Gem State News Seasons Greetings! Seasons Greetings! During the holiday season, our thoughts turn gratefully to those who have made our success possible. It s in this spirit that we say thank you and wish you peace, joy and prosperity for the holidays and New Year. As we look forward to working with you in the years to come, thank you for being a part of our past, present, and future. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! Volume 3, Issue 3 December 2015 Inside this Issue Meet GSDC s Interns Page 2 See What Our Kids Are Doing - Page 4 Letters To Santa - Page 5 Working at Gem State Page 8 What Does Happy Holidays Mean To You? Page 9 GSDC s Participant s Holiday Cheer - Page 10 Give Thanks This Holiday Page 14 GSDC s Will Be Closed: Christmas: 12/24 & 12/25 New Years: 1/1/16
Page 2 Gem State News G S D C S I n t e r n s GSDC has always been supportive of furthering the education of staff and participants. This year, we are pleased to have 4 interns working with us. Three are from the Masters of Social Work program at Boise State University and one from the Masters of Social Work program at Northwest Nazarene University. These interns will be the future of therapy services in Idaho and we are very pleased to be a part of their education. John Getzin Northwest Nazarene University Intern, Masters of Social Work Describe yourself in three words Sarcastic, mellow, helpful Name a hobby that you love that others may not know about. Woodworking What s your favorite joke? What kind of water do you drink on a plane? Plain water. Your 15 minutes of Fame would be for Being the oldest masters student If you had a theme song, what would it be? If I only had a brain Describe yourself in three words Energetic, Unique, Ambitious Name a hobby that you love that others may not know about. Reading fan fiction Stephanie Rothrock Boise State University Intern, Masters of Social Work What s your favorite joke? My favorite joke involves Robin Williams and Coco the gorilla (who uses sign language) Your 15 minutes of Fame would be for Being in a BeetleJuice sequel If you had a theme song, what would it be? Light from Disturbed or I Dare You from Shinedown
G S D C S I n t e r n s Page 3 Samantha Ockerman Boise State University Intern, Masters of Social Work Describe yourself in three words Determined, Organized, Quiet Name a hobby that you love that others may not know about. Collecting piggy banks What s your favorite joke? Why are gold fish gold? So they don t get rusty Your 15 minutes of Fame would be for No thanks I am 100% not interested in 15 minutes of fame! If you had a theme song, what would it be? I Hope You Dance - Lee Ann Womack Describe yourself in three words Compassionate, Energetic, Giggly Name a hobby that you love that others may not know about. Horseback riding, or anything with horses Emily Nicholas Boise State University Intern, Masters of Social Work What s your favorite joke? Where does the General keep his armies? In his sleevies! Your 15 minutes of Fame would be for It would most likely be for being a crazy cat lady, but hopefully it would be for doing something meaningful for the population I work with. If you had a theme song, what would it be? Here Comes the Sun by the Beatles By Lori Jo Poole
Page 4 Gem State News What Have Our Kids Been Up To? Everyone at Gem State s Children s Program is thrilled to kick off the holiday season. After a Thanksgiving feast they are looking forward to transferring their thankful thoughts towards their Christmas spirit. On that note the children wrote Dear Santa letters and pondered their heart s desires while staff sat helpfully near lending a hand or some inspiration. Some of the children knew just what they wanted and ended their lists abruptly with only one or two items. Other children had a lot on their minds and filled their lists with a plethora of playthings. One or two trusted in Santa s whimsical magic and asked Santa for Christmas miracles like lots and lots of snow. Everyone is excited for the holidays, and we can all tell it s going to be great this year. By Maxwell Dusky
Page 5 Letters to Santa
Letters to Santa Page 6
Letters to Santa Page 7
Page 8 Working at Gem State I started my career at Gem State Developmental Center in 2009. During the past 6-years I have had the pleasure of working with the most amazing and misunderstood population in the world. In many places the ID/DD population is treated as if they are strange and different. That is not the case at GSDC. We believe that all of our clients are Extraordinary people and deserve the best treatment and services that society has to offer. Each day that I sit down with our clients, I learn more about the beautiful and innocent parts of life. I am in awe of their strengths and abilities. I am in wonder of how they see the world. I see the beauty of life through their eyes. If the world could see life like they do, a sense of happiness and fulfillment might be made possible. At GSDC I am constantly reminded how important it is for the helping profession to work with our clients to help them gain every service, resource, and assistance available so they can be a normal part of our society, instead of outcasts. I hope that this message finds you and yours happy and healthy and that it opens your eyes and hearts to understanding the needs of our very special population and the care that GSDC provides all year long. Happy Holidays, Donna
Page 9 What Does Happy Holidays Mean To You?
Holiday Cheer Page 10
Holiday Cheer Page 11
Holiday Cheer Page 12
Adult program Holiday Cheer Halloween Fun Our holiday season seems to kick off at Halloween with a big social party for both centers. We learned about taking turns, reading instructions, matching the stache and colors by playing a lively game of MOUSTACHE SMASH! Rachel s 93rd Birthday! Page 13 Daniel & Lodie sporting the stache! Rachel has retired and we miss her every day! She invited her friends over to celebrate her 93rd birthday in November. Everyone had a great time socializing and catching up! Thanksgiving Bounty Each year, Martin & Rosalie and the staff host a Thanksgiving luncheon for all of the participants. This year featured ham and all the traditional Thanksgiving dishes! Christmas Cheer To kick off the holiday season, the Nampa and Meridian adult programs made visits to the Canyon County Festival of Trees at the Ford Center and the Festival of Trees in Boise. This got everyone in the holiday spirit. Will & Autumn enjoying lunch
Give thanks Page 14 We all have so many blessings but often during the holidays we become so overwhelmed we forget. In our rush to get the right gift for the people we love and make everything perfect we can become short on patience. Things are not important people are. Stop to take care of yourself and reflect on the blessings you already have, food to eat, a roof over your head, friends and loved ones. And while the holiday season is fun, it is not as important as how we make others feels. Take time to be present to the people around you. It is the best gift you can give. I truly give thanks for all my blessing this holiday season and hope I can be a blessing and a gift to others in my life. Blessings to all! Susan Hill G e m S t a t e D e v e l o p m e n t a l C e n t e r 8 1 8 N W 1 5 t h S t. M e r i d i a n, I D 8 3 6 4 2 ( p h o n e ) 8 8 8-5 5 6 6 * ( f a x ) 8 8 8-5 5 7 8 w w w. g s d c d d a. c o m