Friends, Families and Supporters:
As JFGH continues to operate in extraordinary circumstances unlike any in our lifetimes, I’m happy to provide updates to our community and will continue doing so.
Our offices and all MOST program locations remain closed, and our community living services continue to operate on a 24/7 basis. We cannot allow visitors to any of our sites, and we join our government partners in urging everyone to stay home.
We have had four people we support test positive for COVID-19, as well as three of our direct support professionals. We continue to monitor them carefully, and we hope and pray for their speedy return to health. In an effort to further minimize exposure to the virus, we began transitioning to a quasi live-in model at our group homes last week. Rather than a shift-model, we have asked DSPs to effectively move into the houses for a period of not less than two weeks. As of today, we have implemented this model in 24 of our 27 homes, and we continue to work on the remaining homes.
As I have outlined in prior updates, the broad shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE) has not spared JFGH. However, we are deploying PPE as it comes in for the use of our DSPs and people we support.
We are thrilled to share that I picked up a big ‘ol shipment today,
and we will be distributing care packages to our homes. Special thanks goes to our friends at the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) who have been working hard on our behalf to access additional supplies.
In these trying times, I’m choosing to focus on the good, the inspiring. I don’t need to search far beyond our staff. They are magnificent. Committed. Passionate. Brave. Dedicated. Essential. I am also inspired by the outpouring of support from our community for our
COVID-19 Emergency Relief Fund
...Thank you! These investments that you have made or will make are supporting increased staffing hours and associated overtime, greater need for personal protective equipment (PPE), in-home entertainment and activities and more. Your donations are making an incredible impact.
I’ve been asked by staff, people we support and families how long we believe this will last. That answer is, I don’t know. We continue to follow federal, state and local guidelines, which include Governor Larry Hogan’s Stay at Home order, issued on 30 March, and we are not aware of any planned changes or easing of restrictions. To that end, we will continue to take the most conservative approach to our services and supports in order to protect the health and safety of the people we support and our staff to the fullest extent possible.
We invite you to follow us on
Facebook
to #spreadthegood and see the fun goings on in our homes. Share your adventures, too!
Thank you so much for your continued support. Stay healthy, stay well.
David
David Ervin, JFGH CEO, dervin@jfgh.org