2015-03- Banchero Newsletter - Banchero Disability Partners

Banchero Disability Partners empowers adults with developmental disabilities so that they may
realize their potential, achieve their goals, and be active and contributing members in their communities. Together we promote equitable civil rights.
Spring 2015
13732 Midvale Ave. N #103
Seattle, WA 98133
p: 206 367 7795
f: 206 361 2271
www.banchero.org
Calendar
2015 Heart and Soul
Dinner Auction
Music by the Kings of Swing
Saturday, April 11,
5:30 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
Board of
Directors
Officers
President
Patty Burke Butler
Vice President
Peregrin Sorter
Secretary
Waltraut Lehmann
Treasurer
Todd Kelly
Directors
Chad McBride
Frank Siderius
Stephen K. Malshuk
Jonathan Minear
Kim Thomas
Steve Clyne
Kevin Hastings
Banchero Hall, St. Anne School
Banchero Disablity Partners thanks our many business donors.
Please support the businesses that support us!
101 West Lee Street
2Bar Spirits, à Maurice Cellars, ACT A Contemporary Theatre, All the Best Pet Care, American Dance Institute,
Anthony’s Restaurant – Chinook’s, Banick Chiropractic Clinic, Boeing Employees’ Community Fund, Bill and
Melinda Gates Foundation Employee Matching Gift Program, Boeing Company Gift Match Program, Borracchini’s
Foods Inc., Brown Bear Car Wash, Canlis, Capital Industries, Cedar Grove Composting, Chef by Request, Chocolati,
Chuck Olson Chevrolet & Kia, Classic Catering, CorePower Yoga, Costco Wholesale, Creative Dance Center, Diane’s
Tank Removal Service, Dimitriou’s Jazz Alley, El Gaucho, Emerald Downs, Emerald Services Inc., EMP Museum,
EPJ Consulting, Essential Baking, Ethan Stowell Restaurants, Equal Exchange Espresso, Flayva’s Fresh Roast
Coffee, Florexpo, Free Motion Fitness, Flying Furs, The Garage, Gertrude and Eldon Sallee Foundation, Gilbert
Cellars, Gymboree Play & Music of Ballard and Bellevue, Hasegawa Family & Esthetic Dentistry, Hilliard’s Beer,
Holliday Masonry, Huxley Wallace Collective, Invest In Others Charitable Foundation, Jalisco’s Mexican Restaurant
& Taqueria, James Alan Salon and Spa, Juliet Fine Crafted Jewelry, KBB Wealth Management at Morgan Stanley,
Kendall Floral Supply, Laura Bee Designs, McGavick Wines, Mattaini Family Foundation, Makers Mark, Microsoft
Matching Gifts, Milbrandt Vineyards, Morelli Family LLC, Myo Rehab Therapy, Narboo, Native Wholesale,
Natural Moments Studio, Nile Golf Course, The Norcliffe Foundation, Northwest Crossfit, Opus Community
Fund, Oreck Vacuum & Floor Care, O Wines, Pfau Cochran Vertetis Amala, Pfizer Foundation Matching Gifts,
Plum Job Searching Strategies, Razore Foundation, The Red Balloon Co., The Red Balloon Photography, Redmond
General Insurance Agency, Ride the Ducks, Rodman Gilder Miller Studio, Saviah Wine Cellars, Schultz Family
Foundation, SeaBear Wild Salmon, Seattle Art Museum, The Seattle Foundation, Seattle Theater Group, Seattle
Repertory Theater, Seattle Symphony, Seaview Glass, Sepic Family Foundation, Shoreline Family Auto, Siderius
Lonergan & Martin, Sitka Pacific Capital Management, Skillet Street Foods, Spin Alley Bowling Center, StoryBook
Theater, Stuhlbergs Inc., Surf Ballard, Ten Mercer, Terra Bella, The Catering Company, Town Hall Seattle, Daryl
Tuttle Attorney at Law, UW Athletics, UW World Series, Vashon Winery, Westlake and Associates, Whole Life Yoga,
Woodland Park Zoo, Yuen Lui
Written by CaraLee Cook.
Layout and design by Vivian Hua.
Please consider visiting us or making an
online donation at www.banchero.org!
p. (206) 367-7795
f. (206) 361-2271
Seattle, WA 98119
Meet Jill and Dina!
Board Meeting
The person of Jill J. was shrouded in mystery when she first came to be supported
by Banchero Disability Partners in 2010. She avoided connecting with others in
conversation, and her behavior didn’t reveal much of her story, though we knew
from her historical documents that she had experienced mistreatment and had
reasons to mistrust others. Jill rarely spoke about herself: her feelings, her desires,
her observations, her likes and dislikes. Her support staff had to make inferences
about her needs moment to moment. To most questions, Jill gave the patented
response, “I don’t know.” She had a very sad disposition and was noticeably selfprotective. No one knew her well enough to begin to help meet her deeper needs
beyond what was physical and obvious.
Initially, Jill chose to spend most of her time alone in her apartment, and when she
did go out, she would often board a bus and travel downtown to visit a day shelter
that was familiar to her. From there, she would walk to another shelter where she
would spend the night even though she had her own comfortable apartment just a
bus ride away. Whether isolating herself in her apartment or leaving to return to a
place designated for those with needs she no longer had, Jill remained hidden from
us for some time. Early on, all we knew about Jill were a few of her favorite foods
and some of her music preferences.
CONTINUES ON THE NEXT PAGE >>
Tuesday, May 26, 6:30 p.m.
Banchero Disability Partners office
Midvale Apartments
13732 Midvale Ave. N. #103
Seattle WA 98133
Annual Picnic
Sunday July 26,
11:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Paramount Park
835 NE 155th Street
Shoreline WA 98155
MEET JILL AND DINA,
CONTINUED FROM THE FRONT PAGE
Jill had come from a
supportive living situation
where staffing hours weren’t
sufficient to meet her needs.
She was independent in
some areas, but couldn’t adequately care for herself. Jill
was in very poor health. She had bad dietary habits, which
contributed to obesity and a diagnosis of pre-diabetes. Areas
of her skin were deteriorating due to poor hygiene, and she
seemingly didn’t know how or have the desire to keep a clean
living environment. Jill’s emotional needs were even further
away from our understanding.
Dina Manjang became Jill’s primary staff person in 2012
and was interested in developing a relationship from the
outset. Dina would attempt to engage Jill in conversation
while assisting her with daily needs but didn’t experience
much success at first. Even though Jill didn’t present many
opportunities, Dina made an effort to look for ways to
connect with her. With consistency of care, Dina began to
experience small breakthroughs with communication. More
and more Dina or other support staff would come to the
office excited to report that they had a conversation with Jill.
It was such a big deal that they would sometimes recount
the entire conversation to the other staff members as they
listened intently.
Since her arrival, we have tried to give Jill security by
respecting her personal space and making sure she has a safe
living environment. She had to develop trust with the staff,
and only through the consistent commitment of Dina and
others has she shown signs of comfort and ease within our
agency and has finally begun to flourish.
Today Jill is much healthier; she has been working with
Dina and a nutritionist to maintain a healthy and appealing
diet, and she is losing weight as a result. She is no longer
pre-diabetic, and her skin has recovered due to good hygiene
habits. In many areas of her life, Jill has been coaxed to
come out of her shell, and building up trust was the key. Jill
no longer visits shelters downtown, and she is usually excited
to go to social activities, especially parties.
Dina and Jill enjoy eating out and window-shopping at the
mall together. They also attend karaoke at a local restaurant
weekly and work out together at Fitness Evolution once or
twice a week. Jill is very much into music, and she seems to
exhibit fewer inhibitions when she is in the groove.
Dina and Jill have a true friendship, and the deeper levels of
care that emanate from that relationship are in place. She
is much more conversant and expresses her wants, desires
and opinions more readily. She also seems to be much happier
with her life. Together Dina and Jill have walked through a
transition from self-protective behavior, which was almost
completely insular and stagnant, to living life with positive
expectation. Jill now looks forward to opportunities to engage
and grow, and Dina is by her side.
Events & Fundraising
Board &
Organizational News
Promote Civil Rights
Shannon, Josh, and Stephanie lobby
on Supported Living Day
Thanks for the holiday cheer!
Our winter mail campaign resulted in over
$30, 000 raised for our services and mission.
Specifically this year, the funds helped us to
make wage and retirement contributions for
well-deserving staff. Over $1000 was designated
by you for client “stockings,” providing holiday meals and
gifts for our clients who do not have other family support.
Some of the presents clients received included: a new winter
coat, clothing, CD player with disc, underwear, headphones,
slippers, pajamas, art supplies, gift cards, and winter gloves
and hats. We are inspired by your support that helps us go
beyond the basics that our state contract covers, to ensure
that our clients have a great life.
Calling all Hep Cats to Save the Date!
For our Heart and
Soul Dinner and Silent
Auction.
The Kings of Swing had us jumping and jiving last year, so we
are bringing them back! If you want to hear swing and big band
classic tunes done right, don’t miss these guys and dolls. Classic
Catering plans to wow your taste buds again, and our auction
items (such as signed Marshawn Lynch posters and Seahawks
tickets) will be the bee’s knees. Come and have a ball while you
support our great cause. Be sure to RSVP by Friday, April 3rd.
You can register online at http://banchero.bpt.me/
Date: April 11, 5:30 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.
Place: Banchero Hall, St Anne School
101 West Lee Street, Seattle WA 98119
Kathy opens a gift on
Christmas morning
Board members Waltraut, Todd,
Steve and Kim at the potluck picnic
Great staff is the key to quality, yet the
current state payment to providers is not
enough to pay the legal minimum wage
while providing mandated health benefits
to our workers. The situation is shameful,
and we are challenging the legislature to
increase worker wages so that we can hire
and retain good people. Let your legislator
know that this matters. People who have
disabilities usually need support to live in
their communities and enjoy the same civil
rights as everyone else. Excellent support
staff is the anchor of inclusion.
Board member Peregrin and wife
Yoshi bring baby Theo to his first
annual meeting
Board member Steve Malshuk joined us
when we were in a housing crisis. We had
been threatened with eviction from the
apartment building where our agency
offices and our highest support need clients
were living. We decided that we needed
a permanent housing solution, and Steve
championed this cause and made it his own.
Steve (along with his wife Cathy Banchero
Malshuk) tenaciously educated his friends,
and fearlessly asked for their support. His
efforts were successful, and along with Steve
and Cathy’s leadership gift, we raised $1
million in capital funds to buy the Midvale
building.
Steve has been the quiet guy behind the
scenes of many of our successful ventures
throughout the years: he has taken
professional-quality pictures at our events,
hosted (along with Cathy!) our winetasting
event, has given us wise and free legal
counsel, and even made centerpieces for
our auction. At the end of the year, Steve
decided to step off the board to make room
for someone new, but he has graciously
agreed to continue serving on our major gifts
committee, and he is soliciting desserts for
our auction dessert dash even as you read
this. So while Steve may be off our board,
don’t be lulled into thinking he will be giving
your checkbook a break any time soon.
Thank you for all that you have done, Steve!
Events & Fundraising
(CONTINUED)
Early warning for summer fun
Cathy and Laethan enjoy the
holiday party
The Relationship Class teaches the fundamentals of
building relationships, personal safety, and safe sex and
is offered in Shoreline or North Seattle to people who
have developmental disabilities. The next session will start
on April 16, and will be co-taught by Andrew Fisher and Jasmina
Merdanovic. If you have questions or wish to be put on the mailing
list, please email Andrew Fisher at Andrew@Banchero.org
CONTINUES ON THE NEXT PAGE >>
Last but not least, promoting civil rights is
a key part of our mission. We may think
that the inclusion of people who have
disabilities is a given, but many fought
long, hard battles -- in courts, in schools,
in legislative hearings, and on the capitol
steps -- to gain what we now take for
granted. A group of us went to lobby in
Olympia on “Supported Living” day on
February 25. The focus of the rally, and of
our lobbying efforts, is to fight for wage
increases for supported living staff.
Board Happenings
School of Social Work intern Kayla
guest teaches the Relationship Class
Banchero Disability Partners
Picnic and Potluck will be
held on July 26, at Paramount
Park in Shoreline, from
11:00 to 1:00. Fun times
will include water balloons, a
piñata, field games, and great
prizes. BBQ masters will be
on the grill, and traditional
potluck food from many cultures will be
served. Join us for some fun in the sun!
You can put Banchero
Disability Partners in your will,
and your legacy will live on.
As you plan your estate, remember that
you can designate Banchero Disability
Partners in your will, and that many gifts
can have significant tax benefits. Any of
our experts would be happy to answer any
questions you may have. Call CaraLee
(206) 367-7795 or caralee@banchero.
org to get in contact with our estate and
financial planners.