Charles Family SmartHome in Longmont Open House

The Charles Family SmartHome in Longmont Open House was a great success. About 60 people attended. Local state representatives Claire Levy and Deb Gardner were there, along with benefactors Bob Charles III and Dale Charles. Thanks to Imagine! Foundation board members Leona Stoecker, Julie Vlier, and new board member Chris Leh for attending and bringing guests. And many thanks to the 16 staff members who made this event possible and also attended!

Sarah and Pramilla helped greet guests.

Loren played DJ for the event, using his computer to select songs.

New Foundation board member Chris Leh and Colorado State Representative Claire Levy.

Anthony showed off his computer skills to the guests.

Wes demonstrated his “Heads or Tails” game, which uses his computerized communication device to teach basic math skills.

SmartHome tech guru Alex Andrews demonstrated some of the home’s technology to Colorado State Representative Deb Gardner.

Charles Family SmartHome in Longmont benefactors Bob Charles III and Dale Charles.

Imagine! CEO Mark Emery enjoys a private chat with Sarah.

Support Imagine! While You Shop at iGive.com

If you shop online, you can also automatically raise money for Imagine!. iGive.com offers a free membership that allows you to shop as usual at many of your favorite online sites that will then donate a percentage of your purchase to Imagine!. iGive.com has 800+ stores to choose from including such familiar names as Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Best Buy, Coldwater Creek, eBay, Eddie Bauer, Expedia, Kohl’s, Lands End, Nordstrom, Office Max, Petco, Sports Authority, and Staples.

When you are a member and you go to your favorite site, a small message box will drop down briefly to tell you what percentage of your purchase will go to Imagine!. It’s that easy! Imagine! has been receiving money from iGive.com since 2000 and has earned $1,063. However, this amount has been earned through just a handful of people. iGive.com suggests that the typical online shopper can generate $20-$40 per year for Imagine!.

We’d like to encourage everyone who shops online to consider joining iGive.com (remember – it’s free!) and designating Imagine! as the recipient of the online percentage. Each new member earns $5 for Imagine! right off the bat!

Click here to get started!

Imagine! Foster Parents Serve As Inspiration

Imagine!’s Innovations for Children Department has a Foster Care Program that is a therapeutic child placement agency that specializes in working with special needs children and at-risk youth with difficult behavioral and emotional challenges.

Today, we’d like to highlight one couple whose efforts to assist some of our most vulnerable citizens by acting as foster providers serve as an inspiration to all of us at the Imagine! Foundation.

Bill and Susan Long have been therapeutic foster providers for more than 20 years. They have served more than 40 children, providing the best care imaginable. They currently care for two children with developmental disabilities and are committed to helping them live to their potential until they turn 21. They provide a safe environment where the children know what to expect, and know what is expected of them.

Bill and Susan believe in a team approach, and make every effort possible to ensure that therapists, caseworkers, behavioral interventionists, and biological parents are all on the same page in regard to the child’s care and services. This allows each child to feel safe, and ensures a consistent environment and approach to their needs.

Bill and Susan work diligently with the biological family, supporting efforts to reunify when applicable. This includes sharing interventions that work, and ensuring that they are kept in the loop with school issues, mental health issues, and behavioral issues. Bill and Susan communicate extensively with the child’s school to ensure a common understanding of each child’s needs, and advocate for additional services as needed. They attend all school meetings and are the first to advocate for continued services and special accommodations.

When Bill and Susan are considering bringing other children into their home, the needs and the safety of the current children always come first. They are happy to help more children, but they are also cognizant of how essential it is to have a good fit. While Bill and Susan have been doing this for 20 years, they consistently seek new information and attend all of the trainings offered to them. They are open to the ideas of others, and seek out the opinion of the behaviorist and other staff members.

Bill and Susan are active with the kids, taking them on several family vacations a year, and providing the extended family experience through their many children and grandchildren. In fact, Bill and Susan enlisted all three of their biological children into being foster parents for children with high needs, setting an amazing example of dedication and caring for others. Their skill at advocacy has also heightened awareness for children with disabilities.

Bill and Susan currently serve two very challenging youth, both of whom have a developmental disability and a mental health diagnosis. They provide a calm and consistent approach as they deal with self-injurious behaviors, hours of tantrums, and aggressiveness on a daily basis. They love the kids, but they also see themselves as professionals and hold themselves to high expectations. They go out of their way to include the children in all activities that can help build their social skills and integrate them into the community. Most people would not volunteer to take these kids on a three week vacation in an RV, but they do! Every summer! And, the kids LOVE it.

Imagine!'s IBHS Nominated For NOVA Award

Imagine!’s IBHS Mental Health Supports program has just been nominated for The Community Foundation of Boulder County NOVA award! Check out the information from the nomination below to learn more about this innovative collaboration.

The mission of Imagine! is to create and offer innovative supports to people of all ages with cognitive, developmental, physical, and health related needs so they may live fulfilling lives of independence and quality in their homes and communities. Imagine!’s guiding philosophy is that all individuals, regardless of ability or disability, have talents and strengths that make them vital members of their communities.

Since 1963, Imagine! has coordinated care for local people of all ages who have developmental delays or disabilities. This care is usually initiated at birth and – for those clients who are eventually diagnosed with a disability – it continues until the end of life.

Some of the individuals in Imagine!'s care have mental illness in addition to their developmental disabilities. Mental Health Partners (MHP, formerly the Mental Health Center of Boulder and Broomfield Counties) is responsible for the provision of mental health services to these individuals. However, individuals living with this dual diagnosis have needs that differ significantly from those of individuals with mental illness only -- specifically, needs for enhanced engagement, rapport building, and support in processing new information -- that were difficult for MHP to meet within its usual parameters of care. In 2005, Imagine! and MHP began developing a unique, collaborative partnership to improve the delivery of mental health services to local individuals with this dual diagnosis by enhancing communication and coordination among the client, his or her psychiatrist, mental health therapist, nurse, case manager, family members, and other significant sources of support. In 2006, Imagine!'s Behavioral Health Services (IBHS) division hired three clinical professionals with the necessary specialized skill set and launched IBHS Mental Health Supports. Through this program, clients receive routine care through Imagine!, and crisis care (e.g., hospitalizations or after-hours intervention), if necessary, through MHP. The two organizations engage in ongoing dialogue to ensure that the services are integrated to provide current best-practice supports to this group of clients.

The collaboration between Imagine! and MHP is the only one of its kind in Colorado and exemplifies innovative, "out of the box" thinking. Typically, services for these two populations are funded and delivered through highly segregated systems, but this collaboration integrates the dollars from both Medicaid and local sources and the services provided by both Imagine! and MHP and marshals additional community supports -- including family members and professional caregivers such as nurses and day habilitation program staff -- to provide comprehensive mental health services based on an understanding of the whole person.

Thanks to IBHS Mental Health Supports, more than 200 local individuals with this dual diagnosis currently receive expert mental health therapy without delay from a licensed professional with more than 15 years experience working with individuals with developmental disabilities. They receive timely psychiatric assessment and intervention from physicians with more than 25 years of experience and expertise in treating individuals with developmental disabilities, acquired brain injury/traumatic brain injury, and dementia. Each of these vulnerable members of the community benefits from enhanced communication between his or her psychiatrist, mental health therapist, and professional caregivers.

Imagine!'s analysis of medication data since the program began shows that each year, the number of clients whose prescription medications decreased or were discontinued exceeded (by 2.4 - 15.8%) those whose medications increased. In addition, many clients were transitioned to newer medications with fewer side effects. Further, hospital admissions have decreased by 67% since the program began, and the overall cost for inpatient hospitalization for this population within the service area has been cut in half. These trends are significant for three reasons. First, they indicate that clients have achieved greater stability as a result of the program and have required less pharmacological intervention. Second, they show that public resources are being managed more judiciously and effectively since the program began. Third, they reflect established best practices and progress toward collective goals in the field of mental health services.

Imagine! and MHP are committed to continuing and strengthening this highly successful partnership. Both organizations are dedicated to enhancing the collaboration between professional and personal caregivers and remaining on the cutting edge of evidence-based practices in the field of mental health supports in order to further improve outcomes. As funding for services for both individuals with mental illness and individuals with developmental disabilities decreases, the local population requiring both types of services is increasing. Optimal engagement of all available supports and optimal treatment regimes to facilitate the ongoing emotional stability of each client will be necessary if future financial resources are to be adequate to meet the growing need.

Imagine!’s Community Impact

So many generous individuals, foundations, and companies have supported Imagine! and its mission over the years.

Today, we’d like to share some information about the kind of impact Imagine! has on its community, and demonstrate why your support is so vital.

Last year, Imagine!:

• helped 327 babies and toddlers with developmental disabilities or delays make progress toward their individual developmental goals (e.g., improved communication skills, improved fine or gross motor skills, or improved social skills);

• managed foster placements for 45 children whose special needs could not be met by their birth parents;

• helped 54 school-aged children with developmental disabilities to learn vital socialization skills to help them to participate more fully in society, while affording their parents the peace of mind that comes with safe and appropriate childcare during work hours;

• provided job training, placement, coaching, and supervision for 106 adults with developmental disabilities;

• promoted the growth and safety of 306 local adults with developmental disabilities by enabling them to participate in enriching and therapeutic activities in the community;

• provided information and referrals to services to 1,279 families providing at-home care of a person with a developmental disability;

• helped parents of 55 children with autism spectrum disorders select and pay for services such as behavioral, speech, or occupational therapy;

• distributed $1,185,668.62 to caregivers of 583 individuals with developmental disabilities living at home to help pay for the services and supports that were most important to their families, such as respite care, medical or dental care, therapies, or devices to help the individual with special needs function better at school or work;

• provided comprehensive mental health services to 218 individuals with dual (mental illness/developmental disability) diagnoses;

• provided a broad range of behavioral health services to 105 individuals and educated their parents and caregivers about ways to build cooperative behavior;

• managed host home placements for 91 adults with developmental disabilities; and

• provided 24-hour comprehensive care to 57 adults with developmental disabilities, including seniors and medically fragile individuals.

Unfortunately, budget cuts and regulatory changes have made it increasingly difficult to continue to provide so many services to so many people in need. That is why 10 years ago the Imagine! Foundation was created: to support the Imagine! organization through fundraising and education. The Foundation has raised more than $4,000,000 to date, enhancing Imagine!’s ability to serve some of our most vulnerable citizens.

Thank you for your continued support!

Imagine! Success Story

Imagine! consumer Scott Hill has been working at the Boulder Montessori School since April, 2009. Previously Scott worked at Pizza Hut for five years and Domino’s for five years. His job duties at Boulder Montessori School are to wash the dishes, run them through the sanitizing machine, and put them away. Scott also does other tasks such as emptying trash and cleaning off tables.

Scott is a very enthusiastic and hard worker, and is proud to work all five days of the work week. He almost always has a smile on his face at work, and you can tell that he enjoys what he’s doing.

The staff at Boulder Montessori consider Scott part of their “family”, and they appreciate his work ethic and friendly attitude. Karen Olson, the Director for Boulder Montessori School said, “Scott is such an integral part of our staff. He is very energetic and if he’s done with the dishes he will look for something else to do. Also, the students respond well to his friendliness.”

Karen stated that she is very pleased with the work that Employment Link’s Tim Eaton has done. She specifically mentioned Tim’s attentiveness, his ability to know Scott’s strengths and how to best support him at his job, and his communication skills.

This successful job placement is the result of Scott’s dedication to his job, the efforts of Tim Eaton and Pam Christensen in finding a good work environment for Scott, and the Boulder Montessori School for being willing to give Scott a chance to succeed.

Thanks to Pam Christensen and Tim Eaton for their help with this story.

Imagine! Consumer Donates Hair To "Locks Of Love"



William will miss his long hair that kept his neck warm, but finds it gratifying to know that someone who is going through hard times is going to receive the hair.

Imagine! consumer William grew out his hair for about 18 months for the purpose of having it cut and donating it to Locks of Love. Locks of Love is a public non-profit organization that provides hairpieces to financially disadvantaged children in the United States and Canada under the age of 21 who experience long-term medical hair loss.

William learned about Locks of Love when a friend of his had cancer. When asked if he misses his hair, William replied, “Yes and no. Yes, because it kept my neck warm, and no because it bugged me at night when I was sleeping. Also, when the wind blew it would get in my face.” William added, “It was a gratifying experience, knowing that someone who is going through hard times is going to receive the hair. I'm going to wait until next summer, and then I plan on growing it out again.”

Imagine! Success Story

“Bill Pringle has touched my heart with his positive attitude and his overall zest for life,” Marie Handlin, Imagine! Host Home Program Coordinator, told us. “He always has a smile on his face and is eager to help others in need.”

Bill has lived in a host home with Sandy Allen since 2007, and has had quite a transformation since his move into that home. When Bill moved into the home, he was on oxygen, he was overweight and diabetic, and was on a long list of medications. In the past four years he has lost 181 pounds, and only takes a multivitamin, aspirin, and an eye drop as part of his medication regimen. His blood sugars have stabilized within normal limits for more than two years and he has not shown any signs of any diabetic symptoms.

Exercising and eating well-balanced, healthy meals are an important part of life for Bill and his housemates. Bill is proud of his weight loss and consistently chooses healthy meals and/or snacks over the junk food he so often used to pick. He leads a very active and social lifestyle. Bill participates in volleyball, bike rides, spinning class, dance class, bowling, and weight lifting. He walks at least 2.5 miles daily, including walking to the bus stop to get to work four days a week. For 16 years Bill has worked for Boulder Beer and he is well liked by his coworkers. Bill also completed his third Boulder Bolder in a row last year.

Last summer, the Boulder Daily Camera wrote an article about Boulder being the fittest city in the country. Bill and his two housemates were featured in the article displaying how persons with special needs are truly part of our healthy community, and how the local hiking trails and community activities offered here in Boulder County really do benefit everyone who chooses to use them. Bill is a great advocate and positive role model for educating our community on how persons with special needs should be valued as part of our greater health-conscious community.

Over the past year, Bill has started owning responsibility for his health and seems to have an empowered attitude toward his accomplishments. He is independently researching the local athletic center to see what classes they offer. His attitude and overall mood have improved greatly. He loves helping with yard work and enjoys keeping active at work, at home, and in the community. Bill’s dramatic shift in lifestyle choices has improved his overall health, and through his hard work, commitment, and a supportive home environment, this remarkable man has made himself into a great role model.

Imagine! On TV!

A couple of weeks ago, participants in Imagine!’s CORE/Labor Source “On The Air” radio class appeared live on the “Colorado & Company” TV show (KUSA Channel 9 in Denver). If you missed the show, press the "play" arrow below to take a look:

Exotic Mediterranean Feast!

One of the fantastic Auction Items we had at January’s Imagine! Celebration Dinner and Auction was an “Exotic Mediterranean Feast."

The donor of this auction item was Highland Technical Staffing CEO Anahid Katchian. The item was valued at $1,500, but it sold TWICE at the Live Auction for $2,500 each. The first purchasers of the item were Gary and Sheila Horton from Western Disposal, who had the "Feast" at their home last Saturday, March 26.

Anahid (who was also one of the most generous donors on the evening of the Celebration) did all the shopping and preparing from scratch, creating an opulent and leisurely repast including a huge variety of both hot and cold small appetizers, a sumptuous main course, and variety of desserts.

Imagine! Foundation Board president Leona Stoecker volunteered to help prepare the meal, and had this to say about the experience:

Anahid had three different crews of volunteers helping at different times for three days. She took one day just to purchase the ingredients at a specialty store in southeast Denver. She is extremely organized with the menu and detailed instructions. Learning how to roll the grape leaves filled with lamb and beef, and roast the peppers over an open flame for the hummus under the expert guidance of Anahid was an amazing experience. We are so fortunate to have so many amazing people who are willing to put in their time and talents for the people Imagine! serves.

Anahid shared some photos with us from the event which you can see below.

Thanks to Gary and Shelia for purchasing the “Feast,” and to all the volunteers who helped make the meal so unique and special. Thanks also to Foundation Board member Walt Pounds and his wife Linda, who purchased the second “Feast.” Looks like you guys have a lot to look forward to!

Most of all, thanks to Anahid for her generous efforts on behalf of some of our community’s most vulnerable citizens. We are so grateful for all you have done!

Imagine! Shout Out

We mentioned last month that Dr. David Braddock, Ph.D., was recently named a 2011 recipient of the University of Colorado's Thomas Jefferson award, one of the university's highest honors. Dr. Braddock is Executive Director of CU's Coleman Institute for Cognitive Disabilities, and has been a longtime supporter of Imagine! and our SmartHomes project. Learn more about Dr. Braddock and this prestigious honor by clicking here.

During his acceptance speech, Dr. Braddock said some very nice things about Imagine!’s SmartHomes project. Take a look below:

Were Thomas Jefferson living today, I believe he would stand for equal protection under the law and basic fairness and opportunity for the 55 million people with disabilities living in our country. He would likely stand as well for the additional one billion persons with disabilities living as outcasts primarily in the developing nations of the world. In recent years, we have finally begun to make promising strides toward equality of opportunity for people with disabilities and their families in the United States and in the Western World generally. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, however, has been ratified by 98 countries, but it has yet to be ratified by the United States.

For enlightened disability policy and practice, we need look no farther than the local developmental disabilities service provider here in Boulder and Broomfield Counties known as Imagine!. Under John Taylor and Mark Emery's exceptional leadership, Imagine! recently opened the nation's first two SmartHomes for people with developmental disabilities right here in Boulder and Longmont. These homes were explicitly constructed to empower people with developmental disabilities through the application of advanced support technologies.

Thanks, Dr. Braddock, for the kind words and your dedicated support for some of our most vulnerable citizens!

Imagine! On TV!

Last week, the Discovery Science Channel featured Alonzo Clemons (who receives support services from Imagine!, that’s him in the picture to the right) on the show "Ingenious Minds." You can see clips from the show here. If you attended our recent Imagine! Celebration Dinner and Auction, you may have seen Alonzo demonstrate his artistic skills. Alonzo is a gifted sculptor. According to his website:

As a toddler, Clemons suffered a head injury in an accident; this changed the way he thinks, learns and communicates. While much was lost due to the injury, something miraculous also occurred. He began showing a fascination with modeling materials and a tremendous inner drive to make sculpture. Even in situations where he did not have access to modeling clay, his determination to make models of animals was so great that he found materials in his environment that he could use for sculpting.

For over twenty years he continued to practice his art in obscurity until the early 1980's, when the movie Rain Man, which featured Dustin Hoffman in the role of a disabled man with remarkable skills of memory, brought international media attention to a phenomenon known as the Savant Syndrome.

Savant Syndrome is a descriptive term applied to individuals who have both a developmental disability and a spectacular, genius-level skill in a specific area. Clemons is recognized as one of the world's prodigious savants.

Fun In Ft. Collins

A big part of Imagine!’s mission is providing opportunities for the individuals we serve to engage in their communities. To that end, some of the staff members at one of Imagine!’s group homes took a quick trip up north to Ft. Collins.

In the photos below (left to right in all photos): Lauren, Cari, and Stephanie having fun at the Swetsville Zoo; Stephanie and Kati pose near a colorful horse in Fort Collins; and Stephanie, Kati, and Cari check out the Budweiser Clydesdales at the Budweiser plant.

Tour The Longmont SmartHome!

Exciting news! Free, guided tours of the Charles Family SmartHome in Longmont are scheduled to begin in April.

The tours are available for anyone interested in seeing first hand how technology can be used to improve the lives of people with developmental disabilities.

To respect our residents’ time and privacy, we have established a set schedule for tours. In March 2011, tours of the Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome (Boulder) tours will be conducted on the first and third Monday at 11:00 a.m. Beginning in April, tours of the Charles Family SmartHome (Longmont) will also be available.

The schedule from April on will be:

Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome (Boulder) Tours - First Monday of the Month at 11:00 a.m.

Charles Family SmartHome (Longmont) Tours - Third Monday of the Month at 10:00 a.m.

Tours take approximately one hour.

Click here to schedule a tour online.

Good Knights!

Last week, Dick Bryant, with the Knights of Columbus Boulder Council 1183, presented a check for $1158.78 (from funds raised by the Knights' Tootsie Roll Drive) to Jane Sprague with Imagine!’s Dayspring department. The Boulder Knights have supported Imagine! for years and have donated a total of $11,534 to us.

Imagine! Success Story

Occasionally we like to share success stories from some of the people we serve at Imagine!. It is a great way to demonstrate the powerful impact supporting the Imagine! Foundation can have on some of our community’s most vulnerable citizens.

Today, enjoy this story about Tye McCarthy:

Tye McCarthy’s success goes far beyond his productivity at his job. Tye rolls silverware in napkins at Rock Bottom Restaurant as a member of a work crew with Labor Source, the vocational component of Imagine!’s CORE/Labor Source department.

“Tye is interacting more frequently and with increased verbiage and clarity with his coworkers, staff members, and community members,” Marsha Robichaux, an Employment Specialist with Labor Source, told us. “He is not just more aware of others; he is looking out for them. He lets his coworkers know that he looks forward to seeing them, and that he likes working with them. Tye’s presence is noticeable, he is there and you know it. The great thing about that is if you’re not invisible to others, you’re not invisible to yourself. Tye’s success is far past encouraging.”

Tye’s parents, Dan and Nancy McCarthy, shared with us, “We have been very pleased with the progress that Tye has made with Labor Source. The staff has been excellent in helping Tye with his work and increasing his skills. They get the best out of him and he feels good about his job. He enjoys his co-workers and the staff is the best. Tye is always telling friends and anyone that he meets, that he rolls silverware at Rock Bottom and is very proud of it. Special thanks to Labor Source for doing such a good job and to Rock Bottom for providing the opportunity for employment.”

Tom Boller, an Employment Specialist with Labor Source, said, “Tye McCarthy has been working with crews in Labor Source for a couple of years. He tried several different jobs before settling into his job at Rock Bottom, and he is really growing into the job! The quality of his work is very good and his production on a daily basis continues to increase. Tye works three days each week, and his crew members see him as a valuable member of the team. They appreciate his greetings at the start of the day and his willingness to assist them in ways that show he is a real gentleman.

“Tye stays focused on his work and there are times when you might think that he isn't paying attention to anyone or anything around him,” Tom added. “Then, Tye responds to someone's humor with his infectious laughter and you know he is paying attention to his environment. He is simply committed to his work. Tye leaves the worksite saying to the restaurant staff, ‘See you tomorrow,’ which lets them and all know he enjoys and is committed to his job.”

Tye has recently added an afternoon of work at the Outback restaurant in Louisville where he also rolls silverware in napkins. The new site adds an extra fork to the roll and asks for a very high quality of work. Tye has stepped up to the challenge of meeting those high standards with a smile and ease.

Celebration Pics!

Last week we provided you with a nice wrap-up of our very successful 10th Annual Imagine! Celebration and Dinner. Today, please enjoy a few photos of some of the more than 415 attendees.

Imagine! Foundation Board of Directors President Leona Stoecker

Director of Imagine!’s Family Services Jan Rasmussen and Imagine! Board of Directors President Kevin Nelson


The evening’s emcee was George Karakehian (left), pictured here with Carol Riggs and David Edwards


Paige Lawrence served as Imagine! Celebration Co-Chair. Paige's husband, Don Sullivan, did all of the displays for the Silent and Live Auctions


Dawn Marie Candelaria-Bisgard was honored as Imagine!'s 2010 Consumer of the Year



Colene Van Winkle served as Imagine! Celebration Co-Chair

Celebration Wrap Up

On Friday, January 28, 415 people gathered at the Plaza Hotel Longmont for the 10th Annual Imagine! Celebration Dinner and Auction. The event was a resounding success, raising more than $217,000 to support Imagine!’s mission of providing supports and services to some of Boulder and Broomfield counties’ most vulnerable citizens.

The evening began with a silent auction featuring 221 items donated by generous local businesses and individuals.

Following a delicious dinner and the end of bidding on silent auction items, the program for the evening began. Emcee, Foundation board member, and longtime friend of Imagine! George Karakehian once again was the glue that held the program together, moving from highlight to highlight with ease and with great humor. And the highlights were many!

The program started off with a bang by honoring the 10th Anniversary of the Imagine! Foundation, Imagine!’s fundraising arm and the organization responsible for putting on the annual celebration. In its 10 years of existence, the Foundation has raised more than $4,000,000 to serve local individuals with developmental disabilities.

Check out this video marking the Imagine! Foundation’s 10 years of supporting Imagine!’s mission.



After honoring the Imagine! Foundation’s success, George introduced the crowd (the largest ever to attend the event) to Dawn Marie Candelaria-Bisgard, Imagine!’s 2010 Consumer of the Year. Dawn’s story is one of perseverance and hard work, as she struggled to overcome not only the barriers presented by her disability, but also barriers she placed upon herself through poor choices. In recent years she has really put forth a tremendous effort to turn her life around and become the outstanding young lady she is today. Now Dawn stands as a role model for all of those served at Imagine!, all of those who work at Imagine!, and indeed, the community at large.

The presentation of the Consumer of the Year is always the emotional high point of the annual festivities, and this year proved no exception. A standing ovation greeted Dawn after she gave her heartfelt acceptance speech upon receiving her award.

Enjoy this video about Imagine!’s 2010 Consumer of the Year, Dawn Marie Candelaria-Bisgard.



Once the program portion of the evening was completed, attendees took part in a spirited (and quite successful) live auction. Auctioneer Gary Corbett deftly enticed the crowd to bid higher and higher dollar amounts on 13 auction items including a trip to Greece, an elk hunt, a fly-fishing expedition, and an African photo safari.

Corbett also expertly led final event of the evening, a Special Appeal where funds were directed to Imagine!’s SmartHomes project.

Here’s a video about Imagine!’s SmartHomes, which ran before the Special Appeal began.



Many thanks to the generous community members who came out in huge numbers to support Imagine!, including current and former members of Imagine!’s Board of Directors, current and former members of the Imagine! Foundation Board of Directors, business leaders, consumers, family members, and so many others interested in supporting the work of Imagine!.

Special thanks to the 20 Imagine! staff members who volunteered their time during the event, to the Imagine! Celebration Committee (see below) for all of their efforts before and during the event, and to all of the event sponsors who are listed here:



Imagine! Celebration Committee

Colene Van Winkle, Chairperson
Paige Lawrence, Chairperson
Denice Chenault
Lisa Fiero
Deea Frisbie
Deb Gravelle
Evelyn Josephsohn
Cherlina King
Michelle O’Brien
Pat O’Brien
Stacey Pierson
Sara Stoecker
Don Sullivan

Congratulations Dr. Braddock!

Dr. David Braddock, Ph.D., was recently named a 2011 recipient of the University of Colorado's Thomas Jefferson award, one of the university's highest honors. Dr. Braddock is Executive Director of CU's Coleman Institute for Cognitive Disabilities, and has been a longtime supporter of Imagine! and our SmartHomes project. Learn more about Dr. Braddock and this prestigious honor by clicking here.

That’s Dr. Braddock in the picture to the right, along with his wife Laura, at the recent Imagine! Celebration Dinner and Auction.

Congratulations Dr. Braddock, and thank you for all you do for individuals with developmental disabilities locally and across the nation!

Congratulations Dawn Marie!

One of the highlights of our recent Imagine! Celebration Dinner and Auction was the honoring of Dawn Marie Candaleria-Bisgard as Imagine!’s 2010 Consumer of the Year. Check out the video below to see why she was so deserving of this honor.

Celebrating 10 Years!

The Imagine! Foundation supports Imagine! through fundraising and education. In ten years, more than $4 million has been raised by the Foundation to provide extensive support for more than 2,600 people with developmental disabilities (and their families), primarily in Boulder and Broomfield Counties. Check out the video below celebrating those successes.

Thanks To Our Celebration Sponsors

Thanks to our sponsors, more than 200 in-kind donors, and the generous support of the community for their support individuals with developmental disabilities and their families living in Boulder and Broomfield counties at our 10th Annual Celebration Dinner and Auction, held Friday, January 28, 2011.

We'll give you more details from the event soon, but for now, please take a look at our sponsors below.

SmartHome Residents Testing Technology To Assist In Employing Those With Disabilities

The proceeds from the Special Appeal at Friday night’s Imagine! Celebration Dinner and Auction will go to support Imagine!’s SmartHomes. This unique project is providing the residents who live in Imagine!'s two SmartHomes opportunities to use technology to increase their independence and community interaction.

The SmartHomes are also serving as laboratories of sorts to test and refine technologies that can be used to keep other individuals with developmental disabilities in their own homes longer, and to provide staff efficiencies to other residential service providers.

Here’s a great example of that second SmartHome goal in action: Several residents of the Bob and Judy SmartHome are helping to test some task prompting systems that may assist individuals with developmental disabilities in gaining and keeping meaningful employment.

The residents have teamed with the engineering team at Assistive Technology Partners to test an innovative project funded by the National Institute for Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) as part of the RERC-Workplace Accommodations Grant. This project is exploring the use of two different task prompting systems that could aid an individual with a disability in successfully performing assembly line tasks. Task prompting is similar to creating a check list to make sure the proper steps are being performed in the correct order for a given task.

The job that was chosen involves packaging Chocolate First Aid Kits. The first aid kits contain chocolate bars and bottles of chocolate candy. The kits are sold in gift shops throughout the United States.

The SmartHome residents are using two different types of prompting systems, so the researchers can compare the two systems and determine if one is more effective then the other. In both systems, there is a checklist or sequence of tasks that need to be preformed. In the first system, the individual must determine if the task has been performed and then hit a button to check it off the list and proceed to the next task. In the second system, a tool is developed to determine if the task has been performed. The tool utilizes sensors placed in the environment to know what has been completed. If the task has been completed, the next step is automatically presented.

The researchers hope to discover that the second system is more effective then one which relies on a human to hit a button to advance to the next step. The use of this information will be valuable in helping devise future projects for helping individuals with cognitive disabilities be successful in employment settings.

Thanks to Assistive Technology Partners for providing the information for this post, and for allowing SmartHome residents to take part in research that may have a powerful impact on their independence and quality of life.

It’s Not Too Late To Join Us At The Imagine! Celebration

The Imagine! Celebration, the annual fundraising event of the Imagine! Foundation, will honor the Foundation’s first decade and promises to be bigger and better than ever! In order to accommodate 400+ guests and approximately 200 auction items, the event will again be held at the newly renamed Plaza Hotel Longmont (formerly the Radisson Hotel and Conference Center). Some proceeds from the event will support Imagine!'s SmartHomes.

It’s not too late to put Friday, January 28, 2011 from 5:30-10:00 p.m. on your calendar! Special activities in celebration of the Foundation’s first ten years and its raising of $4,000,000 are planned.

Thanks to its popularity and proven results, electronic bidding will make its fourth appearance! The Imagine! Foundation was one of the first non-profits in the area to try electronic bidding three years ago, and it is now showing up at more and more events. It’s easy, fun, and allows guests to enter their bids on hand-held “tablets,” check periodically to see what items they are winning, and find “bargains,” all without having to leave their table or group.

As always, the announcement of the Consumer of the Year will be a highlight of the event.

See you on January 28th!

More info here.

Purchase tickets here.

Online auction here.

Bid On Auction Items Online!

The Imagine! Celebration Dinner and Auction is scheduled for Friday, January 28. Even if you can’t attend, you can participate in an online auction to support this ambitious project.

To do so, just click here. Once you go to the site, just enter a maximum amount for each item you wish to bid on. This bid will be incorporated into the Live Auction on the night of the event. The highest bidder acknowledged by the Auctioneer shall be the winning bidder. If you are the winning bidder and are not present at the event, you will be contacted within 24 hours of the close of the auction (approximately 9:00 p.m. on January 29, 2011). If you would like to secure and purchase the item today, you may acquire it for the Buy It Now price.

The items available for auction are pretty cool! There are trips galore from California to Greece, a Mediterranean feast and several other catered meals in your home, an elk hunt (see picture), fly-fishing expedition, sailing lessons, Disneyland tickets, an African safari, many restaurant certificates and hotel stays, and much, much more!

Innovations Brings Children ‘Home’

Here’s a nice story that illustrates just one of the many ways that Imagine! supports members of our community, and why your support of the Imagine! Foundation is so important. Thanks to Kristina Mondragon for sharing this story.

Note: The name of the individual used in this story has been changed.

Bob was nineteen years old and beginning to despair. He had been in the child welfare system for five years. For much of that time, he was hoping that he would find a foster home, but it hadn’t happened. “I didn’t know if there was a family out there for me,” he said. Then his caseworker referred Bob to Imagine!'s Innovations for Children department. Shortly thereafter, things began to change.

Bob was placed in a foster home in November, just before Thanksgiving. Bob’s foster parents opened their hearts and home to him and immediately made him part of the family. “I feel like I’m their son, and they support me in my goals,” Bob stated.

Over the past several weeks, Bob has enjoyed spending time with his new brothers and sisters, and has developed relationships with his foster parents’ extended family. Bob also started volunteering at a local food bank where he hopes to “learn job skills and help people who really need it.”

Just before the holiday season, Bob told his Imagine! placement worker, “This is the first time I have a family for the holidays and I think this year I will be happy.”

Imagine! Celebration Dinner And Auction Set For January 28

The Imagine! Foundation reaches its 10th anniversary this year. The Imagine! Celebration, the annual fundraising event of the Imagine! Foundation, will honor the Foundation’s first decade and promises to be bigger and better than ever!

In order to accommodate 400+ guests and approximately 200 auction items, the event will again be held at the newly renamed Plaza Hotel Longmont (formerly the Radisson Hotel and Conference Center). Please put Friday, January 28, 2011 from 5:30-10:00 p.m. on your calendar! Special activities in celebration of the Foundation’s first ten years and its raising of $4,000,000 are planned. As always, the announcement of the Consumer of the Year will be a highlight of the event.

Meanwhile, new and exciting auction items are arriving every day!

We’ll have trips galore from California to Greece, a Mediterranean feast and several other catered meals in your home, an elk hunt, fly-fishing expedition, sailing lessons, Disneyland tickets, many restaurant certificates and hotel stays, and much, much more!

More information about sponsors, auction items, and all of the festivities is available on the Imagine! website and the Imagine! Facebook page. Check back frequently for the latest updates!

Ticket and table prices remain the same as last year at $95/each for tickets and $1,250 for tables of ten.

Purchase tickets quickly and easily online.

Reserve now, and we’ll look forward to seeing you on January 28th!

Congratulations Eric!

We’d like to send our congratulations to Eric Wallace, who recently was honored by the Longmont Area Chamber of Commerce with the 2010 “Making a Difference” Award.

We can’t think of a more deserving recipient. Not only does Eric serve on the Imagine! Foundation Board of Directors, he also demonstrates Imagine!’s mission in action by providing employment opportunities at Left Hand Brewery to many of the people Imagine! serves. Eric is the President and co-founder of the popular Longmont-based brewery, which has hosted a variety of fundraising events in the past for many great causes.

In addition to serving on the Imagine! Foundation Board, he also serves on the Colorado Shakespeare Festival Advisory Board, and is the President of the Colorado Brewers Guild.

Thanks Eric for all you do for Imagine! and for your community!

Colorado Gives Day Update

Colorado Gives Day on December 8, 2010, a new initiative to increase philanthropy in Colorado through online giving, resulted in $4,405 in donations to Imagine!, including $820 from Imagine! employees.

A portion of this amount will be matched by Community First Foundation’s Incentive Fund to augment this total.

Thanks to the generosity of our employees, the employee campaign – Transcend $10,000 – is now at nearly $5,000 donated on behalf of Imagine!’s consumers.

Thanks to all who contributed!

Colorado Gives Day Is Today

Donate to Imagine! this Holiday Season and increase the value of your gift TODAY, December 8.

Imagine! is participating in this new initiative that will help raise $1 million in one day for charities. Help us bring in our share!

TODAY UNTIL MIDNIGHT, you have an opportunity to increase the value of your gift. FirstBank has provided $250,000 as the lead gift for a Colorado Gives Day Incentive Fund that will leverage donations made through GivingFirst.org. The Incentive Fund (now at $320,000!) will be proportionally allocated across all donations received today, increasing the value of each gift. In addition, 100% of your online gift and the extra incentive will go to Imagine! – no bank fees! Just go to the Imagine! website at: www.imaginecolorado.org and press the Donate Here! button on the right hand side. It will take you directly to Imagine!'s page on the Giving First website. Note: Imagine! Celebration ticket, table, and sponsorship purchases (because you receive goods -- dinners -- back in return) are not eligible.

Imagine! In The News

A group of first-year CU Engineering students have been working all semester to create some simple assistive technologies for folks Imagine! serves. Check out this great story from the Daily Camera about this ambitious project.

The Camera also made this video: