Sarah recently sat down with a member of The Progress Center, and conducted an interview.
 
What is your name?
My name is William Sevigny...but I like to be called Bill
 
Where do you live?
I'm currently living in West Paris, but I am moving soon.
 
 
Tell me a little about yourself: 
I like to help people in my community, by volunteering.  I enjoy working with Liz and Erlene with the community suppers.
 
What are your strengths?
 I am a friendly person, who is always willing to lend a hand.
 
 
What are your weaknesses?
Bill has no weaknesses
 
How long have you been with The Progress Center? 
Bill has attended The Progress Center for the past three years
 
 
What is your greatest accomplishment? 
Bill is currently the State President for Speaking up for us.
 
What type of activities do you enjoy?
 Bill enjoys camping, fishing, volunteering, and going out to eat
 
What are your hobbies? 
Bill enjoys putting puzzles together
 
Do you have any pets? 
He has no pets
 
What is your favorite TV Show? 
His favoriate TV show is Wheel of Fortune
 
 
Are you a member of a civic group?
 SUFU
Voice of the People
West Paris Baptist Church
 
 
Sarah would like to thank Bill for taking time out of his busy schedule to complete the interview.  Sarah is going to be interviewing staff and clients of The Progress Center for the newsletter on a quarterly basis.
 

George Ricker, one of the original founders of The Progress Center, addressed the staff and management of the Center at their retreat held recently at Shawnee Peak. 
 
Mr. Ricker told about how he and his wife both worked at Pineland where she started their first group home, something no one thought would be successful.  Later he took a position in Westbrook where he taught the only handicap class in the entire city.  When he came to teach in the Oxford Hills he was amazed to find there were 3 classes virsus the 1 in the entire city of Westbrook.  It was evident that once a developmentally challanged child became an adult and left the public school system there were no services available to them. Most stayed home and were shunned by society.  He said that, "Way back, no one knew what to do but something had to be done". 
 
A group of parents of developmentally challanged children joined forces and  in 1967 they formed the Southern Oxford County Association for Retarded Children, Inc. (SOCARC).  Their first venture with a group home was a learning experience and as soon as the right person was found to run the home things ran fairly smoothy.  He said that "Eager and pushy is what it took to make it work." 
 
Mr Ricker also talked about embrassing change as something necessary to succeed.  He told the staff to "Appreciate new ideas; we all hate changes but we all have to make changes."  It is evident by the success that the SOCARC had that the changes they made in the lives of these young adults worked.  Over the years the program grew and expanded and in 1986 it was incorporated as The Progress Center. 
 
Today The Progress Center serves over 160 adults and children with developmental disabilities.  Our Mission: We are dedicated to promoting the highest level of independence and personal freedom for individuals with disabilities. Our Vision is to weave the community into the lives of people with disabilities one person at a time, enriching both those we serve and the community. We believe that each person with a disability has a desire for a rich and varied life, including a physical, intellectual, emotional and spiritual dimension. Also, each person grows through his or her own life experience and has the right to make his or her own life choices, including those that may involve risk. All people should be able to discover their own dream for a meaningful life. 

  We have new neighbors. If you look in the new gardens by the administration building you will see deer tracks.  They seem to enjoy a buffet meal.  It appears the deer are especially fond of sunflowers and cabbage, along with most everything else planted there.
 
This summer has been a challenge for us in the admin. bldg.  We have been able to survive the monsoon season, the three weeks of summer heat and humidity, as well as the wrath of Mother Nature in the form of power outages/phone outages but not without some difficulty.  Unlike the main building, we do have the advantage of trees to shade the summer sun.  Keeping our building comfortable was quite a task and we now welcome the cooler days of fall.  Can someone tell me how we can loose the phones in the administration building while the main building has theirs?  This is especially puzzling as the switchboard is in the administration building.  Yes, this happened to us in aftermath to the horrific weather that brought on the tornados. 
 
To those of you we confused with the building of new offices, not to mention that many of us changed offices, you will be glad to know that it appears we will all be staying put in our spaces for a little while.  Really, we're not doing this to confuse everyone.  If we decide to change office spaces again we'll try to provide maps or guides to find us.

 

What an interesting summer it has been so far with the weather. Doesn't know if it is going to rain or if it wants to be just unbearably hot! Either way the people at FA have kept themselves busy! On a regular basis all of the residents at FA love to go out for ice

coffee at various locations in town. They also have enjoyed going out for some of that great frozen custard in Poland, if you haven't tried it yet you really should! We would also like to recognize the new and exciting things people have done; such as Sandra. Sandra made it a goal that she wanted to go back to Pineland to visit now that it is so beautiful and see her head stone and have a picnic lunch. Sandra made it there and back and said she had a great time and would love to go again. Sandra has also been visiting with her friend at the Market Square Nursing home every weekend. Sandra calls and orders herself a tray to have lunch with her friend, then staff will drop her off and she calls when she is ready to be picked up. Sandra has come a long way! Good for you Sandra. Fred has been working on cooking and getting in his physical exercise this summer. Fred asked that we have someone come over to the home to help show him how to make well balanced meals and learn what good portion sizes may be.  Fred has learned a few new tricks for cooking and he will often lend a hand when making meals at home. Fred also purchased a new exercise bike for his room, and most often if you can't find Fred his is in his room riding his new bike!  Fred and Debbie also went to a camp on the Penobscot River with Outpoint and they said they did many things like crafts, swimming, fishing, and cooking. Debbie likes to be a busy body all the time weather she is home or out in the community. Debbie planted a garden of flowers and some tomatoes this summer and she has done an excellent job of keeping up with the weeds with all the rain. Anyone who has stopped by the house gets a tour of the garden and I am sure they will all tell you just how lovely it is. Linda has also been working towards getting more physically fit by going to the track and taking some walks. Linda has also had her friend over for dinner a few times, but most of all Linda has spent her summer doing what most women dream about being able to do all the time, Shopping!

 

All the residents at FA are looking forward to the fall season and celebrating their favorite holidays Thanksgiving and Halloween. Stop by FA because Debbie always makes sure the house is filled with lovely fall decor!

Well summer is nearly over & while we did not have a lot of sunshine we made the most of rainy days & planned events according to weather conditions. Everyone here at Spring Street has been quite busy. We began the summer with the SLC Annual Semi Formal held at the Ramada Inn in Lewiston. This is an event that everyone looks forward too. Dan Bumby dressed in his tuxedo!  I think that the staff  enjoy more than the guys!!  The "boys" took a day off & went to Old Orchard for the day. They loved sitting in the sun, watching the people, & yes eating pizza & ff.  The only brave sole to swim the cold water was Rich, Bless his soul.  The boys were offered to do anything in Old Orchard & stated they just wanted to do what everyone else was doing, eating, sitting in the sun & watching the people.  They all got together with the people from KJ last week & had their end of the season.  It was a disappointing summer for Wednesday night racing as it rained nearly every Wednesday in July & they were cancelled.  They were quite excited to hear that Erlene was going to race on a Wednesday evening in August but she had injured her back & had difficulty walking & could not climb into a window of a race car. The guys thought that was a hoot, "women can't drive race cars". 

 

Greg went to Lake Pemaquid with his friends from day program & came home excited & said he couldn't wait to go back next summer. He said that he swam in a swimming pool for the first time & looked at staff & said that the pool went down about 3 inches in water as he probably drank it. His smile & excitement was priceless. Greg also now stays home on Mondays & enjoys working around his yard. You can't miss our home we have a flying pink pig out front, & a tin Moose! He has not worked much at National Wood Products this summer as they work with a skeleton crew due to the poor economy.

Clyde Nowlin has had a good summer & has been to several musical events at the Silver Spurr in Mechanic Falls & nearly all concerts in the park in Oxford & South Paris if they were not rained out.  He  went to the races for the first time early this summer & enjoyed so much that he asked to go again with his buddy Greg. It was a disappointing summer for Wednesday night racing as it rained nearly every Wednesday in July & they were cancelled.  Clyde has been to Newry several times this summer with his buddy "Ken" & also residential staff & while walking in Newry on one trip had run into his sister Florence.  He is going to start working on a scrap book this winter to place all his pictures.
 
Betty like her housemates has had a short summer due to rain, rain, rain. She made the best of it & went to yard sales whenever the weather was nice.  She was able to go camping with her sister for a weekend but guess what ? IT RAINED!!!!!! 
 
Ross had a good beginning to his summer he volunteered @ the Oxford Relief Workers annual garage sale & he was responsible for prep, & sales of popcorn. He has made a lot of friends at this monthly meeting. He also is a member of the Community Supper committee & attends suppers on the 3rd Thursday of every month helping prep & serve meals. He has managed to operate that Hobart Dishwasher independently. He is a great asset to our new program.  As you read in Deb opening paragraphs, Ross recently peacefully passed away surrouned by his adopted family and friends.  We wish to extend our thanks and heartfelt gratitude to all for their love and support shown Ross and his Spring Street family and friends.
 

 

This summer has been full of growth and new experiences. The staff at Day Program have been working hard to help their teams find new volunteer opportunities and become more involved in their community. We have a team led by Fred that works at the Norway Farmers Market every Thursday afternoon to promote and sell products that they have made from the Tree Works business that is being developed. We have more teams involved in the Meals on Wheels Program and this is just as beneficial to the team as it is to the people they deliver meals to. A favorite event was camping at Lake Pemaquid in Damariscotta. All the folks who went there have many stories of fun events and exciting experiences. One person who stayed at camp for a couple of nights commented that he wants to stay "the whole time" next year! Also many teams are involved in bagging and delivering products from our Co-op to people in the community who placed orders. It's been a busy summer for everyone in the Community Supports program and we look forward to new opportunities to learn and grow as summer fades in fall. Happy autumn! Kathy Brown, Community Supports Supervisor.

 

It was great to see everyone at our retreat.  I got a chance to associate faces with names and meet a lot of new people.  I was amazed with the department presentations, and I walked away very impressed with the talent that resides here at The Progress Center.  I'm truly happy to be a part of this organization.
 
The summer is over, and despite the rain, our High School Youth had a great time working with the Oxford Hills Food Collaborative.  There were some "bumps"; however, our kids were able to experience work and get paid for it.  At times the paychecks were small, but it made no difference.  Just a few hours a week can be a huge thing for most of our consumers.
 
You may have noticed Jeanine out and about keeping the center clean.  Jeanine is hearing impaired, but she absolutely does not see herself as disabled.  She is a very dedicated person and loves her job very much.  If you see her, be sure to let her know the wonderful job she is doing.
 
I have been working with Deb Anthony and Ashleigh Andrews developing a Teen Program that will be facilitated at The Progress Center.  We hope to have a group comprised of youth from local area high schools.  We plan to meet once or twice a month; Ashleigh will reinforce life skills taught at the high schools, and I will work with the youth developing employment skills.  We are in the process of putting a proposal together that will be presented to Special Education Staff and School Superintendents.  We hope to receive grant funding for this project.
 
Our Employment Recognition Night is just around the corner.  If you know of an employer that should be honored, please let me know.  Also, any stories you may have where employers have gone above and beyond the call of duty would be greatly appreciated.

The Information and Technology department is an ever expanding area.  We are looking at updating our fleet of computers with more efficient and reliable one.  We understand that everyone relies on them for 99% of their job and we are working very hard to keep everyone up and going.  This past week the supervisors recieved new request sheets just for any computer and telephone problems.  If you are having any sort of issue, talk with your supervisor, and they will forward a copy of the request to the I.T Coordinator, (me), and I'll resolve the issue accordingly.  We are also looking at updating our phone and Internet provider to one that will suit our needs better as we grow as a company..

 The Collaborative is winding down from a great season despite the wet start.  We expanded this year to 48 CSA members and worked very close with our suppliers to ensure the highest quality local foods.  Everyone has done super helping with the sorting and delivering.  Everyone give themselves a big pat on the back.

The Health and Safety committee has worked on ensuring the Progress Center is a safe place to work and also for our guys to be everyday.  We appreciate everyone's cooperation with some of the changes to the policies and everyone's support.  We are working with the Oxford County Emergency Preparedness Agency with providing available resources from the Center in case of a local disaster.  With our vehicles, facilities and staff, the Progress Center is a great asset to the surrounding community in the event of a mass emergency event.