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.

Support Adria Gerig

Our daughter, Adria Gerig, was born with Spina Bifida on November 19, 2013. Her journey has been amazing and truly a testimony to God’s faithfulness and healing power! She is 7 (almost 8) years old now and in second grade at Pettisville Elementary School. Adria loves art, gymnastics, swimming, and her family and friends! Over the summer she learned to ride a bike, and swim with no floaties! She is excelling in academics, and a great reader for her age. We are so blessed by her courage and determination to tackle hard things. She doesn’t consider herself any different, or feel bad for herself when she has to work harder than others. She is kind and caring, and a joy to be around.

Adria has recently been diagnosed with a cyst on her spine that is actively growing. It is in the original Spina Bifida repair site. It is putting pressure on the nerves, and the nerves are growing around it to try and find space. It has been decided that now is the best time to go ahead and have that removed before it starts to cause decline in function. Adria will also have a detethering surgery performed which is where they clean up all the scar tissue and detach the nerves from any surrounding structures. She will spend a couple days in the PICU, and the remainder of the week on the regular pediatric floor. The surgeon is very confident that this surgery can be performed without Adria losing any function that she currently has to her lower body. We are so grateful for this.

Adria is no stranger to Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) and completed 2 full rounds when she was 2 months old and again at 10 months old. The goal was to assist with healing from the surgeries and trauma she experienced that first year. We are hoping to do some more HBOT therapy after this surgery as well. It has been proven that HBOT not only speeds up healing, but decreases inflammation, pain, and risk of infection. Especially due to the location of this surgery being on her spinal cord, we want to do as much as we can to help her heal well with no complications. We are also hoping to do additional Conductive Education (CE), as recommended by her surgeon, in order for Adria to regain her endurance and mobility after surgery.

There is a facility here in Northwest Ohio that Adria has gone to for these services in the past called Sara’s Garden. Sara’s Garden is the only non-profit center in the United States to offer both HBOT and CE services and specializes in working with clients with neuromotor disabilities. We are so grateful for this center, the staff, and the care that they have provided Adria over the last 8 years! They are incredible and have been instrumental in Adria’s mobility and development. We believe that we would not be where we are today without them!

Unfortunately, in the United States insurance companies do not recognize HBOT and CE as being therapeutic for the treatment of neuromotor disabilities and therefore will not cover the cost for treatments. That is why we could really use your help. HBOT for post-surgical healing is only $150 per treatment and CE is only $35 per hour at Sara’s Garden.

If you could assist us with the cost (or even just part of the cost) of a single $150 HBOT treatment or $35 hour of CE it would help reduce our overall expenses greatly. 100% of the funds received go into an account in Adria’s name and will be used for her treatments. Any contribution made would be considered a tax-deductible donation as Sara’s Garden is a 501(c)(3) non-profit facility. Checks can be made out to Sara’s Garden with Adria’s name on a sheet of paper accompanying the check. Please do NOT write her name directly on the check. You can also donate online via credit card by clicking on the DONATE NOW button below.

We believe that Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy and Conductive Education services at Sara’s Garden will significantly aid in Adria’s post-surgical healing process.

Thank you so much for considering to support Adria’s treatments at Sara’s Garden!

Amber & Travis Gerig

DONATE NOW

Sara’s Garden is a 501(c)(3) organization. Your charitable contribution is tax deductible under 501(c)(3) of the IRS code, to the extent allowed by law. A receipt will be sent to you after your pledge has been received to use for tax purposes.

Support Wayne Bishop

My name is Wayne Bishop and I’m from Findlay, Ohio. As many of you know, I started my own business when I was 30 years old and enjoyed mentoring young people during my 52 years in business. It’s something that I’m very proud of.

When I was 75 years old, I had 3 heart bypass surgeries and when I was 80 years old, I suffered a stroke. With these mounting medical issues, I needed to slow down so I retired when I was 80. Doctors said that because of my age there was really nothing they could do for me except prescribe medications for me to help deal with the negative effects from my stroke and heart surgeries. I was told that I was just getting old.

I didn’t want to simply accept a future of increased medications so I began researching alternative solutions. I received chelation and hyperbaric treatments from a doctor in Bluffton, Ohio until he retired and went out of business. I felt that these treatments had helped me and I didn’t want to stop so I went on the internet to find additional providers.

In many cases, HBOT has improved the client’s fine and gross motor skills, thinking (cognition) and physical healing. From my research, I’ve recently learned that there is a non-profit facility right here in Northwest Ohio that I can go to called Sara’s Garden. I am very happy to have discovered Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) at Sara’s Garden and am excited to continue receiving HBOT treatments here.

Unfortunately, in the United States insurance companies do not recognize HBOT as being therapeutic for the treatment of stroke and traumatic brain injuries and therefore will not cover the cost for treatments. That is why I could really use your help. HBOT for stroke recovery is only $100 per treatment at Sara’s Garden. However, since my plan is to receive at least 40 HBOT treatments that cost adds up quickly.

If you could assist me with the cost (or even just part of the cost) of a single $100 HBOT treatment it would help reduce my overall expenses greatly. 100% of the funds received go into an account in my name and will be used for my treatments. Any contribution made would be considered a tax-deductible donation as Sara’s Garden is a 501(c)(3) non-profit facility. Checks can be made out to Sara’s Garden with my name on a sheet of paper accompanying the check. Please do NOT write my name directly on the check. You can also donate online via credit card by clicking on the DONATE NOW button below.

I am a fighter. I will never stop trying to get better.

Thank you so much for considering to support my treatments at Sara’s Garden!

Wayne Bishop

Sara’s Garden is a 501(c)(3) organization. Your charitable contribution is tax deductible under 501(c)(3) of the IRS code, to the extent allowed by law. A receipt will be sent to you after your pledge has been received to use for tax purposes.

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.