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PTRS E-Newsletter
The Newsletter of the PA Therapeutic Recreation Society
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| President's Message | |
Wow, the season of spring has finally arrived, just in time for the PTRS Spring e-newsletter to arrive in your inbox!
We continue to rebrand and position ourselves to move Therapeutic Recreation into the future, while maintaining our strong historical roots in the professional world with events like the Annual Therapeutic Recreation Institute. Our new PTRS logo can be seen on our revised website (www.prps.org/ptrs) and promotional material, including a new line of clothing and merchandise, which will be available at the TRI.
Your PTRS Board of Directors has implemented a monthly conference call to increase our communication and accountability on various projects, such as reviewing and revising the Board of Directors' job descriptions and PTRS awards, enhancement of our website, supporting the Pennsylvania Recreation Therapy Licensure bill, and the development of continuing education workshops.
As part of our outreach initiative to engage future professionals, your District Representatives and Specialty Representatives visited the campuses of college and universities that offer Therapeutic Recreation as a major during the month of April, with the intent to market the organization's services and solicit membership to PRPS and the PTRS branch. Also, we are looking to add a PTRS Student Director as a new non-voting position on the Board of Directors.
Of course, I would be remiss at this time of the year not to mention our crown  jewel, the Annual Pennsylvania Therapeutic Recreation Institute. Be sure to keep in touch and see what one can expect from the 2014 TRI by joining the TRI Facebook page, PTRS Facebook page, or the soon-to-be-created LinkedIn page. And don't forget to submit an award nomination to ensure that your amazing programs and individuals are recognized at the TRI Awards Luncheon. Visit the website to view the various awards and submit nominations by May 12th.
On behalf of the PTRS Board of Directors, we appreciate your interest in the Pennsylvania Therapeutic Recreation Society. We appreciate being part of your professional "dash" and meeting your professional interests.
We look forward to seeing you at the 46th Annual Therapeutic Recreation Institute in Lancaster from June 4-6, 2014, and even sooner at the TRI Pre-Conference entitled "Therapeutic Recreation Practice: A Strengths Approach" on June 3rd.
Sincerely,
Kirk Rakos
PTRS President (2013-15)
"You have the ability each day to make a difference in your professional dash." |
| Therapeutic Recreation Institute |
by Anne Wieland and Rachel Guiher, TRI Co-Chairs
Mark your calendars and start making plans to attend the 46th Annual TRI from June 4th to June 6th! There will be a Pre-Conference session on Tuesday, June 3th entitled Therapeutic Recreation Practice: A Strengths Approach, presented by Lynn Anderson, PhD, CTRS, CPRP. Dr. Anderson is a Distinguished Service Professor in the Recreation, Parks and Leisure Studies Department at State University of New York at Cortland, and the director for the Inclusive Recreation Resource Center. She has been active in the field of therapeutic recreation and inclusion for over 35 years, and has won numerous teaching, service, and research awards. We are extremely excited and honored that she has agreed to be a presenter at our TR Institute.
With the theme of "Circle of Life" to guide them, the Education Committee has planned a diverse session selection for you to learn from over three days. There will be sessions covering the life span, from youth and adolescents to seniors, to assure the TRI covers the diverse areas that we work in as recreation therapists and activity directors.
Our Keynote speaker will be Christopher Ridenhour, GFN. You may remember Christopher from a few years ago when he taught us about "ugly baby" and dressed as Santa Claus. He is a very dynamic speaker and we are happy that he will be with us again this year. Christopher spoke at our annual PRPS Conference in March. Here are a few comments from that session:
- Unbelievable! Best speaker of the whole conference
- Great Job, very interactive just what we needed
- Outstanding
- Bring him back
- Excellent
- He was awesome. Have for opening next year.
- Much fun
- Great Session
- Awesome, interactive, fun
- Great, have him again
Be sure to check out the "Vendor Circle" on Thursday June 5th. We have several vendors committed to attending and are looking for more to join that list. There will be plenty of cash and carry items to take home for your community to enjoy. Make it a point to attend the vendor social from 3:30 pm - 5:00 pm on Thursday with drawings for prizes and baskets.
This year we are returning to the DoubleTree Resort by Hilton in Lancaster, PA. Be sure to book your room by calling the hotel directly at (717)  464-2711. The room rate will be $104 until May 12 or rooms are sold out. We're not sure about you, but we are really looking forward to that warm chocolate chip cookie at check-in!
Looking forward to seeing you in June,
Anne Wieland and Rachel Guiher
2014 TRI Co-Chairs
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| Theme Baskets and Scholarships |
by Becky Kandrac, Recording Secretary
I can't believe that in less than two months I'll be selling tickets for the famous "themed basket" raffle. The year seems to have gone so quickly! As many of you know, the monies made from the raffle go to support two scholarships offered by PTRS: the Memorial Scholarship and the William P. Dayton Memorial Scholarship. Both of these scholarships offer the opportunity to experience the TRI for FREE,
including registration and hotel. 
The Memorial Scholarship is dedicated to the memory of all deceased PTRS members and to their dedicated efforts to further Therapeutic Recreation as a profession. To apply you must be a member of PTRS, currently employed in the field of TR, have a current resume, and one letter of recommendation.
The William P.Dayton Memorial Scholarship provides a complete registration to the Annual Pennsylvania Therapeutic Recreation Institute to a current full time student in a therapeutic recreation curriculum. The student must also have outstanding human service volunteer work.
For more information, click here. The deadline for submitting the application has been extended to Monday, May 12th, so hurry and do not miss out on this opportunity!
In order to raise the money for these scholarships, we are in need of donated theme baskets. Please consider donating a basket or new prize that can become part of our basket raffle. This year's Conference theme is "Circle of Life," and what better way to celebrate life, then to donate a theme basket showing the diversity within our wonderful state. Ideas from previous years include Hershey Chocolate Baskets, Steelers or Eagle's Baskets, Pittsburgh Baskets, Heritage of Lititz Basket, Local Wine Baskets, Altoona Baskets - the possibilities are endless! If you are willing to assist with a donation or if you have any questions, please contact me at bkandrac@masonicvillages.org or 717-367-1121 x33646.
The PTRS Board of Directors will also be sponsoring a special "Lottery/Gift Card" raffle. A limited number of tickets will be available for $5.00 each. Proceeds this raffle will go to reduce the PRPS building mortgage.
Thanks for your support, and see you at the TRI! And remember to bring along your address labels... it makes purchasing tickets much easier.
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| Residents Helping Residents: Meaningful, Purposeful, and Helpful to All | |
by Stacy A. Cathrall, CTRS
As a Recreation Therapist in Long Term Care, I am seeing more of my residents focus their free time on independent pursuits and on seeking out purposeful activities and jobs. Residents are often asking if there is anything they can help with or if I know of any jobs they can do.
As many of you know, it is not always simple to set a resident up with a volunteer task. Many things have to be considered such as safety, independent ability, and the time frame of when the task needs to be completed. Coaching your Resident volunteer is necessary in getting the process started; it is important to keep in mind that volunteering is not always going to be an independent task for every resident. Whether a Resident is completely independent as a volunteer or their act of community service is dependent on your assistance, the end result will be just as beneficial to all involved.
Click here to continue reading.
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| I Have The Best Job In The World! | |
by Karen Hammond, Concierge, Masonic Villages at Sewickley
 Seriously! I, just like you, get paid every day to make sure that people are having fun and making the time to lead productive and active lives. So with that said, it would mean that I have fun as well... just makes sense, right?
Sometimes I do feel a bit guilty for accepting a paycheck. Just for a minute. And to top that off, I am spending my 8+ hours each day with wonderful, generous, experienced, smart, fun-loving, and compassionate independent seniors. I learn something from them every day, whether it is a piece of history, personal development, or about human nature. They are always ready to party, and I look forward to helping to create great events. They WANT to remain active (at least most of them) so they are looking for new concepts in leisure activities. This makes my job and path much easier, doesn't it?
Now it isn't always perfect, and there are definitely snags in the system. You know what I am talking about....other team members that are there only for the paycheck, a few people that don't communicate well, leaders in the company that don't feel that a recreation professional knows anything about these wonderful human beings, and so on. You can't escape that. Every environment will have some of it. But in my opinion, those issues do not hold a candle to the joy and satisfaction that I get from my daily interaction with folks that are fighting the traditional aging process.
When I asked them to comment on this statement, 'Why Leisure Activities Are So Important To My Lifestyle',these are some of the responses that I got.
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| 2013 TRI Sponsor | |
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| Alternative Activities | |
by Andrea Newberry, ADC, MC, EDU, Director of Activity/Volunteer Services, Nottingham Village Senior Living
Looking for new activities to help bring quality of life to your residents? Let me share a few new activities I have tried lately and find to be working out splendidly with positive results.
Continue reading here.
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| 2013 TRI Sponsor | |
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| PTRS MISSION STATEMENT | |
To actively engage individuals committed to Therapeutic Recreation, and interested consumers, by supporting professional development, advocacy and resources.
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This E-Newsletter is published quarterly. The editor is Becky Kandrac, you may submit articles to Becky at bkandrac@masonicvillages.org. Graphic Design by Emily Schnellbaugh, Communications Coordinator, PRPS. PTRS is a branch of the Pennsylvania Recreation & Park Society, Inc.
Sent by Emily Schnellbaugh, Communications Coordinator
PA Recreation & Park Society
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