Please join me in welcoming Patrick Fowler who is our new Temporary Coordinator for the Footloose Program in Port Moody.

Patrick is taking over for Krissy Elliott as she heads off on her maternity leave. Patrick\’s first day was September 15th and Krissy will be working with him in the next couple of weeks to ensure a proper handover.

Patrick can be reached by email at [email protected] or at Ext. 2025 or 778.387.5655.

Please join me in congratulating Dawn Walsh in her new position as Assistant Manager, Adult Respite at CVS. Dawn will be reporting to Colin Wood in this role and be part of the Shared Living team. Dawn will be assisting in the Shared Living program as we develop our new Adult Respite program.

Dawn will be transitioning out of her current role and starting in her new Assistant Manager role on September 13th, 2021.

Congrats Dawn!

Gillian Reyes, Manager of Specialized Resources (aka Residential Services) is holding a contest to develop a new name for the Specialized Resources program. 

In light of the grim news of the discovery of the remains of Indigenous children being found at several residential schools across Canada, we would like to officially change the name of our \”residential\” program/ \”residential\” services at CVS.

The sun is strong and the air quality is poor. Another extreme heat warning for Friday and this weekend has been released. Combined with the poor air quality from the smoke, it can be quite dangerous for anyone, particularly:

• Older adults
• Infants and young children
• People with chronic illnesses (cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease, renal disease, psychiatric illness)
• People who are physically impaired (confined to bed, or dependence for assistance with daily living, sensory/cognitive impairment)
• People taking certain medications (antihypertensives, antidepressants, antipsychotics, anti-Parkinson’s agents)

We want to thank everyone who participated in the first month of our employee recognition initiative – it\’s great to hear about the amazing work that you are doing on a daily basis and we look forward to hearing more in the future! As you know, we recently started this initiative so that staff, supervisors, and managers are able to nominate people for going above and beyond on the job. We have just hit our one month mark, which means it is time for some prizes.

The amazing staff who have been nominated this past month are below –

Amanda Maguire – Amanda was recognized for stepping up during a Zoom class to help out & she did a great job. She was also recognized as a hard worker who goes above and beyond in the job and is dedicated.

Amanda Lokay – Amanda went above and beyond as supervisor and friend. It was noted that we all went through things via COVID. staff have respect for her and she helped people get through things.

Brandon Lee – Brandon was recognized for working hard to support individual in the home, meets the needs of the family of the individual, goes above and beyond in the role, flexible, positive attitude, creative and professional.

Dawn Walsh – Dawn was recognized for doing an amazing job moving the Poco office and setting up the new Clarke Street office in 1 day. She came early and stayed late on the Friday to ensure that when the people we support started there on Monday everything would be ready for them – went over and above.

Emilie Benoit – Emilie works hard to support both individuals in the home, maintains the family relationship and needs, flexible with her schedule to ensure proper coverage in home, positive attitude, hard worker, creative and professional.

Gillian Reyes – Gillian was recognized for doing an incredible job in her starting months as Manager of the Children\’s Program. She has put in the time and dedication to really make the program coordinators, staff teams and individuals feel heard, supported and valued. Gillian goes above and beyond in her role and her hard work deserves every bit of recognition :).

Jan Michael Jose – Michael did an amazing job moving the Poco office and setting up the new Clarke Street office in 1 day – came early and stayed late on the Friday to ensure that when the people we support started there on Monday everything would be ready for them – went over and above. Michael has gone above and beyond with packing, setting up and installing many of the key features for the new office. Every time Michael works he comes in with a smile and a can do attitude. He regularly does all our heavy lifting and takes on every task asked of him without question. He continues to help with cosmetic features.

Lela Shaban – Lela is just always there, even on non-work time to help staff with their needs. This has been especially comforting with all of the restrictions that the pandemic has presented. She is also recognized for her extraordinary work with clients and staff at CVS, going above and beyond, treating everyone equally and with respect.

Pat McNinch – As mentioned above, Pat was recognized for being a hard worker who is dedicated to the job and the people she supports, as well as going above and beyond on a daily basis.

Salima Ladha – Salima is recognized for working tirelessly to address the needs of the supported individual, goes above and beyond hours wise in the role and is flexible in her schedule to ensure supported individual has the best care possible. She has a positive attitude, professional and patient.

Saundra Rogers – Saundra goes above and beyond at our Surrey House.Planting a veggie garden and taking her on overnight camping trips.

Solita Burton – Solita was recognized for being a hard worker, going above and beyond in the job and being dedicated to the individuals we serve at CVS.

Trevor Cowan – Trevor stepped up during a zoom class to help out and did a great job. Thanks Trevor!

Keep up the good work everyone!

David Hingsburger, a major advocate for the disability services sector, passed away on July 18, 2021. Hingsburger, of Salmo, British Columbia was a pioneer of change in the disability services sector and made people question their own practices and many people are living happier. Overall, the community had learnt from his insights, wisdom and wonderful humour. He raised important topics that needed to be addressed.

Everyone at CVS was saddened to hear this news. Our thoughts are with his family and loved ones.

We would like to share a quote from David that is very special to us at CVS.

\”Being in human services is cool because, in essence, you are paid to be human.  Paid to explore the commonalities of the human condition.  Paid to discover the incredible diversity of the human spirit.  Paid to spend the day doing something that matters; something that makes a difference.  Something that you are proud of.

Done right, you have chosen both a job and a passion.  Both a passion and a mission.  Both a mission and a purpose.  There are those who spend their lives looking for a purpose.  You will rise to it each morning.  And that’s a hell of a way to start the day.\”

– David Hingsburger 

David made a major impact and he will be sorely missed. Rest in Peace, David. (12/21/1952 – 7/18/2021)

Click here to see our new CVS Annual Report 2020/2021. This year we did our annual report as a video so we hope you enjoy watching all of us report on our year!

Spirit Club is a virtual wellness platform that everyone across our CVS community now has full access to. It\’s a great resource for everyone to stay fit and even practice mindfulness. CVS has signed up for a 6 month membership and we will review this in the late fall to gauge continued interest.

Here\’s a link with video instruction for anyone who needs it as well. Links in the below image won\’t work due to file type.

• To access online classes, click here
• To watch on demand classes, click here