December 2014 Sunday 7 14 21 Winter Solstice 28 Monday 1 Just-A-Buck Cash Mob 8 Tuesday 2 Flower: Narcissus Birthstone: Turquoise Wednesday ECAAC - PTCU meeting 10am BAAC - PTCU meeting 7pm 3 Just-A-Buck Cash Mob MHAAC - Boutique Ohio Department of DD MHAAC - Food Pantry Forum, ESC Conference Center, 6393 Oak Tree Blvd. South, Independence 6 - 8pm 9 10 15 16 17 SWAAC - PTCU Board meeting, 10:30am Just-A-Buck Cash Mob People First of Cuyahoga Cty. meeting 6:30pm Hanukkah begins at Cleve. Clinic Bldg. Rockside, Rm. A sundown 22 29 23 BrAAC- Holiday Party SWAAC - Holiday Party ECAAC - Holiday Party 30 Thursday 4 Friday 5 11 RRAAC - PTCU meeting with Choir performance 7pm 18 MDA - CCBDD Board meeting, 5:30pm 12 13 19 20 27 BAAC - Helping Hands at CCBDD Rockets vs. A Warrensville Civic Center Better Way GRSC,10am 10am ECAAC - Staff Appreciation Day BAAC - Holiday Party MHAAC - Holiday Party & JJ Therapy dog RRAAC - Holiday Party ECAAC - Art show, 11am - 1pm 25 26 Christmas Eve Christmas Kwanzaa begins 31 6 BAAC - Workers' Council SWAAC - PTCU meeting CCBDD Rockets at 10am Big Creek Center Ashtabula County, 10am 11:30am 24 AACs closed thru 1/2/15 for Winter Break CCBDD offices open 12/26,29,30 &1/2/15 Saturday New Year's Eve *All dates and times are subject to change. Please contact your site for updates. For additional information, go to www.CuyahogaBDD.org or find us on Facebook. In spite of an expected ongoing decline in state and local funding, the CCBDD will continue to serve more than 10,000 individuals annually, expand Employment First initiatives and serve individuals on the waiver waiting list with the identification of an additional $500,000 for waivers/residential supports in 2015. The budget will total $201.2 million, down slightly from 2014’s $202.5 million. Income is expected to total $188 million, which means tapping into the sustainability fund. Levies, like the CCBDD levy that was last approved by voters in 2005, produce revenues beyond spending in their early years, which are saved for use during the later years when spending exceeds income. Those early extra funds are what make up the sustainability fund. In concert with its long-term strategic levy plan, CCBDD will use some of those sustainability fund dollars in 2015, but it will work hard to minimize their use. The CCBDD’s local levy will provide 56 percent of the 2015 income with the federal Medicaid program providing 33 percent. Six percent of the income will come from grants, donations and miscellaneous sources. Only five percent of the income will come from the state of Ohio. Read the entire 2015 Program & Expenditures Plan or a summary of it at www.CuyahogaBDD.org under “Latest News” on the homepage or call (216) 736-2647 to have a copy mailed to you. Beachwood AAC artist wins winter card contest Cheryl DuShane of Orange Village, who attends our Beachwood Adult Activities Center, has won the CCBDD 2014 winter card contest. The contest drew more than 50 entries from within CCBDD and from individuals who receive their day services from other agencies. Her entry, a multimedia rendering of a bare tree cut from burlap with glittering snow beneath it silhouetted on a perfect blue sky, will grace the cover of our 2014 winter card. She will receive a check for $100. In addition to being featured on the card, the art will be framed and on exhibit as part of the permanent collection of works by artists with DD at the Michael A. Donzella Administration Building. DuShane enjoys a variety of art activities through the HeARTworks program at Beachwood AAC. She especially enjoys painting, watercolors and making greeting cards. Her favorite subjects are swans and other beautiful birds, as well as flowers. An articulate self-advocate, DuShane is a vocal member of the Beachwood AAC Workers' Council. She enjoys talking with friends, writing letters and attending activity classes at Beachwood. We are grateful to all of the artists who took part in the annual contest and to those who helped them submit their works. We have some very talented artists out there! CALENDAR 2015 plans approved Cuyahoga County Board of Developmental Disabilities 1275 Lakeside Avenue East Cleveland, Ohio 44114-1129 (216) 241-8230 www.CuyahogaBDD.org December When the weather outside isn’t so delightful Whatever your reaction is when you look out the window on a snowy morning and wonder if the Cuyahoga County Board of DD might be closed, find out quickly. We use the same system that many school districts and universities use to give notices about emergency closings. It directly calls the homes of those enrolled to deliver a recorded announcement about an emergency closing. The system can call everyone affected by a Cuyahoga County Board of DD closing within a very few minutes. If there is no answer, it will either leave a message on an answering machine or voicemail system, or it will try again up to four times. It’s important to have your current phone number listed with us. If your number changes, make sure to let your site know. Or, if you eliminate your land line (as many people seem to be doing) in favor of a cell phone, make sure that you report that to your site so that the number can be corrected in our computer system. We will also continue to use the iAlert announcement systems operated by local tv and radio stations to broadcast closings. When conditions warrant closing one, some or all of our centers, we make every effort to announce it in time for the 11 p.m. news the night before the closing. When that’s not possible, we send the announcement out in time for the 6:30 a.m. news. Tune in at: Radio Television WAKS, 96.5 FM or kisscleveland.com WKYC-TV, Channel 3 or wkyc.com WCLV, 104.9 FM WJW-TV, Channel 8 WCPN, 90.3 FM WVIZ-TV, Channel 25 WCRF, 103.3 FM (We appear as ‘All DD Adult Act Ctrs’ or by site name.) WGAR, 99.5 FM or wgar.com WHLO, 640 AM or 640whlo.com Remember: Parents and caregivers make the WKDD, 98.1 FM or wkdd.com ultimate decision about sending someone to a WMJI, 105.7 FM or wmji.com center during bad weather. Even when we’re open, WMMS, 100.7 FM or wmms.com you may choose to keep him or her home, based on WTAM, 1100 AM or wtam.com his or her needs. WMVX, 106.5 FM or wmvx.com Radio Free Ohio 1350 AM or 1350radiofreeohio.com We will also post emergency closing announcements on our website at www.CuyahogaBDD.org, on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/CuyahogaBDD, on www.cancellations.com and via Twitter @CuyahogaBDD There are a lot of changes taking place in Ohio’s developmental disabilities system. One of the significant changes is a new rule from the federal Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), which says that Medicaid funds can no longer be used to provide waiver services in or adjacent to settings that have the effect of isolating people. DODD convened a CMS Transition Plan Committee comprised of stakeholders from across the DD system to identify which settings currently are not in compliance with the new CMS regulations, and develop recommendations for how to bring them into compliance. Join members of the committee to learn more about the CMS rule and what the state is doing to ensure we’re in compliance, ask questions about the transition plan, and learn how you can review the plan and provide feedback. Tuesday, December 2 6-8 p.m. Hamilton County Board of DD – Queensgate Office 801 W. 8th Street, Cincinnati, Ohio 45203 Saturday, December 6 10 a.m.-12 p.m. Ohio Center for Autism and Low Incidence 470 Glenmont Avenue, Columbus, Ohio 43214 Tuesday, December 9 6-8 p.m. ESC Conference Center 6393 Oak Tree Blvd South, Independence, Ohio 44131 Thursday, December 11 5:30-7:30 p.m. Athens County Board of DD – Beacon School 801 West Union Street, Athens, Ohio 45701 Tuesday, December 16 6-8 p.m. West Toledo Public Library 1320 Sylvania Avenue, Toledo, Ohio 43612 More information about changes to Ohio’s developmental disabilities system – including the new CMS rule, the letter from Disability Rights Ohio, and the work of the Strategic Planning Leadership Group – is available online at DODD.Ohio.Gov/OurFuture – you can use the “Feedback” feature of the site to quickly and easily provide comments and ask questions. Also, watch Pipeline for more information. SPECIAL SENSORYFRIENDLY MATINEE January 13, 2015 • 11 a.m. Tickets: $5 ($3 for Cleveland Metropolitan School District schools) General Admission Run Time: 45 minutes PlayhouseSquare is committed to ensuring that all individuals in the Cleveland community have the opportunity to experience the transformative power of the arts regardless of their age or ability. To further this commitment, the Community Engagement & Education Department will give individuals with autism, sensory challenges or developmental disabilities the opportunity to enjoy the fine arts by presenting its first ever sensory-friendly performance. For individuals with sensory, social, and cognitive disabilities, a trip to the theater can be challenging. While entertaining for most audience members, the bright lights, big voices and over the top theatrics typical of a traditional theater experience can quickly lead to sensory overload. Working closely with Paige Hernandez, the artist behind Havana Hop, PlayhouseSquare will transform the Ohio Theatre into a sensory-friendly, comfortable and judgment-free space that is welcoming to all. What makes a performance “sensory-friendly”? • Lower sound level, especially for startling or loud sounds • G uests are free to talk, leave their seats and move freely during the performance • Designated quiet areas within the theater • House Lights will be left on low throughout the performance Havana Hop Description What if you were invited to dance for the President? You’d want it to be the best dance ever! Come meet young Yelia who visits her grandmother in Cuba to add a salsa flavor to her own hiphop style! The audience gets to dance along in this dynamic participation play where one actress creates three generations of lively women. Journey with Yelia as she discovers the fun of her multi-cultural heritage. For tickets and information, please call 216-640-8865