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V is iona ry Jou rna lV is iona ry Jou rna l

Vail P lace | M inneapo lis M N | U S

Septem ber 2017 Volum e 2 Issue 9

Clubhouse

Guarantees

A gua ran teed righ t to

a p lace to com e.

A gua ran teed righ t to

m ean ing fu l w ork .

A gua ran teed righ t to

m ean ing fu l re la tion -

sh ips.

A gua ran teed righ t to

a p lace to re tu rn .

Le t U s G ive You

A SHOUT OUT

In This Issue:

Shout O u ts 1

M eet A dd ie P ike 1

Em ploym en t 2

Josh ’s B lack B ean B urgers 3

College C am pus L ife 3

C reating Your R esum e 3

Sep tem ber B irthdays 4

S tom ping O ut S tigm a 4

M y C at S ad ie 4

Addie P ike , con tinued 5

Got Food? 5

B rain H ealth P art 2 5

Photo R oundup 6

Peer Support T ra in ing 6

We didn’t get a Shout-Out

Sheet on the coffee table this

last month, so I’m giving

Thank-You Shout Outs to the

following people who don’t

shout themselves out. J an M

For Dale K and Ann M, who

have done the dishes at

meals more often than any-

one else at the Clubhouse;

For Frank D, who has nur-

tured the Meditation Group for

many years, and who is a

great tour guide;

For Mish M, who lends her

financial talents almost every

month to produce the House

Report, and who has really

helped the Business Depart-

ment tune up the way we

handle financial work;

For LeRoy S, who’s so won-

derfully hosted the monthly

Karaoke party;

For Char C, who works to

present entertaining and

thought-provoking member

education opportunities;

For Carl M, for his willingness

to answer our phones and

sign up diners;

For Don M, most faithful

mower of lawns;

For Bobby M, who has kept

us from missing our trash

pickup countless times;

For Megan H and Jane D for

taking members grocery

shopping

And everyone else unsung. . .

MEET ADD IE P IKE !

Addie is our newest staff member.

She is a community support specialist

and will be working closely with other

Housing staff at Vail Place in addition

to her work at the Clubhouse. Be

sure to say hello! (Interview by Greg

B)

W hat a ttrac ted you to V ail?

I like the whole idea of the Clubhouse

really working as a community.

W hat m akes th is job bette r than

previous jobs?

This job was more appealing than

what I did at other jobs because I like

to learn about housing and I like to

work with people.

W hat are som e jobs you ’ve w orked

in the past?

Behavioral aide for special needs

kids: - I worked In school districts and

I worked with kids who have autism.

W here d id you go to schoo l? W hen

d id you graduate? W hat d id you

study?

(In te rv iew continues on P 5 )

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E M P L O Y M E N T N E W S

Vocationa l B ook – A re you look ing fo r a job? W ondering w ha t types o f jobs a re ava ilab le in the

comm un ity? There a re tw o V oca tiona l B ooks in the C lubhouse ; one is loca ted in the Em p loym ent

space and the o the r is in the C omm un ity room on the firs t floo r. These books have job leads lis ted in

them fo r you to rev iew . W e w ork on these job leads in the B us iness D epa rtm en t, so com e up and

lea rn how to v iew these and add to ou r books .

Em ploym ent A ss is tance hours a llow m em bers to s ign up fo r 1 :1 tim e to w ork on tasks such as:

em p loym en t searches , app ly ing on line fo r jobs , c rea ting a resum e and o r cover le tte r o r to d iscuss

em p loym en t top ics o r conce rns . Y ou can s ign up fo r ass is tance in the “g reen s ign-up” b inder loca ted

in the Em p loym ent D epartm en t. If Thursday a fte rnoons do no t w o rk fo r you p lease con tac t m e , Car-

r ie F ram sted , a t 952-945-4269 to schedu le your appo in tm en t.

Job Leads—W e a re add ing a space on the firs t floo r (ye t to be de te rm ined ) w he re job leads that an -

yone finds can be added .

Em ploym ent w ork in the B us iness D epartm ent Jo in in th is w o rk on Tuesday , Thu rsday and Fr i-

day a fte rnoons .

Trans itiona l Em ploym ent:

Je rry E .— S ea S a lt

M ike B .— S ea S a lt

Supported Em ploym ent:

Burton C .— K ow a lsk i’s

Randa ll T .— C ross tow n C ovenan t C hu rch

M ike J . – C oas ta l S ea food

Thom as C . – C oas ta l S ea food

Thom as S .— C oasta l S ea food

Curlee J .— S ea S a lt

M att S .— S ea Sa lt

M ike S . — S ea Sa lt

M itch S .— S ea Sa lt

Bob W . — S ea S a lt

Tomm y W .— S ea Sa lt

Congratulations on your

new jobs!!!

Matt S

Michaela S

Bob W

Ready fo r Success he lps w om en and

m en in ou r comm un ity by p rov id ing them

w ith p ro fess iona l c lo th ing and accessories

fo r w ork , in te rv iew s, in te rnsh ip s, job

tra in ing , and educationa l p rog ram s. They

can ge t c lo thes, shoes, seasona l ou te r-

wear, pe rsona l ca re item s, and accesso-

ries. C lien ts a lso rece ive the ass istance o f

a Vo lun tee r Pe rsona l Shopper during the ir

schedu led appo in tm ent tha t assists them

in bu ild ing a p ro fessiona l w ard robe .

See Carrie F if you ’d like a re fe rra l.

A new job is like a blank book,

and you are the author

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C reating Your Resum e

Jo in us on Sep t . 21st

a t 11:00 to d iscuss

the what and the how o f Resum es . If

you a re app ly ing fo r jobs now or th ink

you want to in the fu tu re , you w ill need a

Re sum e . Crea ting one can seem cha l-

leng ing fo r m any reasons . Ma ybe you

a re unsure about how to s truc tu re your

in fo rm ation , w hat to inc lude o r what to

say if you don ’t have curren t work h is to -

ry . Don ’t worry—jo in the d iscuss ion on

the 21s t !

Josh ’s B lack B ean B urgers

Ingredients

1 (16 oz) can black beans, drained

and rinsed

½ green bell pepper

½ onion

3 garlic cloves

1 egg

1 tablespoon chili powder

1 tablespoon cumin

1 teaspoon Thai chili sauce OR hot

sauce

½ cup bread crumbs

1 tablespoon corn starch

Directions

If grilling, preheat grill for high heat,

and lightly oil a sheet of aluminum

foil. If baking, preheat oven to 375

degrees F and lightly oil a baking

sheet.

In a medium bowl, mash black

beans with a fork until thick and

pasty.

Finely chop bell pepper, onion, and

garlic. Then stir into mashed beans.

In a bowl, stir together egg, chili

powder, cumin, chili/hot sauce and

corn starch.

Stir the egg mixture into the mashed

beans. Mix in bread crumbs until the

mixture is sticky and holds together.

Divide mixture into four patties.

If grilling, place patties on foil, and

grill about 8 minutes on each side. If

baking, place patties on baking

sheet, and bake about 20 minutes

(you can flip once burgers solidify).

College Campus Life

Some of us know that summer is coming to an end when we see

the school buses running around town. And so it goes another year

has begun for our Clubhouse students as well. I caught up with two

members while they were at the Clubhouse and this is what they

had to share.

David B. will be starting another semester at University of

Minnesota. This is his 5th

semester at the school and he is pursing a

BA in Russian. “ I was originally intending a degree in Computer Sci-

ence. After taking some courses in math and computer science I

decided that this type of work was not for me. I completed a Minor

in computer science and will now be studying Russian.” David

shared that he takes advantage of the Disability Office at school and

finds it very helpful for the classes he is taking each semester. Da-

vid is willing to talk to any member who has questions about going

to school. Thanks, David, for offering this support to your peers.

Kandace K. attends Minneapolis Community Technical Col-

lege. She finished her summer school class with an A in Pottery.

She is now taking two classes this semester: Foundations of Studio

Art and Intercultural Communications. Kandace will be graduating

with a degree in Visual Arts in 3 years. She shared that her chal-

lenges in school surround maintaining her motivation and getting

assignments in on time. On the plus side she really enjoys “ pursuing

something in my area of interest, working towards a goal and the

people I meet. I am learning new skills. “

Congrats to David and Kandace. Stay tuned to upcoming

newsletter for coverage on other members in school, updates on

David and Kandace, and trips to visit local schools.

By Carr ie F

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Stomping Out Stigma in the C lubhouse

Do you say “c razy” w hen you ’ve had a tu rbu len t day? D o

you say som eone is a “sch izoph ren ic ”? D o you ca ll you r-

se lf a “d iabe tic ”? E ven the ph rase “liv ing independen tly ”

isn ’t idea l, because “s ing ling ou t peop le w ho have m en ta l

illnesses as ‘dependen t’ igno res the fac t tha t w e a re a ll

dependen t on o the rs fo r su rv iva l… and tha t peop le liv ing

w ith m en ta l illnesses a re resou rce fu l and con tribu ting

m em bers o f soc ie ty .”

The In te rna tiona l S tanda rds fo r C lubhouse P rogram s and

NAM I con tinue to cha llenge the w ay I use language to

iden tify m yse lf and o the rs . In m y ro le o f m ee ting w ith new

m em bers to ga the r m ore in fo rm a tion abou t them , I try to

encourage co llabora tion - tha t I am no t the expert abou t

the C lubhouse o r the p rov ide r o f resources and comm u-

n ity - w e a ll a re . W e a re w ork ing toge the r to c rea te th is

comm un ity and ou r language bea rs tha t ou t.

Q uestions to ask ou rse lves :

Has som eone ca lled you ou t fo r say ing som e th ing o ffen -

s ive abou t liv ing w ith m en ta l illnesses? H ow d id you han -

d le tha t? W ha t d id you lea rn from tha t expe rience?

W hat a re w ays you pe rpe tua te s tigm a w ith the language

you use? W hat’s a w o rd you w ou ld like to cha llenge

you rse lf to s top us ing? (Fo r m e , it’s the w ord “c razy”- I’d

ra the r use : w ild , tum u ltuous , r id icu lous , jazzed , ca re free ,

o ffens ive , ca ffe ina ted , e tc .)

How can w e change the w ay w e ta lk abou t be ing a m em -

be r o r be ing a s ta ff pe rson and focus on the comm on

goa ls , ra the r than d iffe rences?

I w ou ld love to hear you though ts on “S tom p ing O u t S tig -

m a”! S end your though ts to m c le rica l@ vailp lace .o rg to be

inc luded in the nex t new s le tte r.

By K a tie L

SEPTEMBER BIRTHDAYS

Anna K. 9/1

Ann W. 9/3

Chava lye H. 9/4

Da le K. 9/5

Da v id B. 9/5

Na te K. 9/6

Adan P. 9/6

Dean S. 9/6

Am anda B. 9/6

Che ry l L. 9/7

Bo J. 9/9

Ritch ie S. 9/10

Er ik G. 9/10

Breanne M. 9/14

Da v id L. 9/15

Da v id R. 9/16

Sco tt A. 9/20

Ma tt B. 9/22

Branden E. 9/26

Jane t W. 9/26

Lisa H. 9/27

Cu rlee J. 9/27

Ke v in G. 9/28

Michae l J. 9/28

Ka thy A. 9/30

Robert B. 9/30

Dem arcus L. 9/30

M y Cat Sad ie

My cat is orange and black with green eyes. Yeah. She’s really pretty too. [Laughs]

She’s about this big. [Holds out hands]. But I don’t know how to write that. Oh I know. She weighs about 11

pounds.

I’ll tell you about when I picked her out at the Humane Society. I went to the Humane Society in Gold-

en Valley to get her. And you go in a room with the cat, you know, with Sadie? I got to hold her while we did all

the adoption stuff and everything. She was in a little cardboard thing to bring home, yeah, she was in one of

those. And I had a big furry coat on. Maybe she thought I was a big furry cat. [Laughs] And I was the first one

she saw when she woke up. And I knew she was the one I wanted. Because she was cute. Really really cute.

And I had her name picked out. You know, Sadie.

By Kathy A and Josh S

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(A dd ie P ike In te rv iew , continued

from P . 1 )

I went to Hamline and studied

religion and psychology. I gradu-

ated in 2011.

Tell us abou t your fam ily life

I got engaged to my fiancé, Jere-

my, in March. My niece Ellie will

be turning 1 years old on Sep-

tember 4th.

W hat are you looking fo rw ard

to m ost abou t w orking a t V ail?

Building new relationships and

helping people get what they

need.

Hobbies and activ ities you like

to do in your free tim e?

Disc Golf, playing piano, singing

(I am in a cover band IBABA,

which means “basement” in an-

other language), camping and

being outdoors.

W hat ta len ts do you bring to

Vail?

-Encouraging people

How do you th ink you ’ll m ake

Vail M inneapo lis better?

I bring new ideas and will really

encourage people to push them-

selves.

W hat do you like abou t Va il so

fa r?

Meeting new people and seeing

how wonderful and supportive

the community is.

W hat do you th ink you ’ll

change abou t V ail?

I’ll make sure everyone embrac-

es change and is committed to

progression.

BRA IN HEALTH AND

LANGUAGES , Part II

So, you've decided to learn a for-

eign language. But which

one? Here are two suggestions.

1) The first thing to consider is what

foreign languages are close at

hand. A very large Spanish-

speaking world exists just to the

south of the USA. And here in our

country, a very large number of

Spanish-speaking immigrants are

easily found. If you learn Spanish,

you will never run out of people to

chat with. And you don't even have

to travel far.

To the north of us, a very large

French-

speaking popu-

lation exists in

the Canadian

province of

Quebec. From

Minneapolis,

you can get to a

French-

speaking city in

two days of driving at six hours per

day (resting overnight some-

where). A Greyhound bus is anoth-

er low-cost and easy way to vis-

it Quebec.

2) Sometimes people enjoy study-

ing a language that is a part of their

ancestry.

Have you ever been curious about

those strange plaques in your

grandmother's kitchen? Have you

ever wanted to read the memoires

of your great-grandfather? I have a

cousin who has not only studied

Swedish, but has also traveled to

Sweden and located some of our

second and third cousins.

Almost everyone here at Vail Place

knows that Daithi has a strong inter-

est in the Irish language and cul-

ture. He says he enjoys his studies

of Irish, and it has broadened his

thinking and helped improve his

language skills in general.

So who knows? Maybe if you study

one of your family's languages, you

could also tie it with some interest-

ing traveling.

Next month, I will offer suggestions

on how to begin the study of a for-

eign language. S co tt A

Got Food?

Lynda S recently reminded

me about two important re-

sources for food that’ s ready

to be eaten. This is especial-

ly helpful for those who are

non-cooks or whose health

doesn’ t allow them to cook

for themselves.

Mea ls on W hee ls . This

standby has evolved over the

years to meet the demands

of today. They offer vegetari-

an, gluten- and lactose- free,

kosher, low sodium, etc.

meals. Meals are delivered

hot to your door daily, or you

can opt for frozen meals de-

livered once a week. You

can do it on a short-term or

long-term basis. Call 612-

623-3363 for more infor-

mation, or on the computer

go to Meals-on-wheels.com/

mealoffer.

One G rove land Food She lf:

Lynda reports that this long-

term food shelf often has pre-

pared foods that were donat-

ed by Lunds, Kowalski’ s, and

Surdyks. It would be worth

visiting this once-a-month

food resource to get salads

and other foods prepared by

these gourmet stores. See

Jan if you have questions

about getting to One

Groveland.

Jan M

Summer should get a speeding ticket.

6

Photo R oundup from August: Top le ft, a

second v is it to Square Lake w as qu ite like

the firs t—w indy and d rizz ly ; Top righ t,

C har C led a p resenta tion on s lave ry ; Le ft,

N athan K w ent fish ing fo r the firs t tim e in

20 years , and he no ted that “if it w eren ’t

fo r V a il P lace and th is soc ia l-rec rea tiona l

opportun ity , it p robab ly w ould be longer

s till.”; A bove, Pete H and one o f h is p ieces

at a recent a rt open ing; R ight, B ob W

s ta rted w ork a t S ea Sa lt; B e low righ t,

Thom as S is now w ork ing a t C osta l Sea-

foods

Certified Peer Support T ra in ing 2017-2018

The s ta te w ill be o ffe ring T ra in ing sess ion beg inn ing in Sep-

tem ber and in to next yea r. The cou rse is tw o w eeks long

and the s ites w ill be loca ted a round the s ta te . Those da tes

a re Sep tem ber 11-22 and O ctobe r 9-20 a t the W ellness

Cente r in S t. P au l. To app ly use the Pee rs link to H ope Re-

cover w eb s ite . S top by the Voca tiona l O ffice a t the c lub fo r

add itiona l tra in ing da tes and s ites .