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Community News
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Our October 2022 newsletter for friends of Residential Resources, Inc.
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Home Provider of the Year- Rachel Moses
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Tiffany Doyon, Director of Community Services
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Emerald Street, Keene, NH
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On September 16th, the DSP (Direct Support Professional) conference committee, provider agencies, community members and many others gathered at the NH State House to celebrate Direct Support Professional and Home Provider of the Year.
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Rachel Moses’ story began with us in 2008 when she became a home care provider, but she started taking care of people long ago. She is a loving, caring person by nature. When Charlene moved in with Rachel and her husband, Peter, she instantly became a member of their family and they did everything together. They loved exploring, dining out, and often took trips to Mohegan Sun which were some of Charlene’s favorite times. In 2020, the COVID pandemic hit, and Charlene no longer went out in the community as often as she once did. She spent much more time at home with Rachel and Peter. Charlene always said how much she loved Rachel and Peter, and that they were her family.
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During the last few years, Charlene became very ill and was diagnosed with cancer. Rachel stood by her side every step of the way. She assisted in every doctor’s appointment, treatment, surgery, and procedure. Charlene suffered a stroke which took a major toll on her, and she was no longer able to live at home. Rachel never left her side – she went to the nursing home every day and assisted the nurses when they would provide care for her. Sadly, Charlene passed away on July 31, 2022.
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Vikki White, Program Manager, nominated Rachel saying, “There is just no one else like her that I have ever met, she is top notch in my book.” Rachel has the best personality, she is funny, loving, caring, creative, strong-willed, and never gives up. All of Residential Resources are honored to know Rachel and to have worked with her.
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Tina Celebrates Her 70th Birthday
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Helene and Hubert Wetemwami, Home Providers
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Emerald Street, Keene, NH
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A platinum jubilee is really a very particular and special day in the life of someone. We were thinking of how we would help Tina celebrate her 70th birthday – a restaurant in Manchester or somewhere else out of town, but finally we thought that our home would be the ideal place.
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On September 1st, Helene and Tina went to the Mall of New Hampshire for their walk as usual. In the late afternoon our daughters and grandchildren showed up at our home. Our family decorated and prepared African food like cassava leaves, plantains, vegetables, rice, smoked fish, and fufu, followed by a delicious cake with a "70" candle for Tina’s special occasion. We sang the birthday song as Tina joyfully smiled. Our grandchildren called her the “Queen of the Day” while pointing at the crown on her head, and Tina enjoyed every minute of it!
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We are so very thankful that Tina is part of our family. This day was and remains a memorable day for us, having Tina in our home is a real pleasure and a blessing. We pray that she will continue to enjoy a healthy life.
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Summertime Fun
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Lisa Turner, Associate Director
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Ethan had a very busy summer this year and enjoyed every minute of it! He attended barbeques with friends, helped prepare food, and shopped for supplies. He helped host pool parties at his house with his family. He does a great job helping set up for parties and has a fantastic time in the pool with his siblings.
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He visited Six Flags Amusement Park with his sister and went on roller coasters with her! Ethan thought she would chicken out, but to his surprise, she went on the rides with him! He spent a day in Boston where they went sightseeing and ate out at a nice restaurant, which he really enjoyed. He also went apple picking with his family towards the end of summer.
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Ethan was able to spend a lot of time with his parents and siblings, which he absolutely loves and looks forward to. He also won Customer Service Associate of the Month at work! He was so proud of this moment and worked hard to earn it. He did all of this while still attending classes at the YMCA, bowling regularly, and meeting up with friends. Ethan had a fantastic and VERY busy summer!
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Social Capital
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Roseann Langlois, FI Coordinator
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Social capital is the value received from positive connections between people. It refers to the links and bonds people form through relationships with others. These links can form through any type of direct or indirect daily social interactions. People strive for social capital in their life to broaden their relationships and create new opportunities. With trust and relationship building, social capital is bound to happen. As individuals in our society, we must make a conscious choice to build social capital with those around us.
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Colleen Devlin and Carol McCann have been working together for over two years. Colleen and Carol have become very close during this time, as if Carol is part of the family. Together, they plan and complete many activities, trips, and events. They have developed the trust in each other to have a relationship and bond building upon their social capital.
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Colleen met her friend, Julie, one year ago at her hairdressers. Julie happened to be her hair stylist’s sister. Colleen’s sense of humor always breaks the ice to start conversations. She has a Maltese dog named Casey. She said he barks all the time and that she should’ve named him Bob Barker. I can see why Julie would want to be friends with Colleen. Colleen has kept in touch with Julie since they met. They make phone calls frequently. Last spring, Colleen and Carol took a trip to Rome, NY to visit Julie.
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Colleen and Carol researched activities to do in the area and invited Julie along. Julie enjoyed dinner out with them the first night. The second night, she came over and had a great time swimming at the hotel and ordering takeout. They enjoyed catching up and getting to know each other more. This friendship has grown so much and will continue to grow.
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While in Rome, Colleen and Carol went to The Wild Animal Park in Chittenango, NY. While there, Colleen was able to see the animals, feed them, and even hold a sloth in the sloth exhibit. She said that while feeding the sloths, they almost ate her hand off! Of course, she was joking! She fed them fruits and vegetables on a skewer and a sloth even sat on her lap. She really enjoyed it!
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Colleen continues to expand her social capital with the assistance of Carol. Some relationships are hard to find. Although there are several elements involved in social capital, trust is a must! Their relationship is very rewarding to Colleen, and she can’t wait to see where the future brings them.
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A Triumphant Return!
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Sarah King, Associate Director
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After almost 3 years of missing out on his longtime day program, Markus was finally able to return to Goodwill for community inclusion and activities! Markus has been working hard with his home support staff throughout the pandemic to get out and do all the things he loves. However, his routine of attending day program and seeing his friends was something he always looked forward to being able to do again. One thing Markus enjoys most is music, country music in particular, and at Goodwill he gets to participate in a really great movement class. He is pictured here getting his groove on to some music.
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As home care providers it is so important for us to acknowledge the strong partnerships we have with local community support providers, each focusing on such important areas of enrichment for the individuals we serve. Maine is fortunate to have such a vast array of community support providers to choose from, each offering something special and different. Residential Resources is grateful for our partners, especially Goodwill, for giving Markus the opportunity to groove again!
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Welcoming of Fall BBQ at RRI
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Dan McAllister, Program Manager
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September 2nd was the date for the Welcoming of Fall BBQ for RRI in Westbrook, ME. Michael and his housemates were the hosts of this event. The weather cooperated as it was a beautiful late summer day. There was a record turnout for this event as case workers, friends, other residents, and family attended. There was an abundance of assorted foods to indulge in and the grill was cooking with burgers, veggie burgers, and hot dogs. There were games, painting, and a photo booth for some entertainment. In addition, Sam The Music Man was there to provide musical entertainment. Sam has been a staple in the past for most of our parties. He had not been over since COVID and was very happy that he could join us. He said he had a great time! Michael and his housemates seemed to have a great time eating some yummy food, socializing, and enjoying the music.
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RRI Recognized for Outstanding Community Partnership
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Sean Gatcomb - Operations Coordinator
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Community Crossroads is an Area Agency that works with over 25 vendor companies, including Residential Resources, Inc., to serve more than 1,600 individuals who experience developmental disabilities, chronic health conditions, and acquired brain injuries, and their families in 11 southeastern NH, towns as well as adults with long-term care needs living throughout the state.
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The Compass Awards are presented every two years by Community Crossroads for exemplary partnership in 6 distinct categories: Employer, Outstanding Achievement, Direct Support Professional, Homecare Provider, Provider Agency, and Community Resource.
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On October 13th, 2022, Residential Resources was bestowed the honor of receiving the Compass Award as a Service Provider Partner. Here are some highlights from the presentation:
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“[Residential Resources] has a long history of supporting individuals served by Community Crossroads going back to when people were leaving the Laconia State School. They, Residential Resources, also paved the way in New Hampshire for adults with Acquired Brain Disorders to receive services they need to live in their home communities and, to this day, operate one of the first community residences for individuals with Acquired Brain Disorders”
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“Community Crossroads has always admired and had deep respect for the dedication and hard work ethic that everyone in the organization exemplifies every single day from the direct support professionals, program managers right through to their leadership.”
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“It has taken herculean efforts of everyone in this agency to provide the day-to-day care to those they serve and who rely on them for the very basic of their needs in all aspects of life 24 hours a day 365 days per year.”
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“We are proud and grateful to have them as one of our provider partners.”
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At Residential Resources, the priority is service delivery to the individuals we serve. Residential Resources can deliver because of the culture that prioritizes support on all levels within the organization, and encourages quality, truth & honesty, diversity, respect, trust, empowerment, and creativity.
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Have you ever met a Olympic Silver Medalist?
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Pebbles Agoney - FI Coordinator
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I never did, until last night! Last night I not only had the pleasure of meeting 2-time silver medal winner Pamala Garrant, but also the honor of sitting down and talking with her about her accomplishments.
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In 1981, at the age of 18, Pamela was introduced to the Special Olympics world by her brother Mark and never looked back. Although her journey started with swimming and softball, it did not take her long to realize the love she had for the variety of events the Olympics had to offer. She found herself competing on an array of teams including bowling, snowshoeing, power lifting, and track and field specializing in the 200 and the relay.
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By 1995, Pamela had made it to the World Special Olympics Games in New Haven, Connecticut for her power lifting skills and abilities. She will always remember how she felt when she heard Arnold Schwarzenegger was there. She will also never forget that while on the podium accepting the THREE medals she had won that she cried her “butt off”. Pamela was not only winning 3 medals for powerlifting, but she was winning these as the Team Captain and as the ONLY female competitor. I can only imagine the amount of pride and accomplishment she felt standing up there!
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As if that wasn’t enough, in 2022 Orlando Florida, Pamela won 2 silver medals and 1 ribbon in the USA Games. These medals are symbols of the amount of determination, drive, talent, and skill Pamela has. In total, Pamela has won 76 medals and a lifetime of memories.
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Thank you to everyone that contributed an article for this newsletter.
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To ask a question, provide feedback, or learn how to submit an article click on the button below.
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TRUST - RESPECT - QUALITY - TRUTH / HONESTY
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CREATIVITY - EMPOWERMENT - DIVERSITY
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