 6
Date
Time
April 29
8:15pm
Field
JC3
Soberlicious (H)
Vs.
May 6
7:15pm
C2
robfostertattoo.com (V)
May 13
6:15pm
C3
NuStar Realty/Wolfe Farms (H)
May 20
7:15pm
C3
Industrial Fabrication Services (V)
May 27
8:15pm
JC2
Hillside Church (H)
June 3
6:15pm
C2
Culvers (H)
June 10
8:15pm
JC2
Victorious Secret (V)
June 17
8:15pm
C3
Midtown Tavern/Team Fenger (V)
6:15pm
JC3
LaTerraza/Am Legion Post 518 (H)
June 24
This will be our Fan Appreciation Game! Bring your signs and pompoms and we will
have cookies and lemonade.
July 1
9:15pm
C2
Affordable Towing/Spinners Bar (H)
July 8
7:15pm
JC3
Elevate Church (V)
PLAYOFFS – Exact schedule to be determined after final games on 7/8 or any makeup games. I will
let you know the schedule as soon as I know. NOTE: There could be more than one game played
each night of the playoffs.
** GAME CANCELLATIONS ** before 4:30pm will be announced on KYSM, KTOE, KXLP or KEEZ
or call HOTLINE at 507-387-8824. After 5pm, decisions are made by the ump at the field.
ADDRESSES TO FIELDS
Caswell – off of Howard Drive in North Mankato
JC – off Balcerzak
Page 5
What’s Happening at Harry’s
ABOVE: That gorilla looks so
familiar… Oh, because it is
Corey!!
BELOW: Timothy getting his banana after completing the Fun
Run.
On Saturday, May 3rd over 1500 Gorillas converged on
Fallenstein Field in North Mankato to benefit The Miracle
League of North Mankato (MLNM) through the 3rd Annual
Fun.com Gorilla Run.
MLNM is a baseball/softball league for children and adults
with disabilities. Several people from HMC participate in
this league. HMC had a couple of people who participate in
the league, also participate in the run.
Despite the windy weather, it was a great event. And above
all else, with 1501 gorillas all in one place, at one time, we
broke a Guinness Record which was 1064 gorillas in Denver, CO!!
Harry Meyering
Center,
What’s Happening
at Harry’s
Page 6
Volunteerism…
More Than Just a Chance to Give Back
Tom is an individual who has received services
from Harry Meyering Center for over twenty
years! He enjoys many activities including bowling, walking the mall, going to Sibley Park to see
the animals, watching movies, and going to Twins
games. In addition to this, he finds time to participate in many voluntary opportunities around
Mankato.
His favorite volunteer activity is Kids Against
Hunger. This is an activity that is offered a few
times a year as part of the New Ventures program.
Kids Against Hunger involves packing food for
kids in the Mankato area, and all over the world!
The last packing session was held in January
where HMC, along with Tom’s help, packed
enough food for 2,592 kids! Tom’s favorite part of
this activity is that he enjoys helping kids.
Another volunteer activity that Tom has a major role in is AKTION Club Theatre. He serves as the
Vice President of the group, which leaves him helping to ensure that everyone is there who is supposed to be. He is also an actor, and is currently preparing for his role as a coyote in the play they are
working on.
Tom also enjoys the volunteer project of Minneopa Prairie Restoration. This is a program that HMC
coordinates with Minneopa and the Department of Natural Resources to help maintain the prairie.
Tom loves the openness of the prairie, and likes knowing that the seeds he is helping pick will help
maintain its beauty. His favorite part of the project is the picnic they have at the end.
Some of the other volunteer activities that Tom participates in are Salvation Army bell ringing, walking for the Alzheimer’s Association, and serving as a host to HMC’s Karaoke Night.
Volunteering is an important component to
HMC. We depend on volunteers to help our
activities run smoothly, and in turn the individuals served give back to the community through numerous opportunities.
hank you Tom for all you do for the
community, and for allowing us to highlight
your achievements this month!
What’s Happening at Harry’s
Page 7
This month we recognize and appreciation the contributions of our
Nurses and Nursing Support Staff
Homestead/Prairie’s Edge
Krista Wolters, Director of Nursing Services
Molly Kolstad, Registered Nurse/TMA Supervisor
Alana Kliegl, Registered Nurse
Vicky Halbmaier, Licensed Practical Nurse
Rebecca Nickell, Licensed Practical Nurse
Elizabeth Draeger, TMA
Kayla Hall, TMA
Kelley Zachariason, TMA
SLS
Sara Heller-Zimprich, Nurse Supervisor
Melissa Collins, Licensed Practical Nurse
Joyce Anderson, TMA/Medical Assistant
Please stop by the ICF Nurse’s Office and SLS Nurse’s Office on
Tuesday, May 6th to enjoy a healthy snack and celebrate
National Nurse’s Day!
This is a great opportunity to recognize the contributions of our
Nurses and the Nursing Support Staff and to thank them for all they do
to make a difference in the lives of the people we serve!
VOLUNTEER
OPPORTUNITY
Mark you calendar:
May 12
Space is limited, new volunteers welcome.
Contact the activities coordinator by phone (507) 387-8281 ext. 259 to sign
up.
Page 8
Harry Meyering Center,
HMC Employee
Anniversaries
23 Years
Linda Thomas
May 29
21 Years
Judith Reed
May 27
14 Years
Kelley Zachariason
May 19
8 Years
Rebecca Nickell
May 5
2 Years
Marilyn Rachuy
May 14
Anna Flo
May 17
Ashley Thomes
May 17
Lester Cherryhomes
May 29
2 Years
Nicole Goettl
May 29
Cynthia Trevino
May 29
1 Year
Cassandra Banick
May 14
Laura Cole
May 14
Emily Osdoba
May 14
Lexi Schneekloth
May 21
Lori Weinberg
May 24
Welcome New
Employees
SLS 5
Haley Watkins
SLS 9
Chol Olok
SLS 24
SuChann Yang
Homestead
Jena Culhane
Mako Galato
Haley Gazda
Katelyn Johnson
Ashley Klimisch
Maria Cole
Fartun Yusuf
SILS
Jess (AJ) Nowak, Jr.
Employee Birthdays
Brittney Newberger
Cham Odol
Anastasia Hoben
Matthew White
Emily Rajewsky
Kristin Wilson
Andrea Zenk
Judith Grosland
May 1
May 1
May 2
May 5
May 6
May 8
May 9
May 10
Melanie Anhorn
Elizabeth Newberger
Kayla Burg
Emily Prusha
Justin Heskett
Jacilyn Siebenaler
Kaylee Koyen
Emerald Yeshidagne
May 13
May 14
May 16
May 17
May 18
May 19
May 19
May 21
Enjoy
your day!
What’s Happening at Harry’s
Page 9
Stewart Hunt, SILS: THANK YOU so much for the efforts you provided in responding to the excess water in a
person's apartment just minutes before we were going to have a meeting! Your calm and caring response were
wonderful and very much appreciated! Thanks for the great job you do! - Karin Ambros-Ward
After almost a year and a half as SLS 9's Lead
staff, I am stepping down to a DSP position in
mid may in order to focus on my masters degree and internship. During my amazing exAnna Rose Davies
perience as the Lead I got to learn more about
6lbs 12oz 19.5 inches
the inner workings of the company, see many
Born 4/9/14 at 12:22pm
values in action, attend different conferences,
Everyone is doing great!
sit in on meetings, and just really have a good
time. I want to thank all the staff at house 9 for
being supportive of me, feeling comfortable
coming to me with concerns, and showing me
I would like to send out a
what true teamwork is all about. I am exthank you to everyone who
tremely lucky to have co-workers like you all.
donated to the March of
I also want to thank Jill, John and Sara for asDimes through HMC! We
had a great turnout yesterday sisting in molding me into the professional I
and we made it 4.5 miles in am today. Without you guys guiding me, this
journey would have been very difficult!!
1.5 hours despite the cold
~ Jackie Weston
and windy weather!
Congratulations to
Sarah Davies!!
A big thank you goes out to Becky
Gilbertson for driving all of the
individuals, and also to Lynell V.
on her great fundraising!
During the Walk – Becky helped
Lynell carry the sign she decorated
throughout the entire 4.5 miles.
Left to Right: John, Myron, Becky
Gilbertson, Clarence, Nathan, and
Lynell.