1. home and garden

Hewlett-Packard Company
December 2013
Volume 2, Issue 12
Letter from the Chief Executive Officer
Main Office
How to Enjoy the
Holiday Season
The weather has turned chilly, and the days remaining on
the 2013 calendar are rapidly decreasing. This seems to
suggest that the end of another year is
upon us and
that the holiday season has
arrived in full
force.
For many of us,
this is the time
of year that we
have come to
look forward to
and/or dread.
It is a time for
special gatherings with family, friends, and co-workers.
Or, maybe this is a time of
year when one remembers a
loved one who is no longer
among us. Still, maybe this is
a time of year when being
alone and the feeling of loneliness is a concern. The holiday season is also a time of
added pressures to do more
with the same amount of
time and sometimes less energy to do it with.
In any case, this is the time of
year when may of us become
susceptible to holiday stress
that may lead to depression.
But it doesn’t have to be that
way. There are strategies
that you can follow that can
help manage the stress and
overwhelm, and ultimately
reduce the incidence of depression. Following are a few
helpful ideas to assist you in
making the most of the holiday
season:
 Keep expectations for the
season realistic; therefore, set
juices. Maintaining a healthy
diet will help support your immune system, reduce fatigue,
and fight illness.
 Try to maintain an exercise
routine. Researchers have
found that exercise is an excellent treatment to alleviate depression.
 The holiday season does
not mean that you will not have
difficult feelings. It is important
to acknowledge one’s feelings,
even if you keep them to yourself.
 Try to look to the future
with an optimistic perspective
despite difficulties of the past.
Find ways to see the good in
challenging experiences.
goals that are reasonable for
you. Before beginning a task,
make a list and prioritize the
important activities.
 Recognize your own limitations and don’t over-do it.
There is no need to attend every social gathering or to create
the perfect social event.
 Learn to delegate the holiday chores. It is not necessary
to try to do everything by
yourself.
 Know your spending limit
and stay on budget.
 Remember to eat healthy,
nutritious food, as you would
do any other time of the year.
Also, drink plenty of water and
 Participate in holiday activities that are free and lighthearted. Plan to attend festive
activities that do not require
large amounts of travel time.
 Volunteer for a charitable
organization that reaches out
to the needy. Or contribute to
community food drives in your
neighborhood.
 Spend time with supportive and caring friends and/or
family, if possible. Yet, should
you find yourself alone, then be
certain to schedule enjoyable
activities into your free time.
In conclusion, try a little laughter. Research psychologists
have found that humor improves one’s sense of overall
well-being.
120 South State
Street Elgin, IL
60123
FSS Office
583 Owasco
Suite A
Elgin, IL 60123
Office Hours
Monday-Thursday
7:30 a.m.—6:00 p.m.
Closed MondayThursday
12:00 p.m.–1:00
p.m.
Closed Friday,
Saturday & Sunday
Contact Number
Office:
(847) 742-3853
After Hours:
(847) 923-6247
Holidays
Christmas
December 25, 2013
Christmas Eve
December 24, 2013
New Year’s Eve
December 31, 2013
Office Closed
December 24, 2013
through
January 2, 2013
Board Meeting
December 3, 2013
Public Housing and Section 8 Family Self Sufficiency Program
Are you considering getting your
GED? Elgin Community College
has several options for you.
Constitution Review

Hot spot
This covers the Declaration of Independence, U.S. Constitution, Illinois
Constitution and the U.S. flag, all of
which are included in the GED
test. Upon completion, the Constitution test will be given and, if passed,
you will have met the Constitution
requirement for the GED

Cloze

Multiple select

Short answer

Extended item response
The Top 5 changes to the GED Test
2014 – By Bill Walker
An introduction to GED class is required before taking a GED
class. In this class, students are given an overview of the GED test,
registration
procedures,
testtaking strategies, and other GEDrelated skills. Official GED practice
tests are administered during class
to enable students to gauge their
success on the GED test. Students
also explore careers and learning
styles. The GED classes that follow prepare students to take the
GED test.
Fast Track GED
If you want to attend a faster moving GED class, consider the fasttrack GED class. To be eligible, you
must have a reading level of 11.0
or higher on the Test of Adult Basic
Education (TABE) on Level D or A.
GED Internet
Do you find getting to campus difficult? Why not try GEDi and take
your GED review online over
the Internet in the comfort of your
own home? Call 847-214-6945 for
more information.
GED in Spanish
For Spanish speakers interested in
earning a GED, classes are offered
in Elgin and Carpentersville.
The first, and biggest, change is the
switch to Constructed Item Response.
The new test will have both short answer and extended item response
writing exercises on all four subtests,
with longer extended item response
items appearing on the literacy and
social studies subtests.
The second, and perhaps most visible
change, is that the test will be administered only on computer; there will
be no option for paper-based testing. It will be necessary for GED candidates to be familiar with keyboarding skills in order to keystroke their
responses.
Further,
candidates
should have practice opportunities in
their GED preparatory programs to
experience computer-based testing.
Third, the new GED Test will be
aligned with the Common Core Standards in an attempt to focus on
knowledge and skills most strongly
correlated with success in career and
college. The Common Core Standards
are being implemented throughout K12 across the nation.
The fourth change is the new item
types the test will feature. All generations of the GED Test— including the
current version—have featured multiple choice questions. The 2014 GED
test will add several new item types:

Fill in the blank

Drag-and-drop
And finally, the change that might
be most difficult for candidates to
prepare for is that prior
knowledge will be required. The
current GED Test does not ask
candidates to possess prior
knowledge in order to complete
and pass the test. However, the
new test will require that candidates use prior knowledge in order to successfully complete the
test. This means that the GED
Test is no longer “just a reading
comprehension test.” Candidates
will have to possess background
information in a variety of content areas, for example, social
studies and science, in order to
pass.
Toy Giveaway
Wednesday, December 18, 2013
9am – 6pm. Hemmens Cultural
Center ( Lower Level)
Elgin and South Elgin residents
only. Parent(s) will need a picture
ID with an address.
ID needed for each child 16 years
old or younger: Public Aid Medical Card, Birth Certificate or Current school record.
NO Social Security Cards
Smoke Cessation Classes 2014
St. Joseph Hospital will be sponsoring a 7 week workshop for
those that would like to stop
smoking. The workshop will be
held on Thursday’s from 10 am –
11:30 am, in the Housing Authority of Elgin Community Room.
Low Income Public Housing Program (LIPH)
“I AM NOT WORKING NOW…”
If you were behind on your rent, or
have an existing balance from when
you were working and the following
month you have no income and now
have a zero balance for rent, you are
still liable and held responsible to
pay the balance due from previous
months. Failure to do so is a violation of your lease and can lead to
termination for non payment of rent.
Please make sure to pay NSF’s, unpaid balances, excess utilities, and
late fees in a timely manner.
Being evicted from any Housing
Authority is a negative mark
against one’s credit and can prevent one from being allowed to
qualify for housing within another
housing authority agency in the future.
REPAYMENT AGREEMENTS
Repayment Agreements are not
guaranteed and are only offered if
there are extraordinary circumstances. (It is the discretion of the
Housing Authority of Elgin to determine what qualifies as extraordinary circumstances). Not having
all of your money or not getting
paid due to utility bill is due, is not
considered extraordinary circumstances.
EXCESS UTILITY BILLS
IF I AM EVICTED HOW DOES THAT
AFFECT ME?
NEGATIVELY! The goal of the Housing Authority of Elgin is to provide
housing for residents. We do not
want to evict anyone! However, if a
resident is not paying their rent, or
repeatedly is late paying, destroying
property, utilities are disconnected,
have pets that are not authorized on
the property, allow individuals that
are banned to visit or reside in their
residence, unsanitary conditions of
the unit, which all can lead to termination of your lease (for other violations, please review to your signed
lease agreement).
Excess utility charges are valid
charges and are expected to be
paid. Failure to pay excess utility
charges is a violation of your lease
and can result in termination.
There are no exceptions.
CHANGE OF INCOME
It is imperative to make sure you
notify the office when there is a
change of income. This must be
done as soon as possible. Please
keep in mind, that the change of
income request form, can take up
to 30 to 45 days to become reflected in your rent change. No adjustments can be made prior to verification being completed by an outside agency. If we do not receive
verification, no change of income
will be conducted. In addition, if
the Housing Authority of Elgin
has not received a confirmation
of information from the outside
agency, the change of income
will be delayed until the information is verified. Therefore, it
is imperative the current rent
amount is paid to avoid a late
fee, as well as a past due amount.
BANNED
When an individual is banned
from the Housing Authority of
Elgin property, they are not permitted to visit any properties
under the management of HAE.
If a resident is harboring a tenant or person who has been
banned, that tenant will be in
violation of their lease and this
can result in termination of a
resident’s lease. Under no circumstances should an individual
that is barred be allowed to enter, reside, or stay on the property. Failure to comply will result
in termination. There are no exceptions to this rule.
PARKING STICKERS
Please be sure to provide a valid
driver’s license, current proof of
insurance and proof of car registration when applying or requesting a parking sticker.
Please note: The HAE allows
only one sticker per household. If you lose your sticker
you must be able to provide documentation or bring the old
sticker in.
Public Housing and Section 8 Family Self Sufficiency
Dates for the program are Jan.
16, 23, 30, Feb. 6, 13 20, and 27.
A Sign-up sheet will be posted
on the 1st floor bulletin board.
ATTENTION: All Central Park
Tower Residents
CPT Residents are invited to a
Holiday Celebration that will be
held on Dec. 19, 5:30 pm – 7:30
pm in the Community Room. A
fun festive time will be had by
all.
Financial/Educational Workshop
Thanks to all the residents that participated
in the Financial Workshop that was held on
November 14. The event was hosted by the
Housing Authority of Elgin. The special guest
speakers for the event was JoAnn Stingley
from the City of Elgin – Police Department
and Juliana Hackel-Judd from Harris Bank.
The residents that attended the event will be
eligible for the “Smile for Christmas” Program that will be held on December 17.
“ Providing Quality
Housing and
Services for
Quality Residents”
Spring Hill Mall Giving Tree
Participants:
If you have completed a “Giving
Tree Form” you will be notified
by phone if your child’s name is
selected from the tree. Gifts can
be picked up from the 583 Owasco office apt. A. The final day for
the Gift pick-up will be Dec.
23rd. Please contact Debra Tewolde at 847 468-1184, or Angela Causey at 847 468-1261, if
you have questions.
Clifford/Owasco Resident
Meeting
There will be a Resident Meeting
held on Thursday December 5th,
from 6pm-7pm at the 583 Owasco apt. A. All residents are invited. Your suggestions and opinions are important. Please come
out and support this event.
Illinois Court Resident Council
Meeting
Dec. 12th, 5:30 pm – 6:30 pm
at Central Park Tower, 120 S.
State Street in the Conference
Room. All Illinois Court residents
are welcome.
Housing Authority of
Elgin
w w w.h a el gi n. o r g
DECEMBER 2013
SUN
1
8
15
22
29
MON
2
Open Bible
Study 5:30
p.m.-6:30
p.m.
9
Open Bible
Study 5:30
p.m.-6:30
p.m.
16
Open Bible
Study 5:30
p.m.-6:30
p.m.
23
Open Bible
Study 5:30
p.m.-6:30
p.m.
30
TUES
WED
THURS
FRI
SAT
Board
Meeting
3
4
5
6
7
Bingo - CPT
6:00 p.m.
11
Bingo West
Wind 6:00
p.m.
12
CPT Movie Night
7:00 p.m.
13
Men Bible
Study
Cancelled
14
10
17
Bingo - CPT
6:00 p.m.
18
Christmas
Eve
24
Christmas
Day
25
New Years
Eve
31
CPT MovBingo West ie Night
Wind 6:00 7:00 p.m.
p.m.
19
20
CPT
Bingo West Movie
Wind 6:00 Night 7:00
p.m.
p.m.
26
27
Men Bible
Study 7:30
a.m.
21
Men Bible
Study 7:30
a.m.
28