Kardel Newsletter, Events & Programs
Maureen's Retirement         
 
We are both delighted and disheartened to announce that Maureen Thomas has retired as our Nurse Consult.  Maureen has worked for Kardel for over 25 years and graced us all with her humour, medical care, and joie de vivre.  Her positive attitude and abundance of energy have helped make the Kardel office a pleasant place to work.  She will be greatly missed by both staff and the people supported. We wish Maureen all the best as she pursues her passion for hiking, travelling, and spending time with family and friends.      

Janet Klok has come on board as Maureen's successor and we are very happy to welcome her to the Kardel team. 

 
Victoria athlete wins gold at
Special Olympics in Austria                                               

Michael Langridge lives in one of Kardel's Home Shares and recently travelled to Austria to represent Canada in the Special Olympics.  Michael captured Special Olympics Gold in the Super G event in Austria. Michael is one of 14 other BC Athletes representing Team Canada on the world stage, and was selected for the roster after winning three gold alpine skiing medals at the Special Olympics Canada Winter Games in Newfoundland last year.  The 35-year-old trains out of Mount Washington and is the lone athlete representative from Victoria. The Special Olympics ran from March 14-24th.

Congratulations on your incredible achievement Michael! 

Click here to view the Chek TV link



Hillside House News          
 
Val and Alex have been married almost 25 years and are still so in love. They recently enjoyed a special dinner date. 

 
O, H & S Wellness World    

5 Tips for Shift-worker Wellness
If you regularly work odd or long hours, use these five practices to stay safe and well, both on and off the job.
  1. Routine: It can be a challenge, but if possible, try to keep the same waking and sleeping schedule on your days off.
  2. Tracking: Keep an ongoing log of your activities, shifts and energy levels to determine whether faster or longer-term rotations work best and when you should schedule your sleep and meals.
  3. Sleep Hygiene: Create a restful sleep environment by blocking out light, using earplugs, turning off your phone and instructing friends and family not to disturb you.
  4. Food: Pack a healthy lunch so you don't need to rely on vending machines for meals. Drink lots of water and avoid heavy, high-fat meals during a night shift.
  5. Fitness: Make time for daily exercise, ideally before your shift. Also schedule time for meditation or relaxation. Do not depend on medications to simulate energy and mental well-being in place of a balanced lifestyle.
Click here to read The Reason Daylight Savings Time Can Give You Jet Lag

Take the Sleep Foundation "Sleepiness Quiz" at https://sleepfoundation.org/node/3493/take
   
 
 
Sentinel House News




Vicki recently enjoyed a shopping trip to the Tillicum Mall with her long-time friend Barb.  Vicki packed a lunch, took the Handydart, and spent the afternoon with Barb shopping and going for coffee.  Vicki loves the Tillicum Mall and says they are "her peeps"; they love seeing her every time she visits.  She has a cousin that works at Winners and she looks forward to seeing her when she's shopping. 

  
Lindsey, Vicki, and Megan got dressed up in their tiaras to go see Beauty and the Beast.  Ron is hiding his face and smiling in the background! 






 Changes to Online Application for Disability and Income Assistance
 
 
At the end of February, the Ministry of Social Development and Social Innovation (MSDSI) introduced major changes to the way that British Columbians apply for disability and income assistance. Here are the main changes as explained by the MSDSI:
  • People who apply for income and disability assistance are now required to register for the Ministry's MySelfServe online service and acquire a BCeID to start an application. Applicants need to start the process at myselfserve.gov.bc.ca;
  • The new application gives the option to upload documents electronically rather than delivering them to a MSDSI office. People who prefer to deliver documents directly to a Ministry office can still do this;
  • The new application is optimized for use on mobile phones;
  • People who are unable to apply for assistance themselves can request that a Ministry worker assist them to fill out the application over the telephone. To request help call 1-866-866-0800. The worker you talk to should make a request for someone to call back within 3 days to go through the application on the phone;
  • The new application questions will have less redundant information than the old application. For example, people without children will no longer be asked to provide information about the amount of child benefits they receive;
  • Some confusing questions from the old application have been clarified;
To read the complete article from the Disability Alliance of BC please click here

If you have any questions about how the new system works, please feel free to contact the DABC Advocacy Access Program at 604-872-1278 or 1-800-663-1278 to talk to an advocate. We would also like to hear about any challenges you are hearing from your clients with the new system; please contact Advocacy Access Program director Sam Turcott. This helps us in our consultations with the Ministry on operational issues.

Henry House News
 






Henry House got into the spirit of St. Patrick's Day and hosted a green-themed party on March 17th.  Here are a couple of pics from the event...









2017 Provincial General Election

From the Elections BC Website: 
The next provincial general election in British Columbia is scheduled for May 9, 2017. In February and March, Elections BC will be updating the voters list to get British Columbians ready to vote. Our website will be updated regularly from now until after the election. You can also follow us on Twitter and like us on Facebook to receive regular updates.

Who can vote: 
You can vote in a provincial election in B.C. if you are:
  • 18 or older on General Voting Day,
  • a Canadian citizen,
  • a resident of B.C. for the six months before General Voting Day, and
  • registered to vote
     
Register to vote
You can get ready to vote by registering or updating your voter information now. It's easy to do online or by phone:

Click here to access the Elections BC Website 
Lakes Road House News 
                                                         
The team at Lakes House also got into the St. Patrick's Day spirit and dressed up for the occasion.  Green beer and giggles for all! 
 
  

Engage! Workshop


On March 6th and 7th the Management Team at Kardel participated in leadership training called "Engage!" by Darryl Stewart from IBEX.  The sessions included time interviewing managers as well as a group presentation.  Feedback from the group was very positive ...we would love more training like this!

Home Share News
                                                         
A sense of community is something that Kardel staff strive to create and toward that end, Kardel opened up its doors to welcome a family of refugees who  live in our neighbourhood. This family joined our admin staff for a pizza luncheon in the boardroom and a good time was had by all! As we ate together, we began sharing details about our lives and made some lovely connections. The family had a chance to practice their English language skills and Kardel staff learned how to spell their Canadian names in Arabic!  
 
Several people helped to pull this lunch together but one person really stood out as being welcoming - Breelyne who lives in our of our Home Shares . Breelyne helped with set-up, serving, clean up and gave each of the five children a chocolate bar that she had purchased with her own funds! And that's not all...Breelyne noticed that the mother of the family was struggling through an elementary phonics book that was given as a gift. She sat down with the mother and the two began working together on the alphabet and pronunciation of simple words. They enjoyed each other's company and are now considering meeting weekly to carry on with phonics lessons!
 
Thanks to all who welcomed the family and a special thanks to Breelyne for her helpful, generous spirit!

 
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