On Thursday, November 21, the corporate staff at �鶹ֱ��app celebrated Thanksgiving by holding a luncheon.

Turkeys were cooked by staff members, and everyone brought in appetizers, side dishes, and desserts to share with one another.

�鶹ֱ��app’s CEO and President, Anne Bakar, wanted to share her photos from the event and wish everyone at all of our programs nationwide a very happy Thanksgiving.

Oregon ACT staff and members gathered together to celebrate the holidays by sharing a nice meal together.

More than 26 members, an interpreter, and staff from both ACT and the Recovery Center at Gresham were involved.

Staff thoroughly planned, organized, cooked, gave rides, set-up, served, decorated, and cleaned after the event.

There was plenty of music, food, and decorations to set the tone for the beginning of a wonderful holiday season.

Enjoy their photos below!

�鶹ֱ��app, with the support of , is pleased to announce the opening of Mark Reed Evaluation and Treatment Center in McCleary, WA.

This new 16-bed facility is designed to provide recovery-centered inpatient care for individuals experiencing an acute behavioral health crisis. The goal is to help those in need to regain stability, connect to additional resources, and return to regular life as soon as possible.

The program serves adults in Grays Harbor County who meet the criteria for an Involuntary Treatment Act (ITA) detention and/or a 14-day commitment, and it is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Nearly 50 people gathered to celebrate the center’s ribbon-cutting ceremony on August 14. Many people who had worked at the facility when it was a hospital and were thrilled to see what �鶹ֱ��app had done to the building.

The Mark Reed Evaluation and Treatment Center is �鶹ֱ��app’s first program in partnership with Great Rivers Behavioral Health Organization. We are honored to be new members of this community.

Congraulations to Morton Bakar Center for completing their first “Skillympics” (Skill and Olympics) event!

What are the Skillympics? Great question! It is a unique and FUN way to educate staff in all aspects of Morton Bakar’s policies, procedures, and many state and federal regulations that are critical to the proper management of the facility. The goal is to make learning fun, engaging, and competitive.

Like the Olympics, there was a torch and a parade. However, in true MBC style, they were exclusive in the series of competitive academic events. The events were managed and graded by the department heads. The winners were awarded gold, silver, and bronze medals based on academic and skills performance. Each employee had the opportunity to interact with all departments, gaining critical knowledge and skills throughout the process.

This event will now be held quarterly. The goal is also to prepare employees for the annual state and federal survey by having each employee be academically competent and engaged.

The Skillympics is also intended to be a staff development and team building event!

When Lindy Cain sees baking soda and vinegar, she doesn't just see an elementary science project in the making; Lindy sees an opportunity to teach the members of �鶹ֱ��app's how to make a variety of household products in her DIY group hosted at the program every week.

Lindy Cain, Team lead at �鶹ֱ��app's Sierra Vista Act, makes bug repellant from household items at her diy group session.

"I taught our group how to clean their entire house with baking soda and vinegar," said Lindy. "I mostly focus on household and hygiene products. We do laundry soap every couple of months, we do dish soap, we've made dandruff shampoo, we make face lotion, face wash, face scrub, chap stick."

The DIY products are easy to make and use low-cost ingredients, most of which can be bought with food stamps or EBT funds.

"Many of the members don't have much money, and the money they do have, they need it for other things. I try to make things that our members don't normally have and can help them out in the community," said Lindy.

One of the members was having trouble walking on the weekly mile-long hikes they would take as part of a health and wellness curriculum at the program. The member's heels were scaly and cracked, which made it painful to walk long distances. He tried using a salve the doctor prescribed, but it didn’t work. Lindy looked up how to make foot salves and found a recipe for one that included magnesium.

“We melted magnesium flakes into water with oregano oil, beeswax, and water to make a lotion," said Lindy. "He started using it and his feet cleared up, which remedies had never done before. Now he can go on walks and exercise and his feet feel good."

"Lindy goes above and beyond in her creative ways to engage and activate the members to live the lives of their choice," said Jennifer Hinkel, Vice President of Development at �鶹ֱ��app. "I participated in a DIY session where members were making a bug repellant lotion out of beeswax, coconut oil, baking soda, lemongrass, and lavender. Since many of our members walk or spend time outside, they really appreciated the session and the product that they could take and use that day."

For ideas and recipes, Lindy says she looks mostly on Pinterest, , or . Members also come to her and pitch ideas to replicate items they like to see if they can make them in the DIY group.

"It's skill-building and it’s also socializing with other members and myself, while they are learning about things in the environment. They enjoy learning about the different oils and the different properties and what they are used for," said Lindy.

Setting up a DIY group is easy, said Lindy. If you're interested in trying one at your program, Lindy provided some helpful tips for getting started.

How to Start a DIY Group

• Buy ingredients in bulk. Lindy uses Amazon and Sam’s Club to purchase larger items at a lower cost.

• Don't think too hard about containers. For dish soap, Lindy uses water bottles. For laundry soap, you can use plastic bags. You can also use portion cups, like for condiments, which you can buy in bulk at Sam's Club.

• Just do some research and don’t be afraid of it — it's really easy.

Products the DIY group make include lavender, coconut and honey soap, lotions, face scrubs and much more!

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The holidays were made a little sweeter by Medical Records Technician Tamera Simonson who surprised �鶹ֱ��app staff with personalized stockings. Tamera embroidered staff members names on the stockings and thoughtfully chose different material to match each staff member’s interests. She sewed a total of 52 stockings. Staff were delighted and touched by her kindness and continued the spirit of generosity by filling the stockings with small gifts, candy and cards. Many stockings were overflowing with treats, which goes to show that �鶹ֱ��app staff truly appreciate and celebrate each other.

Submission by Shawn Wolf (social worker)