October 2022
Below is the digital version of our October 2022 Newsletter. We have also included the articles in this blog for universal text access.
Accessible Articles below:
BECKY'S CORNER - A note from our Director
“October has a bit of everything for everyone! It has warm sunny days, lovely cooler nights, the outdoors are beautiful, the indoors are cozy, the air has a bit of both summer and winter, and the colors of nature are out of this world!”
I am not sure who to credit with this quote but I know that I love the words and the sentiment. October is a beautiful month culminating in many people’s favorite holiday, Halloween. Here at Harbor Supported Living Services we will be gathering two different times for holiday celebrations–once going to Lemos Farms pumpkin patch and then a movie night at the office with treats and maybe some tricks too. We will be visiting Lemos Farm on October 10 and we will be hosting Movie Night on October 24. We look forward to all of the creative costumes that people will don for the movie night.
Seems like there is always a lot of things going on towards the end of the year and this is no exception. We are excited to be expanding the number of people we support by 3 or 4 new people over the next few months. We also have hired a new Facilitator, Daniela Verar, and welcome her to the Harbor family. Be sure to read the article about Daniela in the upcoming newsletter. We are happy to have her working beside us. We are also making plans to host a Holiday Gathering this year at the beginning of December for the people we support and families. We hope the pandemic and the monkey pox outbreak do not prevent that Gathering from taking place. By the next Newsletter we will be able to announce the date, time and location for that event. In between Halloween and Christmas there is, of course, Thanksgiving for which we also plan to have a local get together for people who do not have family to spend their day with. Usually the party is hosted at one of the homes of a person we support. Next month we will have more information about that also. Stay tuned to our website and newsletter for more information and fun.
Goodbye September. Hello October. Please be a good month and bring happiness and smiles to our families and friends!!
Happy Days to Each and every one of you,
Becky
SPOTLIGHTS FROM THE LIGHTHOUSE
Charlotte
Charlotte is a burst of energy, she is very sweet and has a great sense of humor and is always looking to make people laugh. She likes impersonations, dancing, or making jokes. She is an adventurous soul who loves body surfing, doing zumba, bowling, and participating in Special Olympics when she can. It is very exciting to see all the things that she is involved in.
She is a big fan of spooky films. We hope to visit the Winchester Mystery House in San Jose and do the tour. Staff enjoy sharing stories about the newest and scariest horror movies they have seen with Char and she does the same.
Selena, Char’s cat, has an amazing human to take care of her. Selena and Char like to lay out on her porch and soak up the sun when it's warm out. The summer concerts in Capitola are a spot when Char and her staff like to dance and enjoy live music. Car rides and dinner out are another activity Char enjoys. Crave is the site of many bubble tea and chatting events with staff. Staff enjoyed bringing their daughter once to Char’s for a few hours while they covered a shift. They colored and made airplanes and flew them outside. The daughter had such a good time with Charlotte and Charlotte did as well. Ever since Charlotte always asks staff about how her daughter is doing. Char is so sweet & thoughtful when she is asking about how the little girl is doing, how school is going etc.
Charlotte enjoys making posters for the people that she cares about, or even if you just ask her to. If you are looking for new artwork to hang in your home, hit up Charlotte. It shows how kind hearted and loving Charlotte is in general but especially with little ones, she has a great heart.
Yesenia
We have been fortunate to have Yesenia working alongside us here at Harbor since June of 2020. She has worked with Charlotte for over a year now, and has built a great relationship with her based on respect and friendship. She is reliable and shows up for Charlotte in every way that she can. She steps up to complete larger tasks on the team when asked without hesitation or question. Yesenia has introduced Charlotte to her family and finds joy in watching Charlotte interact and play with her daughter and go on outings. The people that work with Yesenia are grateful to work with her. Yesenia reflects all of the values Harbor seeks to instill in their employees and goes above and beyond for the people she supports. Congratulations, Yesenia, for being chosen as the staff spotlight for the month of October.
Summer Tahoe Trip 2022
Written by Jonathan Smith, HSLS Facilitator
In early September of 2022, the Harbor group embarked on our annual camping trip deep in the redwoods of the beautiful Fernwood in Big Sur. This year we did things a little differently than past years in that we had the leadership team go down to the camp a day early to help get things set up for the people we support and their staff, and then the leadership team also stayed an extra day at the end of the trip to decompress and help get the campsite torn down and packed away. This proved to be a successful addition to our camping trip which we look forward to doing again in the future. Our annual camping trip to Big Sur is a big part of our agency's culture and tradition in that we all get together with the people we support, their support staff and families/friends and enjoy eachothers company and companionship. We had activities such as rock painting, tie dying our customized camping T-shirts, a very small group of us took a sunset hike to the top of the ridge where we had the most majestic view out over the ocean. Because of the heat we did not do our traditional daytime hike with the people we support, but we are hoping to possibly incorporate this into our future camping trips for everyone as well! star gazing led by LeRoy, lanyard making activities, a talent show in which we had some good comedy, story telling, and beautiful singing. We also had the traditional s’more making nightly mixed in with a comedic experimental popcorn making over the fire pit as well as just relaxing down by the river while getting out of the heat of the sun! Anyone who knows me will hear me say throughout the year that the Harbor camping trip is absolutely one of my favorite things to do each year and this year was no exception. This tradition has become something that I hold close to my heart and am looking forward to many years to come with new faces and old. Well, that's enough from me, let's hear what some of the other campers had to say!
Brianna: “If it wasn’t for the heat the trip would have been perfect. It felt like a well executed trip with really good energy. We missed some of the people who were unable to make it, but we went with the flow, adjusted activities as needed. and made the best of it all.”
Abbey: “I was going to stay in a cabin because I didn’t think I was a camper, but after the first night I got the camping bug and decided to stay in a tent. I had a great time and really enjoyed it, and am looking forward to going camping again.”
LeRoy: “I really enjoyed star gazing, telling stories and doing the talent show. I really enjoyed making hot dogs and hamburgers with Jon and Mary and helping out in the kitchen and going in the river!.”
Dean: “I enjoyed the drive up with Jamie, Victor and Allen. The energy with the kids, [people we support], and activities was awesome. I always love seeing Jamie in the big camping chair. The food was delicious - thanks Jon for grilling”
Randy: “I really enjoyed camping this year, I had a new tent which was really nice. It was hot but I enjoyed sitting in the shade and watching everyone in the river, maybe next year I will go in again. I enjoy being with all of my friends on the camping trip and getting to sit around the campfire and tell ghost stories.”
Claire: “I had a really good time. Both people I support were able to make it. Danny didn’t originally want to go, even for a day trip, but by the end of it he decided he wants to come next year for all 3 days. I spent most of the time in my bathing suit and really enjoyed it.”
Joely: “I had an amazing time, and it was a nice way to get to know co-workers and people we support. Seeing Dylan in an enhanced mood and smiling on the trip was really nice. I also loved seeing the kids unplugged, skipping rocks and running around.”
Dylan: “My favorite part of the camping trip was when everyone got together and made s’mores and just being around with everyone that I love. Everyone had a good time, I had a good time and I got to see my friend Nichole as well as meeting new people who I have not met before or seen since the last camping trip.”
Chris Kelly: “My favorite part of the camping was roasting marshmallows, going down the river, going for a short hike and seeing my friends”
Danny: “I think my favorite part of the camping trip was getting to see everyone and hang out with everyone”
Andrea: “It was really nice to have everyone together and spend some time relaxing! I really enjoyed the talent show - there are so many talented people in the Harbor family! I also thought it was cool at night when we had the fire going and the glow sticks everywhere!"
UPCOMING EVENTS
Birthdays
Joe Aguilar- 10/4
Jon Smith- 10/4
Stephen Laughlin- 10/10
Harborversaries
15 Years - Connie Ponce
3 Years
Devin Garcia
Peggy Thompson
Felipe DeLaCruz
Crystal Hernandez
Stephen Laughlin
Stephanie Urbina
Gilbert Madriz
Sanne Vinter
Felix Vayssieres
Halloween Movie Night!
We are so excited to announce we are having our Harbor Halloween Movie Night again this year.
Please join us on Monday, October 24th, 2022 at 5.30pm.
The Movie will start around 6:45/7pm when it starts to get dark. We will be playing fun games and watching an outdoor screening of Hocus Pocus 2. Please eat dinner before or you may bring your dinner with you, refreshments, popcorn and snacks will be provided. We encourage all to dress up in your most creative costume! Please bring a chair if you're able to, lap blanket, flashlight, warm jacket, gloves and a beanie as it gets cold at night. We look forward to seeing you all there. (Please use the free street parking, the parking lot will be blocked off to show the movie ).
RSVP's are encouraged to admin@harborsls.org
FOLLOW OUR CALENDAR
We have a calendar on our website with current event details. Save it to your bookmarks & reference throughout the month!
SEND US YOUR PHOTOS!
We would love to feature your photos in our upcoming newsletters. Please send any photos via e-mail to newsletter@harborsls.org