Greetings Supporters,

The temperatures are rising, the days are getting longer, and we’re finally able to be back outdoors to enjoy all that our community has to offer again, which can only mean Summer is just around the corner!

With warmer weather always comes welcomed social opportunities here at ACHIEVE, with different activities and get-togethers taking place as we all take advantage of the season. We’ve certainly been busy, as you’ll see from this month’s newsletter.

Construction is fully underway and on schedule for our New Beginnings in Norwich renovation project, taking our former manufacturing facility and transforming it into a state-of-the-art day and community-based services center slated to open this fall. This facility will offer transformational opportunities to hundreds of individuals in Chenango County, and I’d ask you to help us reach our public fundraising goal of $250,000 through a meaningful donation to this project.

We continue inching closer to our 68^th annual Dinner Dance and Awards Ceremony, co-presented by Mirabito Cares and the ACHIEVE Foundation Board of Directors, on Friday, June 30^th at the Binghamton DoubleTree. As always, excitement is building for this incredibly special evening that serves as a reminder of all the amazing things that happen across ACHIEVE every year, and gives us the opportunity to recognize the achievements and accomplishments of program participants, our dedicated staff, and community supporters. I look forward to another year celebrating these achievements, and I hope you’ll consider joining us.

As a reminder, our 2023 Membership campaign is currently in progress and will run through July. For just $1, you and your family can become a Member of ACHIEVE and show your commitment to our organization and those we serve, while giving us our loudest voice.

I personally invite you to join us for the 68^th annual Dinner Dance and Awards Ceremony, and to sign up and recruit others to become ACHIEVE Members. Information on purchasing tickets to the Dinner Dance or joining as a Member can be found in this month’s newsletter.

As always, thank you for your continued support of our organization, and have a wonderful month of June.

Best regards,

Amy Howard

Chief Executive Officer

Thank you WBNG News and Tioga Downs Casino Resort for helping us highlight our Employment Services team and their work assisting and successfully placing individuals throughout the community into competitive, meaningful employment where they can thrive!

We're always looking for new business partners who are ready to hire their next best employee! Learn more about our Employment Services and how your business can have a positive impact on someone's life at www.achieveny.org

We're back at it again with another #WhyIACHIEVE!

This month, we are very excited to highlight Assistant Residence Manager of our Carlton Street supportive apartments, Andy Nguyen.

Andy enjoys working for ACHIEVE because he loves to see the smiles on the faces of each individual. He enjoys the community involvement as well as the events that get all of the individuals together to spend time with familiar faces. He also enjoys being able to meet new individuals and finding ways of further enhancing their lives!

Andy's job is important to him because not only does he work with a population that faces challenges, but he also has a daughter with a developmental disability. His work ethic is a reflection of who he is outside of work as well.

Andy, ACHIEVE truly values your hard work and dedication. Bringing your compassion and knowledge to the table truly makes you an asset to this organization!

In our ongoing desire to offer holistic health and wellness opportunities to our staff, we were proud to partner with Chenango County Health Network to offer Mental Health First Aid to members of our management team!

Last month, the Staff Appreciation Committee and Leadership Team were honored to recognize ACHIEVE's Directors of Residential and Day Habilitation services along with their Program Specialists.

This group of dedicated and hard-working individuals truly help make the programs thrive and flourish. ACHIEVE is very blessed to have such a wonderful, caring, and enthusiastic group as a part of the organization. Thank you for everything you do!

It's never too early in the Spring to get started on some outdoor cleanup! Carlton Street did just that, enjoying the nice weather outside and completing some yard work to make everything look nice for the rest of Spring and Summer!

Great work everyone! The yard looks terrific!

Courtly Circle had some fun in the sun over at Highland Park, where they started with some lunch, and then took it to the basketball court to finish off their visit!

Just some more fun ways to spend a gorgeous day!

ACHIEVE's Broad Street residence enjoyed the Endicott Memorial Day Parade, with front row seats! The weather was perfect, and it was a terrific parade to take in.

Now that Spring is finally here and there's green all around us, everyone can go outside, enjoy the warmer temperatures, and take in all the wonders of nature that Upstate New York has to offer. Core Room 4 from Cutler Pond Day Habilitation did just that, enjoying a picnic and some opportunities for fun in the sun!

Broome Day Habilitation's Core Room 4 has certainly been busy, taking a trip to the kitchen, where they made some delicious homemade meatballs! The smiling faces say it all!

Great job, everyone!

ACHIEVE's Chenango Community Habilitation team have been busy!

Throughout the month of May, they've been all over the place, visiting Cubar Dairy, seeing all the cows, and learning how milk is made from start to finish!

They've also been able to take full advantage of the sunshine with some mini golf to test their skills at putting a couple pars!

To continue their adventures, they took a trip over to Harpursville and enjoyed Animal Adventure wildlife safari, where they were able to see and feed all different kinds of animals.

Finally, they stopped by the Northeastern Classic Car Museum in Norwich to check out warehouse upon warehouse of awesome classic cars.

On May 17th, we celebrated International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia. This date was chosen because it commemorates the day homosexuality was removed from the International Classification of Diseases of the World Health Organization, and is used to raise awareness of LGBTQ+ rights violations and to help stimulate interest in LGBTQ+ rights work worldwide. This day is recognized in 132 countries and continues to grow.

May 21st was World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development! This World Day was first declared in 2002 by the United Nations, and celebrates the vast richness of the world’s cultures and the essential role of intercultural dialogue to achieve prosperity, sustainable development, and global peaceful coexistence. 

How can you celebrate this important day? A few examples are to visit a museum exhibit dedicated to other cultures, learn about another religion, watch an international film, listen to music from another culture, or cook traditional food from another culture.

Thank you, Commerce Chenango, for honoring us with this year's Commitment to Community Award at your annual Gala on June 8th, and for recognizing all the work that we’re doing to be great community partners and collaborators!

Donate Today - New Beginnings in Norwich

Thank you to everyone who has donated to our New Beginnings in Norwich renovation project, which is on schedule to open in Fall of this year!

your Membership has already been renewed, but please consider signing up your friends and family; the more Members we have, the stronger our voice!

To learn more about Planned Giving, or to make a donation, please contact Preston Evans, Vice President Development and Donor Relations, at (607) 352-3280 or pevans@achieveny.org