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Greetings!
When Sunshine Village closed the doors to most of our programs on March 16
th
– I never imagined that our buildings would remain darkened for three months. Even today, as I write this, we don’t know when and how we will be able to re-open – so the closure continues. BUT through this all, Sunshine Village has continued to work hard to brighten the days of those we serve – and I am proud of all that we have done to pivot away from sited services to providing an array of innovative programming virtually and remotely.
Our newly developed
Virtual and Remote Services (VARS)
plan has been praised by both families and funders alike – and offers engaging and meaningful activities for individual initiatives that can be done from home. If you haven’t visited our website lately, go to
www.sunshine.us
.
We've also stayed connected by giving back to our community! We've dropped off
handmade masks
to our friends in the residential provider system and made
sure to send along
cards and artwork
to local nursing facilities that we volunteer with. We’ve developed our
Sunshine Stones of Hope
project and have shared our programming with Directors of Special Education Departments within local school systems.
I miss seeing the smiling faces of the people who came to Sunshine Village each day – and miss hearing the sounds of laughter among friends. Please know that even though we have been successful in our outreach - virtually and remotely – we have also been working hard to develop a COVID Control Plan. This plan includes comprehensive
Mandatory Safety Standards
to allow for the safe re-opening of our buildings. For now, we continue to wait to hear from the Baker Administration, as well as the federal entities that govern us, as to when and how we can re-open.
We will SHINE again! Please know that we appreciate the continued support from our families, friends and businesses in our community. Thank you for believing in Sunshine Village and our mission of improving the lives of those we are so fortunate to serve.
As I’ve shared so many times in the past months,
"fear is contagious - but so is hope"!
We are remaining HOPEFUL – and encourage you to stay HOPEFUL too!
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Members of our nursing, clinical and case management team offer telephonic services each week for people in our life engagement programs.
Virtual Services
include
programmatic videos
and
clinical videos
on our website – and small group communication hangouts and clubs on Zoom platforms for clients in our Employment Services and Community Engagement Programs. The
Programmatic Series focuses on wellness, creative expression and personal development. The
Clinical Series helps build resilience and independence while strengthening communication.
Remote Services
includes twice weekly
Great Days Activity Packets
.
These themed packets focus on meaningful opportunities for practicing skills and exploring new interests and others skills based on our Positive Behavior Supports system.
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We're on a quest to get from Chicopee, MA to Disneyland in Anaheim, CA - virtually! Our clients, families, and staff are challenging themselves to "walk" and get physical exercise for at least 30 minutes each day to move to across the country.
Each day, they
explore new destinations for a fun adventure, including museums, restaurants, and national parks and landmarks.
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We give back - and spread good cheer! To help everyone stay busy, we deliver
Great Days Bags
to the residential group homes some of our clients live in. The bags are filled with activities, snacks, markers, and other ways to keep calm and engage in lifelong learning. We even suggest ways to volunteer, such as sending cards or dropping off painted stones to local skilled nursing facilities to keep everyone's spirits high.
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We're in this together! Staff from our
Community Engagement Program used their sewing skills to make
handmade masks and ear savers to donate to staff and residents at residential homes.
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We really miss our clients and families, so we organized
wave parades
to reconnect and have some fun together - even if we were still apart!
Music, popcorn, bubbles, cheerful signs and greetings made for
memorable days
at our Main Campus in Chicopee.
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We are
essential to the economy
! Throughout the pandemic, our
Westover Maintenance Systems
staff has proudly stepped up to fulfill its contract and continues to clean all of the hangars and offices at
Westover Air Reserve Base
!
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You've got mail! We've been encouraging friends in our programs to stay connected with our
Message Express. When we receive a message, we send it along to the right person, so there's a fun surprise in their mailbox. It's a great way to share a drawing, a note, or a few fun memories - and make someone smile during this time apart. Contact your program's case manager to learn more.
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Great Days With Great Staff
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Our dedicated, compassionate employees
make great days happen at Sunshine Village!
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We miss our employees! Each week our Executive Director, Gina Kos, hands out paystubs to employees that wish to pick them up instead of receive them in the mail. What a great way to
brighten our days while we're apart!
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Thank you to our driver, Steve Laflamme! He personally made masks for our Westover Maintenance Systems team, so they could
stay safe
while cleaning the hangars and buildings at Westover Air Reserve Base throughout this pandemic.
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We're proud to announce we have received another
three year accreditation by internationally recognized The Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF)! This represents the highest level of accreditation given by the commission for our day programs, community programs, and employment services. This marks the 11th consecutive three-year accreditation for the agency. We extend our many thanks to the wonderful staff that made this achievement possible!
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Supporting Shining Moments
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We've just added more artwork created by our artists with distinct abilities to the
Connected Creators website! Each piece tells a story and supports local entrepreneurs.
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It's important to
advocate and communicate with lawmakers now more than ever! Use the link below to find phone numbers and emails for your national, state and local legislators.
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Sunshine Village - Delivering on the promise
of a great day for the next 50 Years!
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D
id you know we get 5% back from your
for your online shopping?
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Regrettably, the Board of Directors has made
the difficult decision to cancel this year's
golf tournament out of respect and solidarity
for our many wonderful sponsors
and teams from the community.
PLEASE SAVE THE DATE FOR NEXT YEAR
AUGUST 4, 2021
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Main Office:
75 Litwin Lane
Chicopee, MA 01020
413.592.6142
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