2021-22 NHA Yearbook Sponsorship

We are so thankful to our sponsors for making this past year’s yearbook project possible.

Our goal is to once again provide our students and their parents with this very special memento. We hope to raise funds through sponsors in order to keep the costs of the yearbooks as low as possible, so that more students and their families will be able to afford one.

We invite you to consider being a sponsor of this very special project!

We also gladly accept general donations for those not interested in being recognized as sponsors.

COST: $150.00

This level of sponsorship includes a 3.75″ x 4.25″ (approx.) color advertisement in the yearbook, recognition on our website and recognition on social media with a link to your business’ social media page or website.

COST: $90.00

This level of sponsorship includes a business card sized color advertisement in the yearbook and recognition on our website.

COST: $30.00

This level of sponsorship includes your business or name listed in the yearbook and website.

SPONSORSHIP NOTES

Advertisements must be received by March 31, 2022.
Ads can be emailed in .jpg/.jpeg format to karab@sarasgarden.org.
Ads may be dropped off at Sara’s Garden or New Horizons Academy.

Sara’s Garden is a 501(c)3 tax-exempt organization and your donation is tax-deductible within the guidelines of U.S. law. To claim a donation as a deduction on your U.S. taxes, please keep your email donation receipt as your official record. We’ll send it to you upon successful completion of your donation.

Vocational Training That Works!

Thanksgiving is the time of year where we appreciate the people, programs, and organizations that have touched our lives, supported our families, and helped our students to succeed! This year, we are so grateful for Shalian (Shali) McCarley and want to celebrate her accomplishments and appreciate all of the New Horizons Academy (NHA), Career Center, and Special Grounds Coffee staff for helping her to become more confident, independent, and a part of the world of work.

Over five years ago, Shali and her parents, Jack and Sharon McCarley, came to NHA looking for a supportive, special education school environment where she could gain confidence, find her voice, develop work skills, and feel valued and appreciated. According to one of her high school teachers, Ms. Kara Behnfeldt, that is exactly what Shali found. “She grew in confidence; and she developed people skills, as well as, being able to express her thoughts and feelings. Shali thrived in a one-on-one, quiet, supportive classroom environment, where she felt valued.” At NHA, Shali felt that she learned “how to get along with people,” which helped prepare her for her new retail job at Walmart in Napoleon.

Shali may have improved her communication skills and work skills while at NHA and its Career Center; but as Ms. Kara recognized, “Shali is a hard worker who strives to do the best she can.” And she does it through humor and with a smile on her face. “I loved seeing and hearing Shali laugh. When she did, it was always pure joy.” Shali agreed that one of her favorite memories was of one of her classmates making her and her other Career Center classmates laugh all the time.

That laughter continued this fall through the Special Grounds Coffee Shop. After socially graduating last May, Shali returned to the Career Center to bake for the coffee shop. Her favorite thing to make was the breakfast burritos, which her job coach Ms. Renate Benjamin made the work fun and exciting. “During the burrito making, we made up a song called, The Burrito Song. One of my favorite memories is Shali telling me in fun, ‘Ms. Renate, Please don’t sing the burrito song any more’ with a huge smile on her face and laughing as hard as she could.”

The Burrito Song is just one example of the fun, educational tools used to help Shali and her Career Center classmates and coffee shop co-workers “learn how to follow a recipe and measure ingredients in grams and ounces,” shared Renate. Through her work study at the Special Grounds Coffee Shop, “Shali also learned to be part of a team and gained a lot of confidence.”

In addition to breakfast burritos, Shali also learned how to make oatmeal sandwich cookies, chocolate chip cookies, peanut butter cookies, and yogurt parfaits with fresh fruit and homemade granola; but her all-time favorite coffee shop treat is of course the huge, ooey gooey chocolate chip cookies. Stop by the Special Grounds Coffee Shop, and try one for yourself. They are great with coffee or hot chocolate!

The Special Grounds Coffee Shop and the Career Center Skills Labs offered Shali the chance to practice her communication, social, customer service, and other work-related and vocational skills needed to be successful at her new retail position. They and her job coach also helped allay her fears and reduce her anxieties about starting a new job. Initially, Shali was worried “about being able to do everything the job required,” and now, she is able to enjoy “making new friends.”

Shali has just joined the world of work, and she still has a whole lot of dreams for her future. She wants to “try new things like photography, modeling, and learning more about fashion.” Ms. Kara and the rest of the NHA staff are just so proud of her and “wish her a life of happiness and confidence in whatever she chooses to do and hope she stays in touch.”

This Thanksgiving season, we want to join with Ms. Kara in congratulating Shali on her new job opportunity and celebrate how far she has truly come in making her dreams of independence come true! We also want to take a moment and thank all of the Special Grounds Coffee Shop, NHA, and Career Center teachers, staff, and job coaches for helping Shali to become more confident, independent, and a part of the world of work.

This holiday season, please stop by the Special Grounds Coffee Shop, and celebrate the accomplishments of Shali and our other special needs students! Thank our staff for everything they do to help our students’ dreams come true and for helping them to become as independent as they can possibly be. Remember that all of the proceeds of Special Grounds Coffee support the vocational skills and work study needs of our special needs students.

If you are looking for a caring school environment for your special needs student, an individualized vocational-based program for your high schooler, a Summer Camp where your middle school or high school student can gain valuable work study skills, or a place where your special needs student can grow, thrive, and become as independent as he or she possibly can, then please consider calling us at 419-335-7272 to set up a tour of our Career Center or NHA school campuses in Wauseon or Springfield. New Horizons Academy…Where Kids Come First!

Special Grounds Coffee Co. was born out of a desire to provide a meaningful vocational experience to individuals with disabilities by creating delicious, high quality products and a welcoming environment. For more information on Special Grounds Coffee, to explore our menu, or to order our freshly roasted and blended coffees right from Wauseon, Ohio, stop into our cafe and see us at 845 S. Shoop Avenue or log onto SpecialGroundsCoffee.com to order online. Special Grounds Coffee… Hope Brews Here. Changing Lives One Cup at a Time.

Special Grounds Project Update ~ Oct. 2021

Special Grounds is officially open!

It look well over a year for us to finally say that, and we could not feel more blessed!

As with everything else in the world recently, complications due to the COVID-19 pandemic made this such a challenging project… from supply chain issues to contractor scheduling and availability. While these unforeseen factors may have caused delays in our progress, they couldn’t temper our excitement and joy for what this facility will provide to our students.

Our grand opening celebration was on Tuesday, September 14 and we are still in awe at the outpouring of support we’ve received from the community. Our students continue to stay busy putting labels on cups, stamping logos and writing thank you notes on coffee sleeves, baking the pastries and making the sandwiches and salads we are serving in the cafe.

Our drive through and indoor dining in the cafe are open from 6:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. Monday through Friday and from 7:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. on Saturdays.

Stop in and see us at 854 S. Shoop Avenue in Wauseon! We can’t wait to serve you!

2021 #GivingTuesday419

This year we will once again be joining Everence and other amazing local nonprofits and community members to maximize charitable giving at #GivingTuesday419!

Tuesday, Nov. 30
Founder’s Hall – Sauder Village
22611 State Route 2, Archbold

Come together to celebrate #GivingTuesday419.

5 p.m. – Doors open
5:15 p.m. – Difference Makers Expo
6 p.m. – Dismissal by table for dinner
6:30 p.m. – Difference Makers panels begins and giving platform opens
8:30 p.m. (approximately) – Grand total announcement
8:35 p.m. (approximately) – Check out begins. Please hold checks until the program ends.If you’re giving through your Everence donor advised fund, you do not have to stay to check out.

No gift is too small to help inspire change in Northwest Ohio!

The countdown to Northwest Ohio’s biggest day of generosity is on…

Days

Hours

Minutes

Seconds

EVENT HAS PASSED

GivingTuesday is a global generosity movement unleashing the power of radical generosity. GivingTuesday was created in 2012 as a simple idea: a day that encourages people to do good. Since then, it has grown into a year-round global movement that inspires hundreds of millions of people to give, collaborate, and celebrate generosity.

It’s a simple idea: whether it’s making someone smile, helping a neighbor or stranger out, showing up for an issue or people we care about, or giving some of what we have to those who need our help, every act of generosity counts and everyone has something to give.

Register for #GivingTuesday419 today!

Registration for #GivingTuesday419 is open and will remain open until Nov. 15 or until we reach capacity, whichever comes first.

Don’t delay registering, seats are filling quickly!

REGISTER NOW

Can’t Attend #GivingTuesday419? No Problem!

If you’re not able to attend #GivingTuesday419 you can still participate in Giving Tuesday and support our mission here at Sara’s Garden. Simply visit our Support page to make a one-time or recurring donation.

No gift is too small to support Sara’s Garden and help inspire change in Northwest Ohio!

Save the Date for the 2022 Drive Fore Hope

Thank you so much to everyone who was a part of the 2021 Drive Fore Hope Charity Golf Scramble!

The weather wasn’t ideal or what we envisioned for this year’s event… but we were so blessed by the amazing men and women who turned out to play in and volunteer for this year’s event. Thank you for being so patient and understanding with the adverse conditions! We are truly grateful for your support!

Next year’s event is scheduled for Friday, May 27, 2022. Don’t forget to get it on your calendar and save the date. We hope to see you at the 2022 Drive Fore Hope!

Save the Date for the NHA Christmas Musical

Save the date for Tuesday, December 14! You’re not going to want to miss this ye mateys!

The kiddos at NHA’s Wauseon campus will be presenting their annual Christmas musical: A Pirate Christmas!

After missing last year due to unfortunate COVID restrictions, this year’s musical will be an Elves vs. Pirates event as they try to figure out what Christmas is all about!

Please get this date on your calendar and plan to be available from approximately 5:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. that evening. The musical will once again be held at Pettisville Missionary Church. Obviously we will be monitoring the ever-changing state and health department COVID guidelines and keep everyone informed of any potential issues in scheduling.

If you are new to the NHA family and aren’t familiar with our musicals, ask someone who was here in either 2018 or 2019 – they have been a huge success and our students absolutely love them!

NHA COVID Update

New Horizons Academy (NHA) is committed to the health and safety of our students and staff, and we will do everything in our power to keep them safe! As we begin the second nine weeks of school, we continue to follow the recommendations of the 2021-22 COVID-19 Health and Prevention Guidance for Ohio K-12 Schools from the Ohio Department of Health and the Ohio Department of Education.

This school year, we have continued to work extremely hard to minimize in-school coronavirus transmission and to keep our students in-person at NHA. We have instituted a mask-recommended rather than a mask-mandated environment along with continued social distancing, frequent hand washing, hand sanitizing, rigorous cleaning, and grade-level pods. We have been remarkably successful with just 6 individuals testing positive for COVID-19:

1 student and 1 staff member at our Springfield Campus
2 students and 1 staff member at our Career Center
1 staff member at our Wauseon Campus

Recently, the state of Ohio has seen a decline in new coronavirus cases, and we would like to see that trend continue. To do that, we are asking you to continue to:

Keep your children home when they are sick
Remind them to wash their hands often with soap and water
Encourage them to carry and use hand sanitizer
Regularly clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces
Socially distance at community and group events

With Thanksgiving and Christmas just around the corner, we want all of our families to celebrate together and celebrate safely. Thank you for helping us to keep our students and staff healthy and safe this school year!

NHA Parent-Teacher Conferences

For our New Horizons Academy (NHA) parents, parent-teacher conferences are just around the corner on November 1-2. If you haven’t already scheduled one with your child’s teacher, please do so today.

Parent-teacher conferences are a great way to develop or deepen the partnership between parents and teachers. You both want your child to learn, grow, and become as independent as he or she possibly can. Use this opportunity to find out how your child is doing in school and what you can do to help.

Before the conference:

If you haven’t already, schedule a time to meet. Please send back your parent-teacher conference sign-up form with any requests to meet with specific teachers, staff, or specialists.
Review your child’s progress reports and grade card.
Talk with your child and other family members about how they think the school year is going and what your child’s strengths and needs are.
Make a list of questions to ask during the conference.

During the conference:

Remember that it is a two-way conversation and that it works best when both teachers and parents talk and listen.
Share your questions and concerns with the teacher.
Celebrate your child’s accomplishments, and work with the teacher on ways to help your child grow and improve.
Ask what you can do at home to help your child learn and grow.

While talking with the teacher, please keep these basic principles in mind:

—BE HEARD—
Best intentions assumed
Emphasis on learning

Home-school collaboration
Examples and evidence
Active listening
Respect for all
Dedication to follow-up

For more information on how to make the most of your parent-teacher conference and how to strengthen the relationship with your child’s teacher, log onto the Global Family Research Project at globalfrp.org.

Even Small Injuries Can Lead to Big Problems

It has been said that little problems often become big problems if you don’t take the initiative to correct them. Unfortunately, when it comes to our bodies and injuries, little injuries can lead to big problems even when we take the initiative to correct them. There are times when complications from surgery can lead to even bigger issues than what the original surgery was even attempting to fix.

Andrew enlisted in the Army after graduating from Wauseon High School and was assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 2-504 Parachute Infantry Regiment, Charlie Company, 3rd Platoon. Andrew found great fulfillment serving his country and his hard work paid off as he was recognized for his initiative and efforts and promoted to serve as Team Leader and Squad Designated Marksman in his division. While preparing to go through selection for Special Forces he suffered what he thought to be at the time, a minor setback when a pilonidal cyst formed on his tailbone.

A pilonidal cyst is an abnormal pocket in the skin that usually contains hair and skin debris. It is almost always located near the tailbone at the top of the cleft of the buttocks. Pilonidal cysts usually occur when hair punctures the skin and becomes embedded. If a pilonidal cyst becomes infected, the resulting abscess is often extremely painful. The cyst can be drained through a small incision or removed surgically.

Andrew’s seemingly harmless cyst did indeed become infected and started causing significant pain. When the cyst continued to grow, doctors advised Andrew that an operation was necessary to prevent it from getting worse. So, on November 2, 2015, Andrew underwent surgery at Fort Bragg to remove the cyst.

The resulting surgical wound needed to be packed and cleaned daily by a wound care team at the hospital. When a wound is deep, or when it tunnels under the skin, packing the wound can help it heal. The packing material soaks up any drainage from the wound, which helps the tissues heal from the inside out. Without the packing, the wound could close at the top. This would trap fluid and possibly bacteria in the deeper areas of the wound, impede healing, and lead to infection. Andrew was forced to wait for the wound cavity to heal before he could resume selection training.

After a month, Andrew’s wound had still not healed. His doctors stopped treating him because the healing time was taking longer than expected. They simply gave him a bag of supplies, instructed him to pack the wound himself and told Andrew to follow up with them in three months.

Not only did the wound not heal, it became infected and started causing Andrew incredible pain. On December 14, 2015 doctors surgically reopened the wound site to remove the infection, resulting in an even larger wound cavity, over 1 in. deep, 2 cm. long and 1 cm. wide.

Andrew was not about to endure another “wait and see” healing period. Thankfully, Andrew had received Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy at Sara’s Garden back when he was in high school recovering from a stress fracture in his foot. He remembered how it had helped to speed up his healing process then and believed it could help him once again.

As soon as his surgery was over, Andrew left Fort Bragg and headed home to Wauseon to start hyperbaric treatments at Sara’s Garden. The high concentration of oxygen at increased pressure allowed Andrew to increase his healing efficiency. After only a few days, his pain level was significantly reduced and could feel the infection begin to subside. Over the course of the next three weeks, Andrew received 16 HBOT treatments. With the help of the Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy, Andrew was able to beat the infection and successfully close the wound that he had been dealing with for the past two months.

Andrew felt grateful to have been able to finally heal and get back to his previous level of operation. He stated that he was pain free and had a renewed confidence to return and complete his military operations. Andrew went on to deploy with the 82nd to Helmand Province, Afghanistan. Without hyperbaric treatments at Sara’s Garden, Andrew is convinced that his infection and wound would have continued to deteriorate due to the lack of care he was receiving from the Army Medical Corps.

Andrew is now out of the Army and in his last year of a BSN-RN program. He is hoping to continue his education to the provider level and is looking for an opportunity to provide health services to people in need such as veterans or individuals with special needs.

No matter what you’ve been told, there is hope… for this and many other conditions. HBOT is treatment without drugs… without surgery… without pain.

Special Grounds Project Update ~ July 2021

We want to keep everyone informed on the status of our exciting new project, Special Grounds Coffee Shop.

We are SOOO CLOSE to being done with construction. The past month saw a tremendous amount of work completed.

Drywall is done and the walls have been painted.
Our new awnings over the drive up window and front entrance have been installed.
Counters have been installed and plumbing is being hooked up.
Ceiling grid is in and lights are being installed.
The kids have been hard at work helping our staff create delicious pastries to sample

Until we officially open, you can still order our delicious, locally-roasted coffees online for pickup or delivery right to your door! Our e-commerce website (SpecialGroundsCoffee.com) is up and running and ready to connect you with the most delicious coffee you will ever taste!

If you would prefer to purchase your coffee in person, we’ve got you covered for that that as well. We have been attending various Farmer’s Markets in the area and have received great response from these events. Below are the events we are currently scheduled to attend over the coming months:

July 15 – Perrysburg
July 15 & 16 – Wauseon Tent Sale
July 22 – Perrysburg
July 29 – Perrysburg
Aug 5 – Perrysburg
Sept 12 – Monarchs & More Family Fun Day (Sauder Village)

We are so grateful to the Roach Family Foundation for their amazing $10,000 grant for the purchase of equipment needed for the coffee shop!

Come out for some delicious, FREE samples and pick up a bag (or bags) of your favorite Special Grounds coffee!