New Hope of Indiana | Blog

For over forty years, New Hope of Indiana has been committed to supporting individuals and families, encouraging them to live their most independent, fulfilling lives. Through services for individuals with disabilities, counseling for families in the child welfare system and advocacy efforts, New Hope of Indiana is making an impact in our communities every day.

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Blog

16 Nov - Service Spotlight: Allison Spence

Posted at 16:19h in Service Spotlight 0 Comments

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Ever wonder how New Hope finds its dedicated caregivers and all the other behind-the-scenes talent that keep New Hope running? Well, meet our very own Talent Acquisition Coordinator, Allison Spence. Allison has been a part of the New Hope Human Resources team for nearly three years where she dedicates her time to finding the right people for the job. Before she came to New Hope, Allison earned a Bachelors degree in Health Services from the University of Southern Indiana (USI) was a Business Office Manager at an assisted-living facility, maintaining the day-to-day operations including all human resources responsibilities. While she...

27 Oct - The Kathe Rae Garden Club

Posted at 17:15h in New Hope Stories 3 Comments

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After nearly forty years of dedicated service to New Hope of Indiana, Kathe Rae celebrated her retirement in December 2019. Kathe left a beautiful legacy at New Hope that was honored this month with the dedication of New Hope's gardens. Kathe's many friends and long-time colleagues hoped to dedicate the gardens this spring, but COVID-19 demanded plans be changed. After many months of planning and waiting, Kathe Rae was surprised with a new plaque at the front of the Payne Road raised bed garden which reads, "In honor of Kathe Rae's 39 years of dedicated service to helping individuals with...

27 Oct - Empowering the Disability Vote

Posted at 16:50h in News 0 Comments

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As election day approaches, advocates across the country have been reminding our neighbors that the disability community has a lot to say. Despite the risks that COVID-19 bring to the upcoming election day, individuals with disabilities at New Hope and across the country are finding ways to vote safely. At New Hope, individuals were encouraged to vote early by mail. For some people though, voting in-person at the polls is more important. According to the US Election Assistance Commission, voters with disabilities make up about one sixth of the nation's electorate. Just as any voter should, our friends with disabilities...

27 Oct - A Note from Allison: Trying to Feel Normal

Posted at 15:48h in A Note from Allison, Events 0 Comments

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[caption id="attachment_33264" align="alignleft" width="300"] Allison and NHI Volunteer Drew Kogan at the 2019 Fall Festival[/caption]Happy October! October at New Hope is always a busy time at New Hope! We have many fun fall activities, catch up on training for our associates before the end of the year, prepare for the holiday season and hold our quarterly Board meeting. These regular events have brought a small sense of normalcy back to a year in which nearly every moment has felt uncertain. And while I know that our lives are far from “back to normal”, there are a few things that I hope...

27 Oct - Zeller, Speak!

Posted at 15:35h in Zeller, Speak! 0 Comments

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Greetings Friends, Are you enjoying this fall weather? I know I am. I love the crunchy leaves under my paws. Things have been busy around New Hope with a lot of fun fall activities. First there was a virtual raffle and lots of great prizes. Then Action Club hosted a virtual pumpkin decorating event. There were some really fun decorations, pumpkins turned into spiders, pumpkins wearing masks, scary faces and smiles! AIM will be hosting a virtual Halloween dance party and a committee has been hard at work to host a virtual Fall Festival! The Fall Festival has been an annual event...

27 Oct - New Hope’s Aktion Club Makes a Difference

Posted at 15:14h in Community and Corporate Partners, Events, News 0 Comments

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[caption id="attachment_26150" align="alignleft" width="300"] 2019 Aktion Club Food Drive[/caption]Kiwanis Aktion Clubs are important opportunities for adults with disabilities to gain leadership skills and practice community-based philanthropy. In a typical year, New Hope's Kiwanis Aktion Club raises a few hundred dollars and collects some in-kind gifts for local nonprofits, but what members cherish more than anything is the sense of camaraderie and the opportunity to be a leader in our community. 2020 has been anything but typical though. This year, our dedicated Aktion Club Board of Directors has been working hard to keep everyone at New Hope in good spirits and...

15 Oct - Service Spotlight: Adebanke Faleke

Posted at 15:06h in Service Spotlight 6 Comments

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Adebanke Faleke has a unique perspective of New Hope of Indiana and our mission. She has served as both a Direct Support Professional (DSP) in Day Service and AIM and, as of September, as a Behavior Consultant. We wanted to learn more about how Adebanke made such a drastic transition and why she chose to stick with New Hope in this new phase of her career. Adebanke is originally from Nigeria, West Africa where she earned her Bachelors in Theatre from the University of Lagos. She later moved to the US where she is now a citizen. She earned a...

15 Oct - Mission Minute: Connections of Hope

Posted at 14:37h in Mission Minute, Volunteer Highlights 0 Comments

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Many of the individuals served by New Hope have strong spiritual and religious beliefs, but in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, they were no longer able to go to church or spend time with their friends from their congregations. This disconnect between them and their church took a toll on their mental health. Thankfully, New Hope has many friends including some dedicated volunteers from College Park Church. With their partnership, New Hope has been able to offer online Bible study each week during which the individuals we serve can find connection and share their faith with friends. Thanks...

29 Sep - A Note from Allison: Welcoming Change

Posted at 14:29h in A Note from Allison 0 Comments

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Happy Autumn! As we welcome the first days of the fall season, I can't believe how quickly the summer has gone by. The changing of a season always reminds me that change is often something to be celebrated. This year we have changed the ways we communicate, offer services, hire and train associates, and stay connected to our community. Believe it or not, New Hope has embraced new technology and is even hosting an online event this week! (Camp Raffle is Thursday, October 1st at 6pm!) These changes have sometimes been difficult to adjust to and have placed additional burdens on...

29 Sep - Training Remains at the Forefront of Great Service

Posted at 10:47h in News, Service Spotlight 0 Comments

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While 2020 has been a strange year for all of us, a couple of things have remained constant at New Hope of Indiana. First, we have always put the safety and well-being of our clients and associates first; and second, we have continued to offer important training to our associates to support their efforts. To offer the highest quality care to the individuals we serve, our associates need to be equipped with the right tools and knowledge to do so. This year alone, New Hope has provided vital training to our teams including individual specific training on individual risk plans...

28 Sep - Virtual Volunteering

Posted at 20:11h in Volunteer Highlights 0 Comments

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Volunteers have always been an integral part of New Hope's mission. From leading classes and activities in the original residential facility to helping coordinate fundraising events, to serving our clients in the Day Services program, volunteers have always helped move our mission forward and helped to provide a really enriching social experience for the individuals we serve. During the COVID-19 pandemic, many of our usual volunteer opportunities have changed in significant ways. Thankfully, everyone at New Hope is well-versed in flexibility. We quickly learned that virtual and online opportunities were going to be the new way to do things, including engaging...

28 Sep - New Hope Community Thanks DSPs

Posted at 19:42h in New Hope Stories 2 Comments

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Every September, New Hope and other disability providers across the country recognize Direct Support Professionals (DSPs) and the amazing care they provide to our most vulnerable friends and neighbors. We had a great time celebrating DSP Week, and thanks to our New Hope community, we were able to share so many messages of gratitude and support to our caregivers. They are truly more than essential. They're EXCEPTIONAL! Thanks to our friends for sharing these messages. For all our New Hope DSPs - Thank you from the bottom of my heart! Thank you for your patient time and caring. Thank you for your...

28 Sep - Remembering Our Friends

Posted at 19:24h in Remembering our Friends 0 Comments

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Barbara Donaldson 7/30/1946 - 9/16/2020 Barbara moved into her home at New Hope in 2015 and her housemate and caregivers quickly became her family. She loved the color purple, any music she could dance to, a big smile, looking at magazines where she would pick out clothes she liked or food she wanted to eat. She was sassy and wanted to be the center of attention. She would call her staff "Mommy" as a term of endearment. She enjoyed coloring and doing other arts and crafts with her housemates. She will be missed dearly by all of her housemates and caregivers at...

28 Sep - Zeller, Speak!

Posted at 19:03h in Zeller, Speak! 0 Comments

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Greetings friends, Fall is here and the leaves are beginning to change color and crunch under our feet and paws! I love fall weather, and there are so many things to do. My favorite is a long walk through the woods. Although my age makes those long walks short ones now! Fall brings us pumpkins and apples and trips to the orchard. It is a good time to go to the zoo since the animals are more active in the cooler weather. New Hope is active too with virtual events like pumpkin decorating with Aktion Club, an online version of our annual Fall Festival and...

28 Sep - A Career Full of Smiles

Posted at 18:31h in New Hope Stories 0 Comments

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New Hope client Peggy Sales spent the last two decades helping others at her job at Walgreens where she cleaned, stocked shelves and helped out wherever she was needed. The most rewarding part of her job, though, was sharing a smile with someone else. Anyone who knows Peggy knows that she is full of joy! She enjoys sharing that joy with others in her everyday life and especially enjoyed doing so at her job. Recently, Peggy retired after 25 years on the job at Walgreens. While she'll miss her coworkers (and the extra money!), she is looking forward to spending more...

15 Sep - Service Spotlight: DSP Week 2020

Posted at 15:38h in Service Spotlight 0 Comments

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New Hope celebrated DSP Recognition Week September 14th-20th, and continues to celebrate our amazing Direct Support Professionals (DSPs) each and every day. The caregivers featured here are outstanding examples of New Hope's Core Values of Service and Dedication. Thank you to each of them and the hundreds of other caregivers who make New Hope the organization it is today. Denise Winbush I chose to become a DSP, because I was searching for a job that was truly centered around helping others. Retail and customer service were okay, but it just felt like I was there to do my shift and make my...

15 Sep - Mission Minute: The Heart of New Hope

Posted at 15:08h in Mission Minute 0 Comments

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Every year in September, New Hope celebrates Direct Support Professional (DSP) Recognition Week, a few days set aside to celebrate the selfless caregivers who support the individuals we serve in so many ways. DSPs empower individuals with disabilities to live, learn and be a part of the workforce. DSPs assist the individuals they serve with daily living activities, transportation, general behavior support, and help create a feeling of home while building friendships with those they serve. DSPs also enable family members of those with disabilities to take a break, go to work or school, or care for their other...

25 Aug - A Smile that Lights Up the Room

Posted at 16:18h in Client Profile 0 Comments

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One of Vicky Cross’s favorite things to do in August is visit the Indiana State Fair with her friends and staff from New Hope. This year, she was disappointed to miss it, but she’s finding lots of other fun things to do this summer. Vicky has been served by New Hope since 2015 when she moved into one of our Supported Living homes with one of her childhood friends, Jeannette. As someone who enjoys talking to other people, Vicky has enjoyed New Hope’s Day Services program as well, making lots of good friends there. She has a great memory and always...

25 Aug - Camp Bingo Returns!

Posted at 15:33h in New Hope Stories 0 Comments

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We can't say how thankful we are for the patience and support that our donors have shown us this year! In March, we were excited to invite you to Camp Bingo, a fun event to support a fun new program, Camp Catalyst. However, we all know how March turned out. Just days after postponing the event, New Hope and most of the State shut down in favor of social distancing, remote work and masks. Since then, New Hope has shifted our focus to maintain the health and safety of the vulnerable individuals we serve and our dedicated associates. Now that...

25 Aug - A Note from Allison: Celebrate DSPs

Posted at 14:55h in A Note from Allison 0 Comments

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Happy Hot August! As a parent, others will tell you that the days are long, but the months are quick. That has certainly been true at New Hope this year. Each day has brought new challenges and opportunities for us to grow in our mission, but the busy pace of the day-to-day has made the months go by so quickly. I can hardly believe that August is coming to an end! While this summer wasn’t quite normal, we’ve been happy to find the small pleasures of life still make us smile. The individuals we serve have enjoyed afternoons in the garden, connecting...