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Greetings Supporter,
The days are getting shorter, the mornings a little brisker, and the leaves on the trees are starting to change to the beautiful colors we look forward to all year long. It’s safe to say that Fall is officially here!
Fall activities are in full force across ACHIEVE, as you’ll see in this month’s newsletter, and it’s a nice reminder of all the wonderful things we have in our community this time of year.
Each September, we join provider agencies across the nation in recognizing our invaluable Direct Support Professionals as part of National Direct Support Professional Recognition Week. Starting on September 10th this year, the week once again served as an incredibly important reminder of the hard work, talents, compassion and dedication our Direct Support Professionals bring to those in their care every single day, and the positive impact they have on the lives of individuals in meaningful ways. I’d like to express my gratitude once again to the hundreds of Direct Support Professionals at ACHIEVE, and their commitment as the backbone of this agency to enhancing the lives of thousands of individuals of varying abilities.
Sunday, October 8th marks the return to Norwich for our 5th annual Half-K Classic – Walk & Roll, presented by NBT Bank. This 0.6 mile fun walk, run, or ride in a classic car starts at 11:00 AM in downtown Norwich and ends with a lunch reception, including admission, to the always-impressive Northeast Classic Car Museum. Whether you’re a classic car enthusiast, runner, or just want to walk in beautiful downtown Norwich on a Fall morning, I invite you to join us for the Half-K Classic – Walk & Roll as we wrap up this year’s signature fundraisers. Information on buying your tickets can be found in the newsletter below.
Speaking of Norwich, I’m happy to share that our New Beginnings in Norwich renovation project is progressing nicely! Excitement is certainly building in the Norwich community for this project’s completion, and there’s still time for you to donate and help us get another step closer to our $250,000 public fundraising campaign. If you’d like to contribute to this project’s legacy, you can do so by clicking here.
I hope you enjoy this month’s newsletter and all the exciting things we’re doing across ACHIEVE. As always, thank you for your continued support of our organization and those we support!
Best regards,
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Amy Howard
Chief Executive Officer
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Please Join Us for Our 5th Annual Half-K Classic! | |
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Join us Sunday, October 8th at East Park in Norwich at 11:00 AM for our 5th annual Half-K Classic - Walk & Roll, presented by NBT Bank!
Enjoy the Fall weather on a 0.6 mile walk through downtown Norwich, ending with a lunch reception at the Northeast Classic Car Museum!
Registration is $40, and includes a free ticket to the Northeast Classic Car Museum, sticker, race bib & commemorative t-shirt.
The Half-K Classic - Walk & Roll and our other signature events help us fund the crucial programming ACHIEVE provides. Please help us spread the word and get involved! Share with your friends and family! Start a friendly competition with coworkers...the options are endless!
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Direct Support Professional's Week | |
September 10th was the start of Direct Support Professionals Week in New York State, and always serves as a perfect opportunity to highlight the dedicated, innovative direct support workforce that is the heart and soul of ACHIEVE. Direct Support Professionals are entrusted with the awesome responsibility of walking beside the individuals we serve so that they may lead and live their best lives. On behalf of ACHIEVE's Board of Directors and Executive Management Team, we wanted to express our gratitude to all DSPs across our organization and New York State. | |
Discover the Rewards of a Career in Direct Support! | |
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For this month’s edition of #WhyIACHIEVE, we are highlighting Ashley Fowlston!
Ashley is currently a Day Habilitation Specialist and has been working for ACHIEVE for over four years! She enjoys working for ACHIEVE because of the difference she can make in someone’s day; encouraging the individuals in her care to create meaningful goals, and her part in bringing them to reality, all while providing help and companionship along the way.
Ashley's job is important to her because of the new relationships she can make with everyone she meets, seeing them laugh, smile, and just enjoy having a meaningful day.
Simply put, Ashley, your love for the individuals we support is the reason why you ACHIEVE!
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Congratulations to our
August Promotions
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Nyema Fredericks - HR Generalist II
Tanyelle Newman - Recruiting and Retention Coordinator
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Members of our Staff Appreciation Committee and leadership team were #ACHIEVEProud to specially recognize our IT department for all their contributions to the agency!
Touching every corner of our agency at all hours of the day, our IT team are responsible for all the technology needs of the organization, and were a critical piece of our transition to a remote workforce during COVID, always doing their work with smiles.
Thank you to the members of our IT team for all that you do to keep the agency running at its best! We appreciate it!
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Showing Human Resources our Appreciation | |
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Our Staff Appreciation Committee and Leadership Team were busy in September, taking some time to recognize our amazing Human Resources team!
The backbone of our organization, the Human Resources team are the first smiling faces that a new employee sees when they join our team, but are also responsible in so many different ways for making sure the day-to-day operations of ACHIEVE keep running smoothly, from recruitment, to benefits, to conflict resolution.
Thank you Human Resources team! You do so much for so many employees, always with a smile and warmth!
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The River Road residence visited the Ross Park Zoo to check out Lantern Fest and the sculptures set up throughout the zoo. They had a great time, stopping to see the animals, and said that their favorite part was checking out all of the scenery that the Zoo has to offer. After an evening of exploring, they were able to enjoy a nice hot cocoa! | |
Apple Picking With Community Habilitation! | |
Fall is upon us, and you know what that means? Apple picking! This month, Chenango Community Habilitation took a trip to an orchard and picked some delicious apples to snack on and enjoy. Everyone agreed that it would be a great idea to make yummy apple pies with the leftover apples, so stay tuned! | |
With summer coming to an end, there won't be too many more beautiful days outside to enjoy the sunshine, so to enjoy one of the few nice days left for the season, the folks at River Road took a nice relaxing walk outside in some really nice weather! | |
With the changing of the seasons, our On the Pond ~ At Cutler crew had a Fall picture day! Everyone had a really fun time, and the pictures show it! | |
ACHIEVE's River Road residence were all over the place in September, but for this story, they stayed home for some fun in the kitchen! What is it they're making? Well, they made homemade strawberry rhubarb pie, and it turned out PERFECTLY! What a fantastic job, and judging by the picture, it's safe to say it was delicious! | |
The Sterry Drive staff and individuals took a trip up to Niagara Falls to take in the wonders of the falls. Everyone had a blast and it was quite the experience to witness how massive they actually are in person! | |
Homemade Decorations at River Road IRA | |
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What's better than buying your decorations at the store? Making them at home, of course!
River Road created their own pumpkin patch to ring in the season!
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Every year, everyone at the Chapin Street house look forward to going to Blues on the Bridge in Binghamton! This year was a perfect day for everyone to enjoy the live music, and the smiles certainly prove it! | |
For our golf enthusiasts, the season is quickly coming to an end, and everyone at River Road thought it would be great to get one more game of mini golf in before the season ends! | |
This month, Lorena and her Community Habilitation provider participated in the Alzheimer's Walk. They made purple tie-dyed t-shirts to show their support for this great cause, and even found a familiar friend while there! | |
A Trip to Creekside Industries | |
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This month several Chenango County Community Prevocational Services participants took a trip to Creekside Industries in Oneonta, a manufacturing facility overseen by The Arc Otsego. While visiting, they were able to learn about all the different types of work they perform there, as well as build a new connection within their community.
This trip ended up resulting in a partnership with Creekside Recycling Center, a new location which will further assist in these individuals' skill development and growth.
Everyone had so much fun while participating in this visit, and are looking forward to continuing to build and foster further relationships with Creekside, which will help lead to meaningful employment within their community!
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Annually, the United Way of Broome County hosts their "Day of Caring", where community members partner up with local nonprofits and businesses in the area to volunteer and help with a variety of different needs they have. In September, ACHIEVE had the pleasure to volunteer and help out Roberson Museum with some landscaping outside! | |
Recreation Respite Road Trippers | |
Let's check in with the Recreation Respite team, who were certainly busy all September. They took at trip to the Airport Inn in Binghamton and had some of their famous wings, did some shopping at Destiny USA, attended the inaugural Renaissance Fair in Norwich, and ended their busy month by relaxing at Port Dickinson Park! | |
Who says you need Spring to be here to get started on some home cleaning projects? Ben certainly didn't think so, joining our Maintenance team to assist with power washing the house, ensuring that everything came out squeaky clean! | |
Fun Times at Animal Adventure | |
Animal Adventure's new addition of their drive through safari is always a fun time. Our Chenango Community Habilitation team were able to enjoy the animals from the luxury of their vehicle, feeding some of the hungrier ones! | |
Tammy was hankering for some apples and some pie, so she decided to bake a homemade apple pie to cure that craving. The whole town of Norwich probably got to enjoy that fresh apple pie smell! | |
Our On the Pond ~ At Cutler team absolutely loves going to Frog Pond to check out the animals and the scenery. Last month they took a trip to see their furry friends, with some even getting the chance to feed them at meal time! | |
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DJ is one of the hardest workers and most giving individuals that her Employment Services provider, Renee, has ever met and had the pleasure to work with.
DJ came to ACHIEVE from the BOCES program back in 2011, trying her hand at several different jobs over the next couple years, including working in fast food and as a Residence Aide for the Racker Center. DJ is also very active in her community, serving as a volunteer fire fighter for the Owego Fire Department, loving everything about it and enjoying giving back to her community.
By 2018, DJ was very ready and determined to try her hand at something new, and with Renee's help, she applied for a Security Guard position at Tioga Downs Casino. Tioga Downs offered her the position and she accepted.
DJ spends her shifts checking IDs, supervising the drop team, securing the poker chips for the dealers, roaming the floors for deterrence and security checks, and assisting customers with questions. The most common question she receives is “Which way to the winning machines?”, which she loves to play along with, telling them to take their pick of any machine.
DJ also assists with special events at the casino, such as concerts, racing and parties. DJ loves what she does for a living and would like to someday pursue a higher level security position, but is happy where she's currently at.
DJ’s journey shows how ACHIEVE strives to bring the best out of the individuals that we serve, assisting them with maintaining successful, meaningful employment.
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Are you an employer looking to diversify your workforce with your next best employee? We have a number of skilled individuals looking for their chance at meaningful employment.
You can learn more by contacting Samantha Griffiths, ACHIEVE's Employment Services Manager, at sgriffiths@achieveny.org!
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Each year, Boscov’s selects ACHIEVE as one of their charities of choice for their Friends Helping Friends day in October, where Boscov’s donates $5 to ACHIEVE through the sales of their 25% savings certificates that can be used in-store only during the event.
This year, Friends Helping Friends will take place all day on Wednesday, October 18th, and Boscov’s has again elected to cut themselves out as middlemen and let agencies collect the $5 themselves by selling the shopping passes that offer the discounts directly, as well as a chance to win a $100 gift card.
Our Boscov’s shoppers can plan on purchasing and taking advantage of these discounts while giving back to the agency by purchasing their $5 shopping pass with the button below.
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Your Legacy, Our Future
Planned Gifts to ACHIEVE
The ACHIEVE Foundation seeks to support ACHIEVE’s mission to improve the lives of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The growth of the Foundation is determined by planned gifts from our community and family members. These gifts are the cornerstone of our Foundation and allow us to continue to offer a wide range of programs and services.
Every year, more donors are discovering the benefits of supporting ACHIEVE through their estate plans. These planned gifts are the cornerstones to the ACHIEVE Foundation and support the programs and services of our organization.
Charitable Bequest through Last Will or other Estate Plan
Individual Retirement Account
Stock and Securities
Real Estate
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
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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!
Through your support, we are at 70.7% of our $250,000 fundraising campaign goal!
But we still need your help to get across the finish line.
You can be a part of this state-of-the-art day and community-based services facility that will be right in the heart of downtown Norwich and directly impact the lives of hundreds of individuals in Chenango County by donating and helping us reach that $250,000 fundraising goal.
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Thanks to our Platinum Partners for sponsoring
all four of ACHIEVE's Signature events in 2022!
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Don't forget to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, an Instagram to stay up-to-date with all that ACHIEVE is doing! | | | | |
