Family Communications

Dear Wildwood Families:

Happy Fall--how did this happen so fast?? The leaves are beginning to turn, nights are chilly, blankets are welcome, and there is an incredible amount of activity going on at Wildwood. It feels like we sped from 0 to 60 mph in five minutes, the day after Labor Day!!

Here are this week's important highlights:

*There have been no more confirmed cases of COVID-19 in any of our programs or among our regular staff since my last Weekly Update.

*All regular staff continue to receive their full compensation and available benefits, including health care.

*Our residential programs are functioning smoothly and well, while everyone who receives residential support from Wildwood resumes a "more normal" community life. As previously reported, we continue to prepare for recently announced residential funding cuts targeting vacancies in our certified residences (which we cannot fill without OPWDD's permission), and therapeutic days (24 hour periods or more that our loved ones are away from their residences) that will have a significant impact in many of our houses, and on our residential program's overall fiscal health. These cuts are slated to take effect on October 1, 2020, and could result in a loss of income to Wildwood of as much as $500,000--$600,000 per year for programs and services that have been functioning on thinner and thinner budgets for several years now. More detailed information has already been shared with families who will be impacted by Sue Hanson, Wildwood's Director of Residential Operations, and if she has not already been in direct contact, she will be very soon. Please know that our first and foremost commitment will always be to the quality and richness of your family members' lives--without a doubt we will definitely need your advocacy voices and partnership on this issue, in every possible way!!

* The return to in-person day services continues to be very positive despite our totally upended world, and the people we support are really enjoying the ability to reconnect with their friends, their favorite staff, and their deeply missed routines. Approximately 75% of people receiving Day Services support from Wildwood have returned to some degree of in-person services. Wildwood's Day Services and Transportation Teams are doing a simply amazing job managing all of the changed rules and regulations, heightened safety protocols, individual participants' needs and staffing vacancies and concerns. All of our staff members continue to be incredibly creative in flexing their hours to provide as much in-person service as possible to each program participant, while still observing all of the safety and cleaning protocols, capacity limitations and social distancing requirements that now exist for both transportation services and in-person attendance at day services, whether site-based or Without Walls (WoW).

You have all been incredibly supportive and understanding throughout the twists and turns of recent months, and there just aren't enough/ the right words to say thank you for that. This has been a long siege, unlike any that most of us have ever seen in our lives, and all of us grow weary at times. Right now, we can't offer anything close to the full breadth of community opportunities that your loved ones have come to expect, and we know that creates boredom and frustration. However, our first and foremost commitment will always be to the health and safety of your children and your families, and we will always err on the side of caution about that. Our staff deeply appreciates your patience, understanding, kind words and helpful ideas as we try to keep your loved ones safe, healthy and meaningfully engaged during the time they spend with us each day.

*Wildwood School has had a really positive and successful reopening of in-person educational supports. Approximately 170 of our current census of 210 students have returned to in-person instruction at the School. The School staff is utilizing a block schedule so that all students have the opportunity to meet daily with their teachers, either in person or remotely. Transportation arrivals and departures have been proceeding very smoothly. Social distancing and sanitation plans are working very well, and we are thrilled to see so many students wearing masks! We deeply appreciate the support of our School parents and families in completing the daily "online" health screening before sending your children to school--it makes our work so much easier!! In the end, though, the most meaningful thing that I can share with all of you is that on the first day of school, and every day thereafter, every one of your children has been met at their bus by a staff member whom they know and trust, with an outstretched hand. Bill LeForestier, the Director of the School Program , said today that this was one of the best school openings ever. We are so very grateful to our dedicated School staff, and to all of our School families for their courage, commitment, hard work and support as we continue this uncharted voyage.

Please continue your help and partnership in making this a healthy, happy school year for all our students, by completing the daily health screening that the school sends you via email each day BEFORE your child comes to school. Also please keep them home if they are not feeling well, or have been exposed to anyone who may have COVID. Finally, please check the Wildwood School website, www.wildwoodschoolsite.com often, and watch for emails and phone calls from your child's classroom team. Those are the primary ways that updates and information will be shared with you during the coming days and weeks.

Last but not least, please note that Tuesday, September 22nd will be a half day, with dismissal at 11:40 a.m.

*Wildwood's Family Support Services Team has recently released its Fall 2020 offerings, and I have attached them to this update. The Team is totally committed to helping as many families as possible during these difficult times, so we hope you will participate in these educational and support opportunities!

Our Recreation Department is actively planning for the resumption of in-person recreational opportunities beginning in October. Stay tuned for further details.

*The federal government is still unable to agree on providing COVID-related financial relief to state and local governments, and as a result, NYS has begun to implement VERY SIGNIFICANT budget actions that will have profound, negative and fairly immediate impacts on providers like Wildwood, and on the services and supports available to your loved ones.

***PLEASE CONTINUE TO ADVOCATE AS STRONGLY AS YOU CAN, at both the state and federal levels, for additional funding to address the very significant negative financial impacts that Wildwood and other providers in NYS will sustain in the coming weeks and months if our state does not receive federal relief funding to close its huge budget gap. One of the easiest things you can do is go to

https://www.ancor.org/amplifier?vvsrc=%2fcampaigns%2f77135%2frespond

and send a message to your federal legislative representatives asking them to support our loved ones. The message is already prepared for you--it's really easy, and quite impactful!! You can also reach out to your state representatives and share your stories and struggles--that makes a huge difference!!

This week, family advocacy groups across the state collaborated in a mobile rally to commemorate the closure of Willowbrook 30 years ago., and highlight the profound and unmet needs of our loved ones and families that are growing exponentially in our current environment. To learn more about the mobile rally, go to https://www.lohud.com/story/news/local/rockland/2020/09/18/new-york-state-aid-cuts-could-decimate-group-homes-amid-covid-19/3460432001/.

Finally, if you would like to be part of the ongoing family advocacy efforts across the state, I strongly encourage you to join ENYDDA (pronounced Any Day), our regional grassroots family advocacy group. It's as easy as sending an email to enydda@gmail.com. Ask to be added to its email list, and you will receive a wealth of meaningful information.

*All other programs, supports and services at Wildwood remain stable and operational, as has been reported in previous weekly updates.

*As we continue to negotiate the profound fiscal challenges of COVID-19, we welcome your active support of the Wildwood Foundation. The Walk for Wildwood is fast upon us, and we hope you are ready to join us, virtually, from September 25-30, 2020. You can walk anywhere, any time during that period, and we truly need your support. The link to this year's Walk is "yhttps://www.firstgiving.com/event/wildwood/2020-Walk-for-Wildwood". In a totally selfish plug for support, I would love to be the top fundraiser in my last year as Wildwood's CEO/ Executive Director, so if you aren't already walking or committed to a team, my team--Dream Big for Wildwood-- would love your help! Here's the link to my personal fundraising page: http://www.firstgiving.com/fundraiser/maryann-allen/2020-Walk-for-WIldwood. You can also go to our team page by searching its name on the Firstgiving website, under the Wildwood Foundation event. In addition, offline donations are gratefully accepted--just send them to my attention at 1190 Troy-Schenectady Road, Latham, NY 12110. Every donation that the Foundation receives goes directly to the programs, supports and services that Wildwood offers to the people and families at the heart of our mission, and we need them more than ever before in the face of COVID-19. Thank you in advance, from the bottom of my heart,for helping to strengthen Wildwood's future!

*Keep checking for valuable information, updated frequently, on our website for families:

https://sites.google.com/wildwoodprograms.org/family-resources/home!

With deepest appreciation for your partnership, advocacy, understanding, patience and support,

Mary Ann

Dear Wildwood Families:

Happy Labor Day!! It is so hard to believe that when I began sending these updates, spring was just beginning. Naively, I think we all felt that the COVID crisis would be over in a matter of weeks. And yet here we are in September, as the seasons change yet again, with the pandemic still very much a reality. I hope you have all found time over the holiday weekend to enjoy the beautiful weather, spend time with family and take care of yourselves in every possible way. It's been a long siege, and we don't know what still lies ahead, so be good to yourselves and stay safe!!

Here are the week's important highlights:

*Late this past week, we were notified that an individual who receives support in one of our non-residential programs has tested positive for COVID 19. Since extensive safety practices were in place, the exposure to others was minimal. We have been in contact with the local County Health Department for guidance and direction, and all necessary responses and precautions have been implemented. The Health Department has already contacted everyone who may have been at risk of exposure.

*All regular staff continue to receive their full compensation and available benefits, including health care.

*Our residential teams continue to help those who receive residential supports from Wildwood return to a "more normal" community life. At the same time, we continue to prepare for recently announced residential funding cuts that are expected to have a significant impact on many of our residential programs. More detailed information from Wildwood's agency and residential leadership teams will be forthcoming later this week about how families can help us prepare for and survive these very significant challenges. We will definitely need your advocacy voices and partnership in every possible way!!

* Wildwood's Day Services and Transportation Teams continue to do an incredible job providing in-person services both at our three day habilitation locations (New Karner in Colonie, Riverside in Halfmoon, and Pinecrest in East Greenbush), and through our Without Walls (WoW) programs. Extensive safety measures have been implemented to keep everyone safe, and the staff continue to be incredibly creative in flexing schedules to provide as much in-person service as possible to each program participant, while still observing all of the capacity limitations and social distancing requirements that now exist for both transportation and in-person attendance at day services.

We are SO VERY GRATEFUL for the overwhelming support and understanding we have received from families, despite the many changes we have been forced to implement in the reopening process--your kind words and helpful ideas have helped keep staff spirits high and programs running smoothly in the face of all the chaos and uncertainty!

*Wildwood School will welcome students back for the new school year this week, with in-person educational services resuming on Wednesday, September 9th. Extensive staff training has occurred over the last several days, and thorough preparations have been completed within our School buildings to implement all of the social distancing and health and safety protocols that we must follow.

Again, we ask for your help and partnership in making this a healthy, happy school year for all our students. Please complete the daily health screening that the school will send you via email each day BEFORE your children come to school, and please keep them home if they are not feeling well, or have been exposed to anyone who may have COVID. Also, please check the Wildwood School website, www.wildwoodschoolsite.com often, and watch for emails and phone calls from your child's classroom team. Those are the primary ways that updates and information will be shared with you during the coming days and weeks.

We are all very excited to welcome our students back and have high hopes for a healthy, happy and productive school year ahead!

*We continue to research and purchase supplies of PPE (masks, gloves, gowns,face shields, thermometers, etc.) and cleaning materials, particularly disinfecting wipes and hand sanitizers, so that we can stockpile and maintain adequate supplies of these products at all our sites throughout the coming months. If you know of resources that we can investigate to obtain these items, please contact Kari VanDenburgh, our Director of Nursing Services, at "kvandenburgh@wildwoodprograms.org", and/ or Mark Normandin, our Strategic Director of Facilities, at "mnormandin@wildwoodprograms.org". Thanks for your help!

*Despite the recent implementation of an immediate 20% cut on all state-funded contracts, and last week's announcement of the suspension of awards under Wildwood's Family Reimbursement Grant, our Family Support Services Team is committed to helping as many families as possible during these difficult times, and has done an incredible job repurposing existing resources in order to schedule a Reimbursement Committee meeting in October. At that time, the Committee will review all pending applications for assistance. It will also accept new applications until Friday, September 25th at 4:00 p.m.

*The federal government is still unable to agree on providing COVID-related financial relief to state and local governments, and as a result, NYS has begun to implement VERY SIGNIFICANT budget actions that will have profound, negative and fairly immediate impacts on providers like Wildwood, and on the services and supports available to your loved ones.

***PLEASE CONTINUE TO ADVOCATE AS STRONGLY AS YOU CAN, at both the state and federal levels, for additional funding to address the very significant negative financial impacts that Wildwood and other providers in NYS will sustain in the coming weeks and months if our state does not receive federal relief funding to close its huge budget gap. Our entire field will be decimated by all of these funding reductions, especially in light of the significant revenue losses that have already occurred due to prolonged program closures and unexpected, unbudgeted, unreimbursed COVID-19 expenses. Some agencies will be unable to survive, and the planned cuts will result in an extensive loss of programs, supports and services for our loved ones with developmental and intellectual disabilities.

Currently, all of the different family advocacy groups and statewide provider associations are working on a universal advocacy message that we can all use in our individual efforts, so that our legislators and the state's policy and decision-makers are all hearing the same thing over and over. That strategy has proven to be the most effective in past efforts. I am hoping that I will have a sample message to share shortly. We deeply appreciate your help.

*All other programs, supports and services at Wildwood remain stable and operational, as has been reported in previous weekly updates.

*As we continue to negotiate the profound fiscal challenges of COVID-19, we welcome your active support of the Wildwood Foundation. Every donation that the Foundation receives goes directly to the programs, supports and services that Wildwood offers to the people and families at the heart of our mission. Thank you in advance for helping to strengthen Wildwood's future!

*Keep checking for valuable information, updated frequently, on our website for families:

https://sites.google.com/wildwoodprograms.org/family-resources/home!

With deepest appreciation for your partnership, advocacy, understanding, patience and support,

Mary Ann

Dear Wildwood Families:

This past week brought another flurry of new guidance, program changes and reductions in funding from the Governor's Office, the Division of the Budget (DOB), the Department of Health (DOH) and the Office for People with Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD). Many of the changes/ funding reductions are the result of the federal government's continuing inability to reach agreement on COVID-relief funding for states and local governments; NYS's dire financial condition due to COVID-19; and the State's resulting refusal/inability to provide necessary financial support to nonprofit providers in our field, as we continue to sustain significant losses due to ongoing program closures/ capacity reductions, and increased health and safety expenses. Wildwood and other nonprofit providers like us in New York are clearly caught in the cross-fires of a fierce and very partisan political battle, and all signs are that it will get much worse before it gets better.

Despite all of this, however, I am constantly humbled by the positive attitudes of our program leaders and their teams, as they continue to bring order to chaos, and focus on providing the best possible supports and services to your loved ones and families. Their creativity, flexibility and commitment are amazing gifts to all of us.

Here are the past week's important highlights:

*Earlier today, The Wildwood Programs and Wildwood Foundation Boards of Directors announced the selection of Lou Deepe to serve as Wildwood's next Chief Executive Officer/ Executive Director, beginning on January 1, 2021. Lou is well known to the Wildwood Family, and has served our agency in various capacities for the past 12 years, including as Chief Operating Officer since 2016. He has spent more than 25 years (his entire career) working with people with developmental and intellectual disabilities, first as a Direct Support Professional and then in various leadership capacities. Lou holds a Bachelor's Degree in Psychology from Plattsburgh State University, and a Master's Degree in Nonprofit Management from Northeastern University, with a concentration in Leadership. His appointment, after an extensive search, positions Wildwood well to preserve and strengthen its reputation as an innovative, person-centered service provider and leader in our field for many years to come. Please join me in congratulating Lou, and welcoming him into his new position in the months ahead.

*Again this week, there were no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in any of our residences or among our regular staff.

*All regular staff continue to receive their full compensation and available benefits, including health care.

*Our residential teams continue to help those who receive residential supports from Wildwood return to a "more normal" community life. Family home visits; the return of people who have been at home with their families during the pandemic; the provision of safe, appropriate, socially distanced community outings for everyone and the delivery of meaningful day supports and activities all continue to go well.

However, recently announced funding cuts, detailed below, are expected to have a significant impact on many of our residential programs, and it will be a real challenge to maintain the quality of our residential supports and the stability of our staff, as these cuts take effect. Watch for more specific information from Wildwood's agency and residential leadership teams in the next several days and weeks--we will definitely need your advocacy voices and partnership to help us weather the coming storms.

* Wildwood's Day Services and Transportation Teams have done an outstanding job facilitating the return to in-person site-based services at our three day habilitation locations (New Karner in Colonie, Riverside in Halfmoon, and Pinecrest in East Greenbush), and implementing the extensive safety measures that are essential to keep everyone safe. As a result, the return to in-person day services has gone well for the people we support. However, compliance with reduced capacity limitations and enhanced safety protocols has required splitting the day into two separate service blocks to accommodate all program participants, and that has quickly stretched our direct support and transportation staff beyond acceptable limits, especially as we deal with ongoing staff vacancies and a chronic shortage of qualified applicants for direct support and transportation positions. We are not alone in facing these stresses--our sister agencies report similar concerns.

This past week, OPWDD announced that it was redefining the duration of a full day of day supports to two hours instead of four hours, to relieve both the financial stress and staff burnout involved in attempting to deliver services as they existed prior to the COVID pandemic, while still observing all of the capacity limitations and social distancing requirements that now exist for both transportation and on-site attendance at day services.

While this change has the effect of shortening the program day for many people who receive services from Wildwood, there truly is no other viable choice right now, if agencies are to survive, retain their staff, and continue to deliver in-person services to your loved ones over the coming months until a vaccine or some other development allows more people to be safely supported in the same place at one time.

The individuals who attend Wildwood's Without Walls (WOW) day services have also returned to in-person programming in smaller groups of two people at a time. Again, the fiscal constraints and staffing challenges posed by serving the same number of people as before COVID, but in smaller groups, are very significant, and we are not receiving any additional financial support from the State to do so. However, we will continue to explore and implement whatever efficiencies we can to maintain the integrity and quality of WOW services for your loved ones as much as possible in this very changed environment.

Please know that the Wildwood Day Services Team is making every effort to provide as much service to your family members as our current staffing and financial resources permit. Plans have been developed that will offer most program participants two and a half or three hours of in-person support each day. Virtual day services are also being expanded, as an additional supplement to in-person services, as well as for those who have chosen not to return to in-person services at this time.We deeply appreciate your patience, understanding and partnership as we continue to navigate these uncharted and very stormy waters.

*Wildwood School continues to plan for the return to in-person educational services beginning September 9th. Staff training begins tomorrow, September 1st, and extensive work has been done within our School buildings to prepare for all of the social distancing and health and safety protocols that will be implemented.

As I am sure you have seen on the news in recent days, conditions can change rapidly in school environments, and it may therefore become necessary in the future to flex our service delivery model quickly. Please check the Wildwood School website, www.wildwoodschoolsite.com often, and watch for emails and phone calls from your child's classroom team. Those are the primary ways that updates and information will be shared with you during the coming days and weeks.

The School staff is very excited to welcome your children back next week, and the team has worked really hard to enable that to happen in a very positive and safe manner. We all have our fingers and toes crossed for a healthy, happy and productive school year ahead!

*We continue to research and purchase supplies of PPE (masks, gloves, gowns,face shields, thermometers, etc.) and cleaning materials, particularly disinfecting wipes and hand sanitizers, so that we can stockpile and maintain adequate supplies of these products at all our sites throughout the coming months. If you know of resources that we can investigate to obtain these items, please contact Kari VanDenburgh, our Director of Nursing Services, at "kvandenburgh@wildwoodprograms.org", and/ or Mark Normandin, our Strategic Director of Facilities, at "mnormandin@wildwoodprograms.org". Thanks for your help!

*The federal government is still unable to agree on providing COVID-related financial relief to state and local governments, and as a result, NYS has begun to implement VERY SIGNIFICANT budget actions that will have profound, negative and fairly immediate impacts on providers like Wildwood, and on the services and supports available to your loved ones.

Late last week, the Governor's Office and DOB announced that effective immediately, NYS will withhold 20% of local aid payments under existing state-funded contracts, to help address its projected $14.5 billion deficit in the current fiscal year.

For Wildwood, these 20% cuts will impact our residential programs in the form of reduced clothing allowances, and smaller ISS housing subsidies and room and board allowances. Our family support services will also be impacted, and we have already been forced to cancel the third-quarter distribution of awards under our Family Reimbursement Grant. In fact, no further applications for reimbursement under that grant can be considered until further notice.

Families who have self-direction budgets can expect to see a 20% reduction in the funding available for fiscal intermediary services, which in turn will place much more of the administrative and documentation requirements of self-direction on those families. Crisis intervention services pursuant to NY Start will also be reduced, as will reimbursements for environmental modifications and support for some people receiving vocational services from ACCESS-VR (those not yet also receiving supported employment services through OPWDD).

We continue to gather as much concrete and specific information as we can about these cuts, and are working hard to define their full impact on Wildwood's programs and services as clearly and quickly as possible so that we can mitigate these reductions in every way possible. We will share further details about our plans as soon as we can, but we are already being told that we should prepare for these changes to potentially become permanent.

***PLEASE CONTINUE TO ADVOCATE AS STRONGLY AS YOU CAN, at both the state and federal levels, for additional funding to address the very significant negative financial impacts that Wildwood and other providers in NYS will sustain in the coming weeks and months if our state does not receive federal relief funding to close its huge budget gap. I am sure many of you have seen the television coverage and newspaper articles that have appeared recently on local news stations and in the Schenectady Gazette and Albany Times Union, detailing significant staff layoffs at sister agencies, as well as cancellations of significant state contracts providing employment for people with disabilities. Similar stories are being told by media venues across the state. They demonstrate quite clearly that our entire field will be decimated by all of these funding reductions, especially in light of the significant revenue losses that have already occurred due to prolonged program closures and unexpected, unbudgeted, unreimbursed COVID-19 expenses. Some agencies will be simply unable to survive, and the planned cuts will absolutely result in an extensive loss of programs, supports and services for our loved ones with developmental and intellectual disabilities.

If you need help constructing advocacy messages or locating your representatives' contact information, please reach out to me. My contact information is "mallen @wildwoodprograms.org" or (518)836-2310. We deeply appreciate your help.

*All other programs, supports and services at Wildwood remain stable and operational, as has been reported in previous weekly updates.

*As we continue to negotiate the profound fiscal challenges of COVID-19, we welcome your active support of the Wildwood Foundation. Every donation that the Foundation receives goes directly to the programs, supports and services that Wildwood offers to the people and families at the heart of our mission. Thank you in advance for helping to strengthen Wildwood's future!

*Keep checking for valuable information, updated frequently, on our website for families:

https://sites.google.com/wildwoodprograms.org/family-resources/home!

With deepest appreciation for your partnership, advocacy, understanding, patience and support,

Mary Ann

Dear Wildwood Families:

Time continues to pass at warp speed as we work hard to resume in person services to your loved ones and families! There is new guidance to process and new procedural changes to implement almost every day at this point. Despite all of the chaos however, Wildwood remains stable, and our staff continues to find flexible, creative ways to move forward in meeting people's needs.

Here are this past week's important highlights:

*Again this week, there were no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in any of our residences or among our regular staff.

*Our residential staff continue to help those who receive residential supports from Wildwood return to a "more normal" community life. Family home visits; the return of people who have been at home with their families during NY on Pause to their "residential families"; safe, appropriate, socially distanced community outings for everyone and the delivery of meaningful day supports and activities all continue to go well.

* The expanded return to in-person site-based services at our three day habilitation locations (New Karner in Colonie, Riverside in Halfmoon, and Pinecrest in East Greenbush) that began on August 17th has gone well so far, and program participants seem very happy to be back together with peers and familiar staff. At this point, everyone is healthy, and both the people we support and our staff have been very tolerant and accepting of the different programmatic approaches that we have had to implement because of social distancing and other health-related restrictions.

The individuals who attend Wildwood's Without Walls day services have also returned to in-person programming in smaller groups of two people at a time, and that is also going well. At the same time, virtual services continue for all participants/ families who are not comfortable returning to site-based day programs or WoW activities at this time.

*Wildwood School continues to plan for its return to in-person educational services beginning September 9th. The School is on break this week, having concluded its summer extension program last week.

Based on feedback, questions and concerns received during a number of recent parent and staff forums, the WWS Leadership Team has finalized a detailed operational plan for the school's reopening, as well as a "Frequently Asked Questions" document, that have now been posted on the School's website,

www.wildwoodschoolsite.com. Please check this website often, and watch for emails and phone calls from your child's classroom team. Those are the primary ways that updates and information will be shared with you during the coming days and weeks.

The School staff is very excited to welcome your children back this fall, and the team has worked really hard to enable that to happen in a very positive and safe manner.

*Under the leadership of Wildwood's Recreation Department, a GAP (school break) program began this past Tuesday for 6 students and families who participate in Wildwood's respite recreation services. The GAP program will offer these students and families several hours of respite services a day through a combination of site-based activities at Camp Wildwood, and community-based activities at a number of state parks, lakes and other locations. The GAP days have been carefully planned to provide safe, socially-distanced and fun activities for the students and a much needed break in caregiving for their families. The participating students are all very excited to finally get out of their houses, away from their computers/ "distance learning", and see their friends and favorite staff!

The Recreation Department is also making plans to resume in-person activities this fall (October, November and December) to the greatest extent possible in accordance with current restrictions and regulations. The activities will take place in small groups so everyone can stay safe and observe necessary social distancing protocols. Watch for more information coming soon!!

*Wildwood's Adult Education Program is offering a full schedule of fall courses, and registration is now open. All classes will be on-line (remote) and interactive. Course offerings include accessing community resources, anger management, high school equivalency preparation, money management, reading, writing, communication and speaking, cooking, pet care, peer support, theater arts, a book club, dealing with grief and loss, dealing with uncertainty and change, computer skills and more.

*We continue to research and seek out suppliers of PPE (masks, gloves, gowns,face shields, thermometers, etc.) and cleaning materials, particularly disinfecting wipes and hand sanitizers, so that we can stockpile and maintain adequate supplies of these products at all our sites throughout the coming months. If you know of resources that we can investigate to obtain these items, please contact Kari VanDenburgh, our Director of Nursing Services, at "kvandenburgh@wildwoodprograms.org", and/ or Mark Normandin, our Strategic Director of Facilities, at "mnormandin@wildwoodprograms.org". Thanks for your help!

*The federal government continues to balk at providing COVID-related financial relief to state and local governments, and NYS has begun to implement budget actions that will have profound, negative and fairly immediate impacts on providers like Wildwood, and on the services and supports available to your loved ones. Late last week, The Governor's Office and the Division of the Budget announced that effective immediately, NYS will withhold 20% of local aid payments under existing state-funded contracts, to help it address its projected $14.5 billion deficit in the current fiscal year. For our field, that appears to mean an immediate 20% cut in areas such as family support services, clothing allowances, ISS housing subsidies, self-direction budgets, room and board, NY START services, environmental modification payments and supports for some people receiving vocational services from ACCESS-VR (those not yet also receiving SEMP (supported employment) services through OPWDD). The 20% reduction may also impact the tuition payments that Wildwood School receives from local school districts. We are attempting to gain as much concrete and specific information as we can about these cuts, and will share further details as we receive them, but we are already being told that we should plan for them to potentially become permanent. They are in addition to a targeted funding reduction in our certified residential programs that is slated to be implemented on October 1, 2020, which could take away more than $600,000 in residential funding from Wildwood alone.

***PLEASE CONTINUE TO ADVOCATE AS STRONGLY AS YOU CAN, at both the state and federal levels, for additional funding to address the very significant negative financial impacts that Wildwood and other providers in NYS will sustain in the coming weeks and months if our state does not receive federal relief funding to close its huge budget gap. Our entire field will be decimated by the above-referenced funding cuts, given the significant revenue losses from program closures and unexpected COVID-19 expenses that have already occurred. Some agencies will be simply unable to survive, and the planned cuts will absolutely result in an extensive loss of programs, supports and services for our loved ones with developmental and intellectual disabilities.

If you need help constructing your messages or locating your representatives' contact information, please reach out to me. My contact information is "mallen @wildwoodprograms.org" or (518)836-2310. We deeply appreciate your help.

*All other programs, supports and services at Wildwood continue to function well, in much the same manner as has been reported in previous weekly updates. All regular staff continue to receive their full compensation and available benefits, including health care.

*As we continue to negotiate the profound fiscal challenges of COVID-19, we welcome your active support of the Wildwood Foundation. Every donation that the Foundation receives goes directly to the programs, supports and services that Wildwood offers to the people and families at the heart of our mission. Thank you in advance for helping to strengthen Wildwood's future!

*Keep checking for valuable information, updated frequently, on our website for families:

https://sites.google.com/wildwoodprograms.org/family-resources/home!

With deepest appreciation for your help, understanding, patience and support,

Mary Ann

Dear Wildwood Families:

Yet another week has flown by with lots of new developments and an incredible amount of hard work on the part of everyone at Wildwood. I truly don't know what we would do without such dedicated and committed staff at all levels of the organization. Their "can do" attitudes and creativity have helped us to quickly and safely prepare for increased in-person services to your loved ones and your families over the next few weeks.

Here are this week's important highlights:

*Again this week, there were no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in any of our residences or among our regular staff.

*Our residential staff continue to facilitate a "more normal" community life for the people who live in Wildwood's certified residences. Family home visits; the return of people who have been at home with their families during NY on Pause to their "residential families"; and safe, appropriate, socially distanced community outings for everyone all continue to go well. Residential Direct Support Professionals (DSPs) have also continued to provide meaningful day supports and activities for the men and women living in Wildwood's residences. And last but not least, because life DOES go on, even in the face of COVID-19, several of our residences have been very involved over the last couple of weeks in supporting people experiencing cancer treatments, surgical procedures and unexpected hospitalizations unrelated to COVID-19. We can't thank our residential teams enough for their overwhelming commitment to our loved ones, and to our mission.

* Approximately 65 people (out of a possible 89) are planning to return to in-person site-based services at our three day habilitation locations (New Karner in Colonie, Riverside in Halfmoon, and Pinecrest in East Greenbush) on Monday, August 17th. A "soft", limited opening of Wildwood's day habilitation sites during the week of August 3rd progressed safely and well, and we are hopeful that the expansion of site-based day services this coming week to include people living in Wildwood's residences will follow the same path.

As we continue the reopening of our site-based day supports, the safety and well being of your family members and our staff are our top priorities. We will therefore be using a "split schedule" that will allow Wildwood to provide typical levels of service, while maintaining capacity limits within each site. Transportation details necessary for this to happen are continuously being reconfigured to abide by all applicable rules and regulations. It should also be noted that because of social distancing and other health-related restrictions that remain in place as the COVID-19 pandemic continues, community outings through our site-based day services programs will not occur, at least for the next several weeks. We ask for your understanding, patience and tempered expectations with these changes, as we do our best to both resume in person programming and simultaneously keep everyone healthy.

A large percentage of the 77 people who participate in Without Walls day services have also returned to in-person programming. This has required the WoW staff to shift to smaller groups of two people at a time, and also to implement health checks, masks and social distancing, in order to support safe and appropriate WoW activities as much as possible.

Finally, for all participants/ families who are not comfortable returning to site-based day programs or WoW activities at this time, the Day Services staff will continue to provide virtual (on-line) services.

The Day Services Managers and the Day Supports Leadership Team will continue to keep you closely advised of all relevant programmatic updates and changes. As always, we are profoundly grateful to our day services teams for their dedication and commitment to your loved ones and families.

*Wildwood School is making plans to return to in-person educational services beginning September 9th, pursuant to Governor Cuomo's recent announcement that New York's schools can reopen in September. This past week, our School Leadership Team held an all staff forum, several parent forums and a meeting with teachers to provide an overview of the School's reopening plan that was recently filed with both the NYS Education Department (SED) and the NYS Department of Health (DOH). That plan has also been posted on the WWS website.

Based on feedback, questions and concerns received during this week's forums, the WWS Leadership Team is now finalizing a detailed operational plan for the school's reopening, as well as a "Frequently Asked Questions" document, that it expects to share with parents within the next couple of weeks (hopefully by August 21st). The School staff is very excited to welcome your children back this fall, and the team has worked really hard to enable that to happen in a very positive and safe manner.

Please check the WWS website frequently, and watch for emails and phone calls from your child's classroom team-- those are the primary ways that information will be shared with you as plans are finalized for the School's opening on September 9th, as well as with respect to any scheduling changes or adjustments that may become necessary in the future because of COVID-19.

*As we move forward with all of these in person activities, we continue to research and seek out suppliers of PPE (masks, gloves, gowns,face shields, thermometers, etc.) and cleaning materials, particularly disinfecting wipes and hand sanitizers, so that we can stockpile and maintain adequate supplies of these products at all our sites throughout the coming months. We continue to hear that as schools and programs across the country reopen, and as infections and hospitalizations continue to climb in other areas of the country, demand for these items will exponentially increase, and we should anticipate difficulty obtaining them at reasonable prices. . If you have any ideas regarding resources that we can investigate to obtain and stockpile these items, please contact Kari VanDenburgh, our Director of Nursing Services, at "kvandenburgh@wildwoodprograms.org", and/ or Mark Normandin, our Strategic Director of Facilities, at "mnormandin@wildwoodprograms.org". Thanks for your help!

* Sound financial planning and conservative budgeting over the last several years have enabled Wildwood to withstand the significant financial challenges of these past several months,and to exhibit solid fiscal stability at this time. In recent weeks, the reopening of programs and services has created a more regular income stream for the agency, and Wildwood's receipt of COVID relief funding through the Federal Cares Act Provider Relief Fund to help cover unreimbursed COVID-related expenses has further stabilized Wildwood's financial condition. All regular employees continue to receive their full compensation and available benefits, including health care. Over the past couple of months, we have also been able to distribute small bonuses to our direct support staff for their incredibly hard work during the COVID-19 pandemic, and to DSPs completing the Conover Scholar Program and/or successfully meeting the requirements of a "DSP Plus" under our recently launched DSP Career Path program. A recent increase in our school rate through SED allowed for salary increases and bonuses in that program as well. We also continue to support staff in pursuing continued learning through our tuition reimbursement program. And finally, our CFO, Nelson VanDenburgh, informed all staff this week that the "employer contribution" to Wildwood's 403(b) retirement plan will be deposited in individual employees' accounts during the week of September 25th. This year that employer contribution will exceed $1.3 million.

Many service providers in our field are in extremely precarious financial condition at this point, and we are incredibly grateful to our Business Office, program leadership teams, governing Board, Foundation Team and Board, and our wonderful banking, investment and community partners for helping us to safeguard Wildwood's fiscal health to the greatest extent possible in the face of extremely challenging economic conditions.

*Despite this positive news, however, we all need to continue our advocacy efforts, at both the state and federal levels, for additional funding to address the very significant negative financial impacts that Wildwood and other providers in NYS will sustain in the coming weeks and months if our state does not receive federal relief funding to close its more than $14 billion budget gap. Governor Cuomo has made it very clear that without federal funding, NYS will impose huge cuts on our supports and services, beginning with a targeted funding reduction to our certified residential programs that is slated to be implemented on October 1, 2020, which could take away more than $600,000 in residential funding from Wildwood alone. Our entire field will be decimated if ANY funding cuts occur at this point, given the significant revenue losses from program closures and unexpected COVID-19 expenses that have already occurred. There is general consensus in the field that cuts of the magnitude being discussed by Governor Cuomo will absolutely result in an extensive loss of programs, supports and services for our loved ones with developmental and intellectual disabilities

*PLEASE continue to advocate as strongly as you can with both your state and federal representatives for COVID relief funding targeted specifically to the nonprofit providers in NYS and our field, and preferably accessible directly by those providers, so the funding can't be diverted by NYS for other purposes. If you need help constructing your messages or locating your representatives' contact information, please reach out to me. My contact information is "mallen @wildwoodprograms.org" or (518)836-2310. We deeply appreciate your help.

*All other programs, supports and services at Wildwood continue to function well, with stability and creativity, in much the same manner as has been reported in previous weekly updates.

*Wildwood's United Self Advocacy Committee, consisting of people who receive support from our agency, continues to send out weekly uplifting advocacy messages to keep everyone's spirits high. We hope you are enjoying and benefiting from their words of wisdom.

*As we continue to negotiate the profound fiscal challenges of COVID-19, we welcome your active support of the Wildwood Foundation. Every donation that the Foundation receives goes directly to the programs, supports and services that Wildwood offers to the people and families at the heart of our mission. Thank you in advance for helping to strengthen Wildwood's future!

*Keep checking for valuable information, updated frequently, on our website for families:

https://sites.google.com/wildwoodprograms.org/family-resources/home!

With deepest appreciation for your help, understanding, patience and support,

Mary Ann

Dear Wildwood Families:

Last week we welcomed August, and this week, our thoughts are already totally focused on fall and all of the challenges that lie ahead. Time is flying by with dizzying speed, while the rules and guidance with which we must comply are changing daily. I am so very grateful for our amazing staff and their "can do" attitudes and creativity, as we navigate constantly changing directives/ information/ "guidance" from New York State (NYS, a/k/a Governor Cuomo), the State Education Department (SED), the Office for People with Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD), the Department of Health (DOH) and the Division of the Budget (DOB)!

In the end, we have been largely left to "figure it out ourselves", with little practical help from any of our oversight authorities, as we attempt to increase in-person supports and services for your loved ones and your families, in the face of the ongoing COVID 19 pandemic . We deeply appreciate your understanding, patience and partnership with us as we craft a "new normal". We truly need your thoughts and input to help us make the right decisions, so please be in touch with your program staff, program leadership, and/or the Executive Management Team with your ideas and concerns!

Here are the past week's important highlights:

*Again this week, there were no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in any of our residences or among our regular staff.

*Our residential staff continue to support the people who live in Wildwood's certified residences in every possible way, as they rejoin community life. Family home visits; the return of people who have been at home with their families during NY on Pause to their "residential families"; and safe, appropriate, socially distanced community outings for everyone are all going well. Residential Direct Support Professionals (DSPs) have also assumed full responsibility for providing meaningful day supports and activities to the men and women living in Wildwood's certified residential settings this past week (previously Wildwood had re-deployed day services DSPs to help with this work, but those day services DSPs have now been pulled back to appropriately staff the reopening of in-person site-based day supports.) Despite having to quickly learn a whole new procedure for documenting day supports in accordance with individual Life Plans and goals, and an accompanying whole new billing protocol, our residential DSPs have been nothing short of incredible in rising to the challenge. We can't thank them enough for their overwhelming commitment to our loved ones, and to our mission.

* In-person services at our three day habilitation sites at New Karner in Colonie, Riverside in Halfmoon, and Pinecrest in East Greenbush, resumed on Monday, August 3rd, and all things considered, things have gone really well so far. Site-based day supports began first for people who have been home with their families for these past many months, without a lot of in-person staff support. It has been incredibly heartwarming and rewarding for all of us to watch your loved ones reconnect with friends and staff from whom they have been separated for many months. The collective "joie de vivre" that everyone is feeling, even with significantly limited community options, is inspiring all of us.

If all continues to go well this next week, on Monday, August 17th, we will begin to offer site-based day supports to the people living in our residences, through the use of a "split schedule" that will allow Wildwood to provide typical levels of service, while maintaining capacity limits within each site. Transportation details necessary for this to happen are currently being created/ reconfigured. We are hopeful that we can accomodate most participants in returning to their typical levels of participation/ service over the next couple of weeks, barring unexpected concerns regarding our region's COVID 19 infection rate. We encourage you to be in touch with your Day Services Managers and the Day Supports Leadership Team for further information, to the extent that you have not already received relevant programmatic updates.

It's also important to note that the Day Services staff continues to provide in-person supports, in small groups in the community, for people who live with their families, and virtually (on-line) for all interested participants. Those services will continue for all participants/ families who are not comfortable returning to site-based services at this time.

Finally, Without Walls (WoW) day services have shifted protocols to serve two people at a time, including health checks, masks and social distancing, in order to support safe and appropriate community-based activities as much as possible. Several of Wildwood's bus drivers have begun to provide direct support to your loved ones in the WoW program, in order for this to happen.

We appreciate everyone's patience, understanding and tempered expectations as we move forward. It will take us quite a while to return to "life as we knew it before COVID-19", if that is even possible. But each and every day, we see our entire Day Services Team rising to new heights of creativity and innovation to meet every new challenge. We would have nothing to offer you without them, and we can't thank them enough for their selfless service to our loved ones.

*Governor Cuomo announced on Friday that New York's schools could reopen in September. As with everything else associated with the COVID-19 crisis, this simple pronouncement poses incredible complexities for Wildwood. At this point, we have no idea how many students from the 60+ school districts we serve will be allowed by those districts to return to WWS; how many parents will commit to returning their children to in-person educational services; how many of our staff will return (many are young parents uncomfortable with returning their own children to in-person educational programming, so they may resign); what our ability is to secure an ongoing and sufficient supply of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and cleaning supplies, both of which continue to be in huge demand in our field; how we will manage the social distancing and masking requirements for students that we know don't work well for the children we serve; and a whole host of other worries. A number of interactive forums have been scheduled by the WWS Leadership Team over the next several days for staff and parents. PLEASE PARTICIPATE, so we can make the right decisions to meet your families' needs!!

*As we move forward with these potential re-openings, maintaining adequate supplies of PPE (masks, gloves, gowns,face shields, thermometers, etc.) and cleaning materials, particularly disinfecting wipes and hand sanitizers, will be an ongoing challenge for Wildwood. We have been warned by our statewide provider associations that as schools and programs across the country reopen, demand for these items will exponentially increase, and we should anticipate difficulty obtaining them at reasonable prices. We have not been reimbursed by OPWDD, SED, NYS, DOH or any other entity for any of the significant costs we have already incurred in this area. So if you know of any resources that we can investigate to obtain and stockpile these items, please contact Kari VanDenburg, our Director of Nursing Services, at "kvandenburg@wildwoodprograms.org", and/ or Mark Normandin, our Strategic Director of Facilities, at "mnormandin@wildwoodprograms.org". Any and all ideas and/or support you can offer is greatly appreciated.

*All regular employees continue to receive their full compensation and available benefits, including health care.

* I am really happy to report that this past week, due to the incredible diligence of Wildwood's Chief Financial Officer, Nelson VanDenburgh, and his dedicated Business Office staff,Wildwood received over $700,000 in COVID relief funding through the Federal Cares Act Provider Relief Fund. This will be of huge assistance to Wildwood in the coming weeks, as we do our very best to retain and compensate our dedicated staff, and especially our amazing DSPs. Without them, we cannot address the needs of your loved ones and families.

*Despite this wonderful news, we all need to continue our advocacy efforts, at both the state and federal levels, for additional funding to address the very significant negative financial impacts that Wildwood and other providers in NYS have sustained as the result of the closure of so many of our programs for a period of several months. The health and safety of the people we support, their families and our staff will always be our highest priorities, and so we must move slowly and carefully in our reopening activities. We anticipate that it will take several weeks at best, before we return to anything close to full billing capacity, and therefore we will continue to have ongoing revenue gaps for the foreseeable future, in addition to the significant fiscal losses Wildwood has already incurred from the COVID-19 crisis. We cannot sustain these ongoing losses indefinitely, without additional help from our public funding sources--federal Medicaid and NYS.

We are not alone--every other nonprofit provider of services for children and adults with developmental and intellectual disabilities in our state is in the same boat. Our entire field will be decimated without additional federal and state relief.

*PLEASE continue to advocate as strongly as you can with both your state and federal representatives for COVID relief funding targeted specifically to the nonprofit providers in NYS and our field, and preferably accessible directly by those providers, so the funding can't be diverted by NYS for other purposes. If you need help constructing your messages or locating your representatives' contact information, please reach out to me. My contact information is "mallen @wildwoodprograms.org" or (518)836-2310. We deeply appreciate your help.

*We continue to progress to a more regular staffing pattern in our Latham offices and the Wildwood School building on Curry Road Extension, in accordance with all applicable safety guidelines and protocols. Staff members at all sites are monitored on a daily basis in accordance with the Governor's directives and CDC guidance. We are also continuing to monitor and enforce the Governor's recent Travel Advisory and mandatory quarantine requirements for people returning from states with high levels of COVID 19 infections.

*The school backpack program remains very active at this time, with staff regularly collecting, packing and delivering food to school families in need. We are very grateful to our school staff for the energy and time they are giving to make sure that our school students and families have the food they need to stay healthy.

*Our residential and community habilitation staff continue to provide regular and consistent support to people living on their own or in supportive apartments.

*Our employment services staff continue to actively support many individuals who have worked throughout the pandemic, are now returning to work and/or are seeking new employment as a result of job losses or reduced hours during the crisis.

*Our recreation/respite staff continues to work with individuals, and to travel to different residences to help out with meaningful arts, crafts and outdoor gardening/ planting activities. They are also supporting individual volunteer activities, as appropriate and safe, for people living at home with their families.

*Wildwood's Adult Education program's fall semester classes will occur virtually.

*Wildwood's United Self Advocacy Committee, consisting of people who receive support from our agency, continues to send out weekly uplifting advocacy messages to keep everyone's spirits high. Please share your feedback!

*As we continue to negotiate the profound fiscal challenges of COVID-19, we welcome your active support of the Wildwood Foundation. Every donation that the Foundation receives goes directly to the programs, supports and services that Wildwood offers to the people and families at the heart of our mission. Thank you in advance for helping to strengthen Wildwood's future!

*Keep checking for valuable information, updated frequently, on our website for families:

https://sites.google.com/wildwoodprograms.org/family-resources/home!

With deepest appreciation for your help, understanding, patience and support,

Mary Ann

Dear Wildwood Families:

We have been quite busy this week, as staff teams throughout the agency work on plans to safely, carefully and gradually reopen programs, and return life to a better sense of normalcy for your loved ones and families!! Here are this week's important highlights:

*In our certified residential programs, we continue to support home visits to families and other safe places, and also the return to our residences of people who have been staying at home with their families during the COVID shut-down. Our staff have done a great job acclimating to and enforcing all of the new policies and procedures, and these visits and returns to residences have been progressing smoothly and well. It is truly wonderful to watch your families reconnecting with your loved ones, and the people we support reuniting with their "house families", after far too long being apart. We are very grateful for your compliance with all of the guidelines that we must now follow to support these activities.

* Following the recent issuance of guidance from OPWDD allowing the reopening of day programs after July 15th, our Day Services Team has been hard at work developing plans for a gradual return to in-person supports at our various day hab sites. The Team is tentatively planning to reopen Wildwood's site-based facilities on August 3rd with limited capacity, followed by increased services to others, as soon as possible and feasible thereafter. As this gradual reopening of day hab sites occurs, changes to the times day hab is offered to your loved ones will be necessary so that we can plan for smaller groups of people throughout each day and be totally compliant with CDC guidance. The Day Services Team is also hard at work training staff and putting into place systems that will keep program spaces sanitary, minimize contact between participants, and develop meaningful activities that can be done with safe social distancing and VERY limited community options.

While this preparation occurs, the Day Services staff continues to provide alternate supports, including services in their homes for people who live in Wildwood residences; in small groups in the community for people who live with their families; and virtually (on-line) for all interested participants. Without Walls (WoW) continues to provide in- person services with smaller groups for safe social distancing.

The entire Day Services staff is acutely aware of how anxious everyone is to return to programs, and is very excited to welcome everyone back as soon as it can safely do so. The Team deeply appreciates the messages of encouragement it has received, and asks that families watch for specific messages from their Day Program Managers about when it will be possible for your loved ones to return.

*Our School Leadership Team has been hard at work developing plans for the potential reopening of Wildwood School in September, in accordance with the voluminous guidelines recently issued by the NYS Department of Health (DOH), the NYS Education Department (SED), and the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Like other schools throughout the state, Wildwood School is under a mandate to submit proposed plans for providing educational services in the fall under three scenarios: 1) in-person; 2) distance learning; and 3) a hybrid model combining in-person and distance learning. Wildwood School will submit its proposed plans to SED by July 31, 2020 (next Friday), and will also post them on the School website at that time. Governor Cuomo has indicated that NYS will make a final decision during the first week of August regarding the reopening of NY's schools in September, and once we have received his decision, School staff will be in contact with families to develop clear and specific operational plans for moving forward. In the meantime, Wildwood School's summer extension program is continuing, primarily through distance learning, but with some opportunities for in-person outdoor social engagement activities with school staff, as appropriate.

*We all need to be mindful that all of this new guidance is only in place for areas of the state that have achieved Phase 4 status. Reduced restrictions and in-person supports are subject to immediate revocation if the COVID infections in our area begin to spike again. As you have undoubtedly seen in recent days, the number of infections in our area is trending upwards again, which is very concerning. Please help reverse this trend by wearing masks, washing your hands often, avoiding large groups, and keeping at least 6 feet away from each other whenever possible. We also invite you to partner with us in teaching and reinforcing these skills with your loved ones who participate in our programs and services, as much as possible.

*Once again this week, there were no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in any of our residences or among our regular staff.

*All regular employees continue to receive their full compensation and available benefits, including health care. However,OPWDD's abrupt termination of the retainer day billing program as of July 21, 2020 is creating and will continue to cause a significant revenue gap for Wildwood each month going forward (in addition to the significant fiscal losses Wildwood has already sustained from the closure of many programs back in March). Without some kind of relief, these ongoing revenue losses, currently approaching $500,000, will make it incredibly challenging for us to continue to fully compensate our staff over the next several weeks, as we look to gradually and safely reopen in-person day supports and services. However, without our staff, we can't deliver those necessary day supports and services!

Because it has over 500 employees and more than $15 million in annual revenue, Wildwood was not able to access the Payroll Protection Program, and to date we have not received any other federal or state COVID relief funding. That means we've been totally on our own purchasing personal protective equipment (PPE), cleaning materials, thermometers, signage, air purifiers, and other COVID-related equipment, since the beginning of the crisis. No additional resources have been made available by either OPWDD or SED to cover these unbudgeted, unfunded mandates/ expenses, which for Wildwood alone, easily approach $100,000 at this point.

We are not alone--every other nonprofit provider of services for children and adults with developmental and intellectual disabilities in our state is in the same boat. Rest assured that we are working closely with our Foundation, our banking and investment management partners, and our many committed community supporters to proactively manage the situation and plan for a positive future. However, without governmental support and assistance, the strong possibility exists of a dangerous downward spiral both for Wildwood and for our entire field, that cannot help but negatively impact the availability of programs and services for our loved ones.

We would therefore ask you to advocate as strongly as you can with both your state and federal representatives for COVID relief funding targeted specifically to the nonprofit providers in NYS and our field, and preferably accessible directly by those providers, so the funding can't be diverted by NYS for other purposes. If you need help constructing your messages or locating your representatives' contact information, please reach out to me. My contact information is "mallen @wildwoodprograms.org" or (518)836-2310. We deeply appreciate your help.

*We continue to develop a more regular staffing pattern in our Latham offices and the Wildwood School building on Curry Road Extension, in accordance with all applicable safety guidelines and protocols. Staff members at all sites are monitored on a daily basis in accordance with the Governor's directives and CDC guidance. We are also continuing to monitor and enforce the Governor's recent Travel Advisory and mandatory quarantine requirements for people returning from states with high levels of COVID 19 infections. The quarantine requirements, which we believe are truly necessary for the safety of all, really challenge our ability to maintain strong staffing patterns, because many of our staff plan for vacations in the summer, and there are now many states on that Travel Advisory. Absorbing an additional two weeks absence on top of planned vacation time is very difficult across the board. Despite these challenges, however, staffing remains stable and consistent both in our residences and elsewhere throughout the agency, at this time.

*The school backpack program has remained very active even during the summer months, with staff regularly collecting, packing and delivering food to school families in need. We are very grateful to our school staff for the energy and time they are giving to make sure that our school students and families have the food they need to stay healthy during this challenging time.

*Our residential and community habilitation staff continue to provide regular and consistent support to people living on their own or in supportive apartments.

*Our employment services staff continue to actively support many individuals who have worked throughout the pandemic, are now returning to work and/or are seeking new employment as a result of job losses or reduced hours during the crisis.

*Our recreation/respite staff continues to work with individuals, and to travel to different residences to help out with meaningful arts, crafts and outdoor gardening/ planting activities. They are also supporting individual volunteer activities, as appropriate and safe, for people living at home with their families.

*Wildwood's Adult Education program is finalizing its planning for fall semester classes, which will occur virtually.

*Wildwood's United Self Advocacy Committee, consisting of people who receive support from our agency, continues to send out weekly uplifting advocacy messages to keep everyone's spirits high. Please take time to appreciate and absorb those messages--they are incredibly relevant and powerful. And please continue to share your feedback!

*As we continue to negotiate the profound fiscal challenges of COVID-19, we welcome your active support of the Wildwood Foundation. Every donation that the Foundation receives goes directly to the programs, supports and services that Wildwood offers to the people and families at the heart of our mission. Thank you in advance for helping to strengthen Wildwood's future!

*Keep checking for valuable information, updated frequently, on our website for families:

https://sites.google.com/wildwoodprograms.org/family-resources/home!

Finally, please accept our profound gratitude for your continued partnership as we work through these very difficult and challenging times . I hope you all remain well, and that you are finding ways to safely enjoy these beautiful days of summer. Drink in that Vitamin D--we all need it more than ever in this chaotic, unpredictable, topsy-turvy world! When all is said and done, however, we have each other and this incredibly strong and resilient Wildwood Family that we have built. Together we WILL get through this, and emerge on the other side even stronger than before.

With deepest appreciation for your help, understanding. patience and support,

Mary Ann

Dear Wildwood Families:

As the Capital District region continues to move forward with reopening more and more activities, Wildwood received a lot of updated guidance this past week that has kept us all very busy!! Here are the past week's important highlights:

*On Friday evening, July 10th, we received updated guidance for our certified residential programs from the Office for People with Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD), allowing the resumption of visits to family homes and some community outings, effective July 15th, pursuant to very detailed health and safety protocols and documentation requirements. Our residential and nursing teams, under the guidance and leadership of Sue Hanson and Kari VanDenburg, worked incredibly hard to have everything in place and all staff trained so that those visits and outings could begin last Wednesday, and I am pleased to report that effective July 15th, Wildwood has been able to support visits with families in their family homes and other safe places, and also the return to our residences of people who have been staying at home with their families during the COVID shut-down. From all reports, these activities have been progressing smoothly and well, and our residential families are really enjoying reconnecting with their loved ones. We are grateful to these families for their patience, and for their strict compliance with the new policies and procedures. I also want to thank our Residential Team for working quickly, diligently, and effectively to restore these much needed family connections.

*Also on Friday evening, July 10th, OPWDD issued revised guidance permitting the reopening of day supports, again pursuant to very detailed health and safety protocols, and again effective July 15th. Over the past week, our Day Services Team, under the leadership of Jill Rafferty-Weinisch and Robin Sheldon, has been working tirelessly, in collaboration with our Nursing, Facilities and Transportation Departments, to develop safe and viable reopening plans for our day supports, that will protect the health and wellbeing of everyone involved, and also preserve to the greatest extent possible, the person-centered nature of the day services Wildwood provides. Our Day Services Team will be contacting individuals and families receiving Wildwood day supports this week to share specific information regarding the phased in approach to resuming day supports that it has developed. Implementation will begin fairly immediately and progress gradually over the next several weeks. Again, we are grateful for your support and patience as we reconstruct meaningful and appropriate day supports for your loved ones in a drastically changed world. We also deeply appreciate the outstanding work of the staff in Day Services and other departments to implement the new guidance safely and thoughtfully for everyone involved.

*On Monday, July 13th, the NYS Department of Health (DOH) issued guidelines for the potential reopening of schools in September, and the NYS Education Department (SED) followed suit with a 145-page guidance document of its own on Wednesday July 15th. Like other schools throughout the state, Wildwood School is under a mandate to digest this guidance and submit proposed plans for providing educational services in the fall under three scenarios: 1) in-person; 2) distance learning; and 3) a hybrid model combining in-person and distance learning. Those proposed plans must be submitted to SED by July 31, 2020, and our School Leadership Team is hard at work right now to develop them. Once the plans are submitted, Governor Cuomo has indicated that NYS will make a final decision during the first week of August regarding the reopening of NY's schools in September. As Wildwood School's proposed plans for the upcoming school year are finalized and submitted to SED, they will be shared with school families and staff as well. In the meantime, Wildwood School's summer extension program has begun, and is taking place primarily through distance learning, with some limited opportunities for in-person outdoor social engagement activities with school staff, as appropriate.

*It's really important for all of us to keep in mind that all of this new guidance is only in place for areas of the state that have achieved Phase 4 status, and the reduced restrictions are subject to immediate change if the COVID infections in our area begin to spike again. We should all be prepared that this could occur quickly, as it did in March, especially as we move toward the fall and a lessened ability to be outdoors, and as contact increases with larger groups of people.We can all help by wearing masks, washing our hands often, avoiding large groups, and keeping at least 6 feet away from each other whenever possible. We also invite you to partner with us in teaching and reinforcing these skills with your loved ones who participate in our programs and services, to the extent possible.

*Once again this week, there were no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in any of our residences or among our regular staff.

*On July 6th, we moved to 50% staffing capacity at our Latham offices and that has been going well. In the next couple of weeks, we will be encouraging all departments and teams to work at office locations more regularly, in accordance with all applicable safety guidelines and protocols. Staff members at all sites continue to be monitored in accordance with the Governor's directives and CDC guidance, and everyone who reports to work at one of our office sites must first take and pass a daily health screening before being allowed to enter the buildings. We are also continuing to monitor and enforce the Governor's recent Travel Advisory and mandatory quarantine requirements for staff returning from states with high levels of COVID 19 infections. Several additional states were added to that Travel Advisory this week.

*Staffing remains strong, stable and consistent both in our residences and elsewhere throughout the agency.

*The school backpack program remains extremely active, with school staff regularly collecting, packing and delivering food to school families in need. This effort will continue throughout the summer, and we are very grateful to our school staff for the energy and time they are giving to make sure that our school students and families have the food they need to stay healthy during this challenging time.

*Our residential and community habilitation staff continue to support people living on their own or in supportive apartments to make sure they are doing well.

*Our employment services staff continue to actively support many individuals who are working, returning to work and/ or seeking new employment as a result of job losses during the pandemic.

*Our recreation/respite staff continues to work with individuals, and to travel to different residences to help out with meaningful arts, crafts and outdoor gardening/ planting activities. They are also supporting individual volunteer activities, as appropriate and safe, for people living at home with their families.

*Wildwood's Adult Education program is holding eleven online classes this summer including small group classes and individual sessions. Course content includes high school equivalency preparation, cooking, communication, financial education, writing, book club, transition support, peer support, health and wellness, and Friends Connection. Safety protocols have been reviewed in every class to help prepare for the eventual return to in-person learning opportunities and planning continues for fall semester classes.

*All regular employees continue to receive their full compensation and available benefits, including health care. However, late last week OPWDD somewhat abruptly advised that the retainer day billing program which it had developed in collaboration with the federal Centers for Medicaid Services (CMS), to reimburse agencies like Wildwood for much of the income they have lost through the closure of day programs, community habilitation services and prevocational services, will end on July 21, 2020 (tomorrow). We do not expect that those services will be able to return to their full service delivery capacities, as they existed before the COVID shutdown, for at least several weeks yet. The continued loss of income in these programs, with no reimbursement from the state for that loss, poses an increasing challenge to Wildwood's ability to continue to fully compensate staff. We are hopeful that some relief may be forthcoming during the next few in the form of another federal COVID relief/ stimulus package with targeted funds for our field, but that is not guaranteed, so the Executive Management Team is hard at work developing contingency plans. We will keep you informed of those plans as they become more concrete.

*Wildwood's United Self Advocacy Committee, consisting of people who receive support from our agency, continues to send out weekly uplifting advocacy messages to keep everyone's spirits high. This week's message is about UNDERSTANDING, and reminds all of us to be in touch with and truly listen to our family, friends and colleagues. Please continue to share your feedback!

*As we continue to negotiate the fiscal challenges of COVID-19, we welcome your active support of the Wildwood Foundation. Every donation that the Foundation receives goes directly to the supports and services that Wildwood offers to the people and families at the heart of our mission.

*Keep checking for valuable information, updated frequently, on our website for families:

https://sites.google.com/wildwoodprograms.org/family-resources/home!

Thank you for your continued partnership as we work through these very difficult and challenging times . I hope you all remain safe and well.

With warm wishes,

Mary Ann

Dear Wildwood Families:

A lot has changed over the last 24 hours, and our program leadership is hard at work processing all of the new guidance we have just received. Here are this week's important updates:

* Late last evening, we received updated guidance from the Office for People with Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD) allowing the resumption of visits to family homes, community outings, and day supports, under very specific conditions and provided that very detailed health and safety protocols are established and strictly enforced.

*The updated guidance takes effect on July 15th, which is only 4 days from now. We ask for your patience, as we work hard over this weekend and the next several days to train our staff; clean our facilities; plan out transportation routes; develop policies and procedures for both transportation and program delivery given the reduced capacity limits and other restrictions that have been mandated; develop all of the written logs and other documentation that OPWDD is requiring us to put in place; and a whole host of other necessary tasks.

*You have our commitment that we will initiate the resumption of these activities as quickly as possible, but our first and foremost responsibility has been and continues to be the health and safety of your loved ones, your families and our staff, and we have to ensure that we are fully prepared to safeguard that priority as we resume services at our various program sites and more community-based settings.

*Over the next few days, please watch for additional communications from the specific programs in which your loved ones are involved regarding how and when these supports and services will resume at Wildwood, so you will know exactly what to expect and prepare for.

*It's important for all of us to keep in mind that the new rules are only in place for areas of the state that have achieved Phase 4 status, and the reduced restrictions are subject to immediate change if the COVID infections in our area begin to spike again. We should all be prepared that this could occur quickly, as it did in March, especially as we move toward the fall and a lessened ability to be outdoors, and as contact increases with larger groups of people as allowed by NY Forward in recent weeks.

*Governor Cuomo announced this week that guidance regarding the potential reopening of schools this fall will be released during the first week of August. As soon as we have received that guidance we will immediately begin planning around it, and we will keep you closely informed about what the potential return to "in person" educational services at WWS in the fall will look like, if permitted. In the meantime, Wildwood School's summer extension program has begun, and is taking place through distance learning.

*Once again this week, there were no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in any of our residences or among our regular staff.

*On July 6th, we moved to 50% staffing capacity at our Latham offices and that has been going well. Staffing at all sites continues to be monitored in accordance with the Governor's directives and CDC guidance, and everyone who reports to work at one of our office sites must first take and pass a daily health screening before being allowed to do so.

*We are continuing to monitor and enforce the Governor's recent Travel Advisory and mandatory quarantine requirements for staff returning from states with high levels of COVID 19 infections. Several additional states were added to that Travel Advisory this week.

*Staffing remains strong, stable and consistent both in our residences and elsewhere throughout the agency.

*The school backpack program remains extremely active, with school staff regularly collecting, packing and delivering food to school families in need. This effort will continue throughout the summer, and we are very grateful to our school staff for the energy and time they are giving to make sure that our school students and families have the food they need to stay healthy during this challenging time.

*Our residential and community habilitation staff continue to support people living on their own or in supportive apartments to make sure they are doing well.

*Our employment services staff continue to actively support many individuals who are working, returning to work and/ or seeking new employment as a result of job losses during the pandemic.

* Our recreation/respite staff continues to work with individuals, and to travel to different residences to help out with meaningful arts, crafts and outdoor gardening/ planting activities. They are also supporting individual volunteer activities, as appropriate and safe, for people living at home with their families.

* Wildwood's Adult Education program continues to be active in supporting people who otherwise would be isolated, vulnerable and on their own during this very difficult and challenging time. The staff in that program is also hard at work planning for fall semester classes, which will be delivered through "virtual learning" this year.

*All regular employees continue to receive their full compensation and available benefits, including health care.

*Wildwood's United Self Advocacy Committee, consisting of people who receive support from our agency, continues to send out weekly uplifting advocacy messages to keep everyone's spirits high. Be on the lookout for a new Advocacy Affirmations on Monday, and please continue to share your feedback!

*As our new fiscal year begins, we welcome your continued support of the Wildwood Foundation. Every donation that the Foundation receives goes directly to helping our loved ones lead active, productive, fulfilling, safe, healthy and happy lives in our community.

*Keep checking for valuable information, updated frequently, on our website for families:

https://sites.google.com/wildwoodprograms.org/family-resources/home!

Thank you for your continued partnership and support as together, we work through these very challenging times . I hope you all remain healthy, safe and happy.

With warm wishes,

Mary Ann

Dear Wildwood Families:

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY! I hope this holiday weekend offers you the chance to spend time relaxing and reflecting on the great history and resilience of our country. Those special qualities have never been more evident than during the past six months.

This week's update will be short and sweet, since virtually nothing has changed since last week. As we travel through Week 17 of the COVID 19 pandemic, things remain calm and stable throughout Wildwood's programs and services. Here are the highlights:

*Again this week, there are no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in any of our residences or among our regular staff.

*On July 6th, we will move to 50% staffing capacity at our Latham offices. Staffing at all sites continues to be monitored in accordance with the Governor's directives and CDC guidance, and everyone who reports to work at one of our office sites must first take and pass a daily health screening before being allowed to do so.

*We are continuing to monitor and enforce the Governor's recent Travel Advisory and mandatory quarantine requirements for staff returning from states with high levels of COVID 19 infections right now.

* There has been no further progress on the loosening of restrictions on visitation for family members with their loved ones who live in Wildwood's certified residential programs. We are hopeful to learn more this coming week, when the Governor's current Executive order prohibiting visits to family homes is due to expire. Family members are currently able to visit their loved ones inside our residences, as long as specific health and safety protocols are followed. PLEASE KEEP UP YOUR ADVOCACY ON THIS ISSUE!! I do believe it is making an impact.

*Staffing remains strong, stable and consistent both in our residences and elsewhere throughout the agency. Complete orientation schedules are resuming this month for new staff. We are also continuing our recruitment efforts.

*Wildwood School's summer extension program will begin this week and will occur remotely. We continue to await word from Governor Cuomo and the State Education Department about the potential return to "in person" educational services at WWS in the fall, and we will keep you fully informed as we receive additional information and guidelines.

*The school backpack program remains extremely active, with school staff regularly collecting, packing and delivering food to school families in need. This effort will continue throughout the summer, and we can't thank our school staff enough for the energy and time they are giving to make sure that our school students and families have the food they need to stay healthy during this time of profound economic stress.

*All of our day programs and most other supports and services remain closed at this time, but we have been able to provide some in-person services to individuals, in accordance with current CDC restrictions and guidelines, and will continue to do so throughout the summer months.

*We are continuing to engage in planning discussions and exchanges of information with other local service providers to get a sense of what the people we support and their families will be seeking in terms of day supports going forward, once we are permitted to move forward with "group" programming. We are hoping that there will be some ability to resume more organized day supports in the fall, but a lot will depend on whether there is a resurgence of COVID 19 in our region, following the relaxation of restrictions this summer. Our staff have been participating in several statewide work groups, to "re-imagine day services" in a post-pandemic world, and we will keep you posted about what they help to develop for the future.

*Our residential and community habilitation staff continue to check in regularly with people living on their own or in supportive apartments to make sure they are doing well and have the support they need.

*Our employment services staff continue to actively support many individuals who are working, returning to work and/ or seeking new employment as a result of job losses during the pandemic.

* Our recreation/respite staff continues to work with individuals, and to travel to different residences to help out with meaningful arts, crafts and outdoor gardening/ planting activities. They are also supporting individual volunteer activities, as appropriate and safe, for people living at home with their families.

* Wildwood's Adult Education program continues to be active in supporting people who otherwise would be isolated, vulnerable and on their own during this very difficult and challenging time. The staff in that program is also hard at work planning for fall semester classes, which will be delivered through "virtual learning" this year.

*All regular employees continue to receive their full compensation and available benefits, including health care.

*Wildwood's United Self Advocacy Committee, consisting of people who receive support from our agency, continues to send out weekly uplifting advocacy messages to keep everyone's spirits high. This week's message about kindness could not have been more timely, and was a wonderful reminder that everyone is struggling with the challenges of this health emergency, and we need to support each other in every way we can! Please watch for Advocacy Affirmations each week, and share your feedback to help shape future messages!

*The 2020 recipients of Wildwood's annual Values in Action Awards, which recognize staff members who consistently go "above and beyond the call of duty" to bring our core values of Respect, Integrity, Creativity and Holism to life for the people and families we serve, were announced this week. I hope you had a chance to view the video sharing this year's award presentations. Please join me in congratulating all award recipients and nominees !

*Thank you to everyone who supported the Wildwood Foundation's fundraising efforts during the 2019/ 2020 fiscal year. As our new fiscal year begins, we welcome your continued support. Every donation that the Foundation receives goes directly to helping our loved ones lead active, productive, fulfilling, safe, healthy and happy lives in our community. There is no more precious gift that you can give to our family members living with developmental and intellectual disabilities.

*Keep checking for valuable information, updated frequently, on our website for families:

https://sites.google.com/wildwoodprograms.org/family-resources/home!

*If you have a message of support that you would be willing to share with our Direct Support Professionals (DSPs) about the impact of their work on your loved ones' lives or those of your families, please reach out to me or to Tom Schreck, our Director of Communications, at tschreck@wildwoodprograms.org. Appreciation from our families means SO much to our staff!!

Thank you for your continued partnership in and support of Wildwood's mission, values and work. Stay healthy, safe and happy as you celebrate the 4th of July!

With warm wishes,

Mary Ann

Dear Wildwood Families:

It is hard to believe that when this unexpected "siege" began, it was winter and we have now welcomed summer!! I am amazed at how resilient, resourceful and patient your families, our loved ones with developmental and intellectual disabilities, and our staff have been during the last several very challenging months, and I am deeply grateful that we have each other and the Wildwood Family to keep us all safe, healthy and hopeful for better days ahead.

At the beginning of Week 16 of the COVID 19 pandemic, there is very little "new" to report. Things remain quiet, calm and stable throughout Wildwood's programs and services.

Here are this week's updates:

*So far, all is going well with our staff's slow, careful return to working in their offices. Staffing at all sites is limited in accordance with the Governor's directives and CDC guidance, and everyone who intends to work from one of our office sites must take and pass a daily health screening before being allowed to do so. We are hopeful to move to 50% staffing capacity at our Latham offices on or about July 6th, provided that the Capital Region advances to Phase 4 of NY Forward.

*This week's Travel Advisory implemented by the Governors of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut has added additional complexity to our planning, because we will now have to anticipate longer absences on the part of our staff who travel or take vacations to states on the mandatory quarantine list (which can change daily), since they will have to quarantine at home for 14 days upon their return to New York. We have asked everyone to avoid such travel, to the extent that they can do so.

* There has been no further progress on the loosening of restrictions on visitation for family members with their loved ones who live in Wildwood's certified residential programs. Beginning last week, family members have been able to visit their loved ones inside our residences, as long as specific health and safety protocols are followed. However, there has been no commitment from the Governor's Office and/or OPWDD to permit our family members to leave their homes, visit their family homes, or return to community life in any way, despite all other sectors of our society being able to do so.

*Special thanks to Wildwood parents Pete and Pat Nickel for giving their time on Father's Day to be interviewed on WNYT News Channel 13 about the impact of these restrictions on the people we support in our residences and their families. Our deep appreciation as well to all of you who have called, emailed or written to the Governor's Office and OPWDD on this issue. Please keep advocating!! Our sons/ daughters/ siblings need and deserve to benefit from the same loosening of restrictions that have been granted to the rest of us. It's profoundly important to their emotional wellbeing, and a matter of basic human dignity, respect and equality.

*Again this week, there are no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in any of our residences or among our regular staff.

*Staffing remains strong, stable and consistent both in our residences and elsewhere throughout the agency. We have begun to increase our recruitment efforts for new staff as the summer months begin, and our Staff Training and Development Department has done a wonderful job creating a virtual orientation process that provides our new employees with the training they need in order to begin work.

* Wildwood School's summer extension program will be delivered remotely this summer. The School staff has been hard at work during the last month exploring ways to increase "in person" interactions between students and their trusted teachers, clinicians and paraprofessionals during the six week summer extension period. They are also developing plans for a potential return to "in person" educational services at WWS in September, should that be permitted by Governor Cuomo and the State Education Department. Much will depend on decisions that are made by individual school districts regarding transportation, and by SED and the Department of Health regarding the safety and distancing protocols that the School will be required to follow for in-person programming. We will keep you fully informed as we receive additional information and guidelines.

*A wonderful, joyful "drive through" graduation ceremony took place in the parking lot of the Curry Road School building on June 23, 2020, for this year's Young Adult Program (YAP) 2020 graduates. It was an absolutely beautiful night. The effort and creativity that the Staff Graduation Committee and our Technology Team devoted to making sure that it was a true celebration of all our graduates was simply incredible. Congratulations, Class of 2020!!

*The school backpack program remains extremely active, with school staff regularly collecting, packing and delivering food to school families in need. This effort will continue throughout the summer, and we can't thank our school staff enough for the energy and time they are giving to make sure that our school students and families have the food they need to stay healthy during this time of profound economic stress.

*All of our day programs and most other supports and services remain closed at this time, but we have been able to provide some in-person services to individuals, in accordance with current CDC restrictions and guidelines, and will continue to do so throughout the summer months. Many of our day services staff are also regularly helping in our residences to make sure that those "stuck at home" have meaningful activities to keep them busy during the day.

*We are continuing to engage in planning discussions and exchanges of information with other local service providers to get a sense of what the people we support and their families will be seeking in terms of day supports going forward, once we are permitted to move forward with "group" programming. We will be soliciting your input in the near future, so please give some thought to this. It's critically important that we do this carefully and well, to meet the needs of your loved ones, as well as your expectations. Our staff are also participating in several statewide work groups, and we will keep you posted about what they learn and help to develop for the future.

*Our residential and community habilitation staff continue to check in regularly with people living on their own or in supportive apartments to make sure they are doing well and have the support they need.

*Our employment services staff continue to actively support many individuals who are working. They are reporting that more and more of the people we support are returning to work as NYS slowly reopens more businesses. We are also providing strong support to people who have lost their jobs, to help them secure available unemployment benefits and be ready to apply for and secure new employment as opportunities become available.

* Our recreation/respite staff continues to work with individuals, and to travel to different residences to help out with meaningful arts, crafts and outdoor gardening/ planting activities. They are also supporting individual volunteer activities, as appropriate and safe, for people living at home with their families. Several of the individuals we support are volunteering with our staff to deliver food to hungry families supported by other area nonprofits such as the South End Childrens' Cafe.

* Wildwood's Adult Education program continues to be active in supporting people who otherwise would be isolated, vulnerable and on their own during this very difficult and challenging time. The staff in that program is also hard at work planning for fall semester classes, which will be delivered completely through "virtual learning" this year.

*All regular employees continue to receive their full compensation and available benefits, including health care.

*Wildwood's United Self Advocacy Committee, consisting of people who receive support from our agency, continues to send out weekly uplifting advocacy messages to keep everyone's spirits high. This week's message about friendship was a wonderful reminder that we are all social beings by nature, and even though we have to stay apart and "social distance" right now because of COVID-19, we still need to stay connected and support each other in every way we can! Please watch for Advocacy Affirmations each week, and share your feedback to help shape future messages!

*Working with Wildwood's Boards of Directors, the Communications Department, and the Technology Team, the Executive Management Team has spent the last two weeks "dropping in" on various virtual department and team meetings to present the annual Values in Action Awards, which are traditionally presented at Spring Staff Day. Nominations for those awards are generated by staff throughout the agency, and they recognize people who consistently go "above and beyond the call of duty" to bring our core values of Respect, Integrity, Creativity and Holism to life for the people and families we serve. This year, more than ever, it was critically important to make sure that these awards occurred, given everything our staff has done over the last several months. Award recipients are not informed in advance that they have been selected, so they are a total surprise, and we were able to keep that element of surprise this year, which was no small feat!! Over the next few days, watch for an announcement and celebration of this year's award recipients from our Communications Team! And heartfelt thanks to all of our Board members who helped us with this effort!

*Because of your generosity to Wildwood's Annual Fund, and to this year's "Gala alternative", the Catalog of Giving, the Wildwood Foundation has reached 97% of its fundraising goal for Wildwood's 2019/ 2020 fiscal year, which ends on June 30, 2020. That is an incredible accomplishment, given the many ways in which COVID 19 has upended our world during the past few months. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR LOYAL AND GENEROUS SUPPORT, AND KUDOS TO THE FOUNDATION TEAM FOR ALL OF ITS HARD WORK TO GET US TO THIS POINT!!

*For those who haven't yet made a gift to the Wildwood Foundation this year, it's not too late to do so and help us "go over the top"!! Every donation that the Foundation receives goes directly to helping our loved ones lead active, productive, fulfilling, safe, healthy and happy lives in our community. There is no more precious gift that you can give to our family members living with developmental and intellectual disabilities.

*Keep checking for valuable information, updated frequently, on our website for families:

https://sites.google.com/wildwoodprograms.org/family-resources/home!

*If you have a message of support that you would be willing to share with our Direct Support Professionals (DSPs) about the impact of their work on your loved ones' lives or those of your families, please reach out to me or to Tom Schreck, our Director of Communications, at tschreck@wildwoodprograms.org.

Thanks from families and our community partners mean SO much to our staff!!

*We are profoundly grateful for your continued partnership in and support of Wildwood's mission, values and work. Stay healthy and safe, especially as the 4th of July holiday approaches!!

With warm wishes for your continued well being,

Mary Ann

Dear Wildwood Families:

*Today our nation marks the observance of Juneteenth, the oldest national commemoration of the end of slavery in the United States. As we slowly begin to rebuild a world that has been upended in every possible way, this is a perfect moment to decide what each of us can do to breathe life into Wildwood's vision of a world-wide community that demonstrates unconditional acceptance and respect for each and every person's infinite strengths, creativity and diversity.

*Week 15 of the COVID 19 pandemic brings small but meaningful signs of hope as New York moves forward in its return to life and living. Here are this week's updates:

*The first phase of reopening our Latham offices began this past Wednesday, June 17th, and so far all is going well. Currently the building is staffed at no more than 30% capacity every day, and we are following all required health screening and safety protocols. Reopening plans for staff at our Curry Road Extension School Building are now in development, and we expect to launch those shortly.

* As the result of massive family advocacy efforts across the state, earlier this week Governor Cuomo announced a slight loosening of restrictions on visitation for family members with their loved ones who live in Wildwood's certified residential programs. Beginning today, family members can visit their loved ones inside our residences, as long as specific health and safety protocols are followed. Sue Hanson. Wildwood's Director of Residential Operations, has shared those protocols with all residential families, and all house staff have now been prepared to safely support these visits.

We still have a long way to go, so please keep advocating with the Governor's Office (this should be your primary focus), the Office for People with Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD), the Department of Health (DOH) and your elected state representatives. Our sons/ daughters/ siblings need and deserve to benefit from the same careful and planful loosening of restrictions (i.e., visits to their family homes that will almost certainly involve gatherings of less than 25 people; getting haircuts; returning to their faith communities; being allowed out of their backyards, and returning to their activities of daily life) that have been granted to the rest of us. The more family members who are willing to speak up on this issue, the more power we have!! We cannot let our government or our communities ignore our loved ones' needs.

*Again this week, there are no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in any of our residences or among our regular staff.

*Staffing remains strong, stable and consistent both in our residences and elsewhere throughout the agency. We are deeply grateful for this incredible level of commitment and creativity at all levels of the organization, and we will always and forever salute our Direct Support Professionals in all programs for the critical work that they have done and are continuing to do right now..

* Earlier this week, the Wildwood School Leadership Team, in conjunction with the Executive Management Team, advised our school families that our summer extension program will be delivered remotely this summer. We agonized over this decision, and quite frankly, we all feel that Governor Cuomo and the NYS Department of Education put us and other schools like Wildwood, between a rock and a hard place. In early June, the Governor issued an Executive Order that summer school programming would occur completely remotely, through distance learning. Based on that EO, Wildwood did not pursue recruitment efforts for summer staff, because we have been left totally on our own for many months now to absorb all of the unexpected costs of the COVID-19 pandemic, and our top priority had been to retain and pay our staff, in order to keep them with us for the time, hopefully soon, when we can begin to reopen our programs. Without our staff, we can't do that.

Approximately two weeks later, in mid-June, when the Governor issued a subsequent Executive Order permitting school districts to offer in person special education summer services (with the added complication that WWS is not a "school district", but rather an 853 School totally dependent on referrals from school districts) we recognized pretty quickly that we did not have the ability to change course in the ways that we needed to in order to guarantee the safety of our students and staff, and to comply with all applicable health and safety regulations. Many of our WWS teachers and staff are parents of young children, and have no safe and viable child care options for the summer. They are therefore unavailable for in-person programming. Hiring replacements for them, and performing all of the incredibly important background and screening checks that are so vital for the protection and wellbeing of your children simply could not be accomplished within the incredibly limited time frame available to us after the Governor switched course. Even more importantly, with all of the disruption to their schedules and routines that your children have had to endure because of this health emergency, it just is not fair to them to try to re-establish routines and expectations with staff they do not know. We firmly believe that rushing to re-open without adequate safety protocols and the best possible academic program would not be in the best interests of our students, given all of the uncertainty and upset that has already occurred for them (and you) during the past several months. And in the end, we have to stay true to our mission, our values and our commitment to the highest possible quality of supports and services for your loved ones and your families.

We ultimately concluded that our hands-on approach to learning, with multi-sensory involvement and close, "hands on" interactions between WWS staff and students, would make it incredibly difficult for us to follow the recommended DOH guidelines. In addition, many of our students and some of our staff have compromised immune systems, and we do not have the enhanced supports available to us that we feel are absolutely necessary to support these students and staff in the face of the significantly enhanced health regulations. We have received absolutely no support from either SED or OPWDD to purchase or provide Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to our staff or students. We've reached out to and taken advantage of every opportunity we could find, and have spent well over $50,000 in doing so, but we can't be sure that's enough to cover ud for the Summer Extension Program. let alone the needs of the rest of the agency.

We are deeply and painfully aware of the profound stress that this decision places on our School families, and we recognize, without question, that online learning is not the optimal educational environment for your children . However, if we lost just one Wildwood School student to COVID-19, we would never forgive ourselves. You have our firm commitment that we will do everything we can to support our students and your families in the very best possible ways this summer. Plans are already well underway to increase the frequency of "in person" contact between students and their trusted School staff, as well as the richness and frequency of academic supports. Please share your needs with us, and know that we are planning and advocating as hard as we can for a return to in-person educational services for your children in September.

*A "drive through" graduation ceremony will take place for this year's Young Adult Program (YAP) 2020 graduates at our Curry Road School property, on June 23, 2020. I am incredibly impressed by the effort that has been devoted by so many caring, wonderfully talented School staff, to make sure that a very special celebration happens for all our YAP graduates and families, despite the chaos around us.

*The school backpack program remains extremely active, with school staff regularly collecting, packing and delivering food to school families in need. This has become an essential resource for many families, as the economic devastation of COVID-19 continues to grow, in the forms of unemployment, food insecurity and homelessness. We can't thank our school staff enough for the energy and time they are giving to this critical initiative.

*All of our day programs and most other supports and services remain closed at this time, but discussions have begun across the state to plan for the reopening of programs and what that might look like post-COVID-19. We hear different rumors--maybe July, maybe September... Regardless, we have begun planning discussions and exchanges of information with other local service providers to get a sense of what the people we support and their families will be seeking in terms of day supports going forward. We will be soliciting your input in the near future, so please give some thought to this. It's critically important that we do this carefully and well, to meet the needs of your loved ones, as well as your expectations. Our staff are participating in several statewide work groups, and we will keep you posted about what they learn and help to develop for the future.

*Our residential and community habilitation staff continue to check in regularly with people living on their own or in supportive apartments to make sure they are doing well and have the support they need. This is no small feat, as the weeks drag on--sometimes our staff are the only human, personal connections that these folks have, and they are giving their all to keeping people safe, healthy and stable.

*Our employment services staff continue to actively support many individuals who are working. They are reporting that more and more people are returning to work as NYS moves "Forward". We are also providing strong support to people who have lost their jobs, to help them secure available unemployment benefits and be ready to apply for and secure new employment when opportunities become available.

* Our recreation/respite staff continues to travel to different residences to help out with meaningful arts, crafts and outdoor gardening/ planting activities, and in supporting individual volunteer activities, as appropriate and safe, for people living at home with their families.

* Wildwood's Adult Education program continues to be quite active in supporting people who otherwise would be isolated, vulnerable and on their own during this very difficult and challenging time.

*All regular employees continue to receive their full compensation and available benefits, including health care. We are moving forward as quickly as possible to begin billing for the Retainer Day Billing Program, offered by OPWDD, that will cover community habilitation, day habilitation and prevocational services delivered by Wildwood since March 16th (Community Habilitation) and April 16th (Day Services and Prevocational Services).

*Wildwood's United Self Advocacy Committee, consisting of people who receive support from our agency, continues to send out weekly uplifting advocacy messages during this health emergency, to keep everyone's spirits high. This week's message about exercising control helped me calm myself in several stressful situations. What a gift they have been to all of us!! Please watch for Advocacy Affirmations each week, and share your feedback to help shape future messages!

*If you haven't made a gift to the Wildwood Foundation yet this year, my personal plea is that you consider doing so before June 30th. Every donation that the Foundation receives goes directly to helping our loved ones lead active, productive, fulfilling, safe, healthy and happy lives in our community. There is no more precious gift that you can give to our family members living with developmental and intellectual disabilities.

*Keep checking for valuable information, updated frequently, on our website for families:

https://sites.google.com/wildwoodprograms.org/family-resources/home!

*If you have a message of support that you would be willing to share with our Direct Support Professionals (DSPs) about the impact of their work on your loved ones' lives or those of your families, please reach out to me or to Tom Schreck, our Director of Communications, at tschreck@wildwoodprograms.org. I am a firm believer that we can't say thank you enough, and I have heard time and time again that those messages are the most meaningful feedback that our DSPs can receive. They value your opinions and support more than anything else.

We deeply appreciate your trust in and support of our mission, values and work. We hope to see you and be together soon as New York Forward continues, and we safely and carefully choose "life" over COVID-19. Happy Father's Day to all of the "Wildwood Dads" out there!!

Stay healthy, stay safe and have hope.

With deep gratitude and warm wishes for your continued wellbeing,

Mary Ann

Dear Wildwood Families:

Week 14 of the COVID 19 pandemic brings increasing frustration to all of us as more and more of our community begins to return to "life", and we are left in limbo with respect to the status of our supports and services for children and adults who live with the challenges of developmental and intellectual disabilities. We invite you to join our organizational advocacy efforts for meaningful planning to help our loved ones, young and old, return to the business of living, learning and growing. We need your partnership now more than ever, to ensure that our family members are not forgotten!

Here are this week's updates:

*As in weeks past, I am deeply grateful to report that the environment at Wildwood remains calm, stable and positive. We continue to support your loved ones, your families and our colleagues in the most meaningful, effective ways that we can. Our staff is simply incredible in its dedication and commitment to our loved ones--if you can find the time to send a special thank you to those special people who are helping you and your family get through this crisis, we would deeply appreciate your help in expressing our collective gratitude for their support. Quite simply, we would not be where we are today without them.

*We are targeting the first phase of reopening our Latham offices for June 17th. Attached is a powerpoint presentation that was shared with all of our staff today, to prepare for this next step. We appreciate your patience and understanding with all of these changed protocols, and we invite you to reach out to any member of the Executive Management Team with any questions or concerns that you may have!

* There has been a significant increase in advocacy efforts this week to support meaningful contact between family members and people with developmental and intellectual disabilities who live in certified residences. Attached is a letter that my husband and I sent a couple of days ago to Governor Coumo, Commissioner Kastner and several of our local legislators. I encourage every family who is willing and able to pursue some or all of the advocacy activities outlined by Sue Hanson in her message to residential families last night, to take action. The more people who are willing to speak out about this issue, the more power we have!! In the meantime, however, please know that the flexibility, resilience and ongoing stability that we are seeing from our loved ones who can't see us right now have taken my breath away. Our kids are amazing, and we have to fight with all that we have for their rights to have loving, meaningful contact with their families, and to live their best lives!!

*There continue to be no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in any of our residences or among our regular staff. We are deeply grateful for that gift every day, but the risk of infection remains ever present. Our staff continues to work together as highly united and committed teams to enforce all applicable health and safety rules, so we can continue to protect your loved ones and our staff from infection.

*Staffing remains strong, stable and consistent both in our residences and elsewhere throughout the agency. We are deeply grateful for this incredible level of commitment and creativity at all levels of the organization, and we will always and forever salute our Direct Support Professionals in all programs for the critical work that they are doing right now..

* The Wildwood School Leadership Team, in conjunction with the Executive Management Team, is carefully evaluating Governor Cuomo's recent Executive Order allowing school districts to offer in-person special education services this summer, provided that they comply with all applicable federal and state regulations. It is really unclear what this Executive Order means for multi-district Section 853 schools like Wildwood, and we, along with other similar 853 educational programs throughout the state, are immediately reaching out to the NYS Education Department, the Governor's Office, and the Department of Health for clarification and further guidance. The health and safety of our students and staff will be our highest priorities in guiding our decisions. We expect to have a clear plan for moving forward by the end of next week. We ask for your patience and understanding until then. We can't wait to welcome our students back, but their health and safety and that of our staff, as well as our ability to appropriately staff and deliver the best possible educational supports and services in the environment we currently face, need to be our top priorities.

*A "drive through" graduation ceremony has been planned for this year's Young Adult Program (YAP) 2020 graduates at our Curry Road School property, on June 23, 2020. I am incredibly impressed by the effort that has been devoted by so many caring, wonderfully talented School staff, to make sure that a very special celebration happens for all our YAP graduates and families, despite the chaos around us.

*The school backpack program remains extremely active, with school staff regularly collecting, packing and delivering food to school families in need. This has become an essential resource for many families, as the economic devastation of COVID-19 continues to grow, in the forms of unemployment, food insecurity and homelessness. We can't thank our school staff enough for the energy and time they are giving to this critical initiative.

*All of our day programs and most other supports and services remain closed at this time, but discussions have begun across the state to plan for the reopening of programs and what that might look like post-COVID-19. Our staff are participating in several statewide work groups, and we will keep you posted about what they learn and help to develop for the future. In this area as well, we need your support and advocacy.

*Our residential and community habilitation staff continue to check in regularly with people living on their own or in supportive apartments to make sure they are doing well and have the support they need. This is no small feat, as the weeks drag on--sometimes our staff are the only human, personal connections that these folks have, and they are giving their all to keeping people safe, healthy and stable.

*Our employment services staff continue to actively support many individuals who are working, and they are also providing strong support to people who have lost their jobs, to help them secure available unemployment benefits and be ready to apply for and secure new employment when opportunities become available.

* Our recreation/respite staff has also been outstanding in traveling to different residences to help out with meaningful arts, crafts and outdoor gardening/ planting activities, and in supporting individual volunteer activities, as appropriate and safe, for people living at home with their families.

* Wildwood's Adult Education program continues to be quite active in all of the areas described in last week's update.

*All staff, with the exception of those working in or redeployed to our residences, some employment services staff and our facilities team, continue to work from home but they are looking forward to June 17th!!

*All regular employees continue to receive their full compensation and available benefits, including health care. We are moving forward as quickly as possible to begin billing for the Retainer Day Billing Program, offered by OPWDD, that will cover community habilitation, day habilitation and prevocational services delivered by Wildwood since March 16th (Community Habilitation) and April 16th (Day Services and Prevocational Services).

*Our staff continues to stay connected, and to support and care for each other in many wonderful ways. Online activities such as HEAL (Healthy Eating Active Living) contests, yoga and mindfulness sessions, virtual "get-togethers", video talent contests, "Thank You Thursday" email messages from one staff to another (shared to all staff), and learning opportunities offered by our Training Department and Behavioral Support Team, have all been incredibly well received in recent weeks and are helping everyone get through these challenging times.

*Wildwood's United Self Advocacy Committee, consisting of people who receive support from our agency, continues to send out weekly uplifting advocacy messages during this health emergency, to keep everyone's spirits high. This week they expressed their united voice against discrimination of any kind. We can all learn from their thoughtful advocacy. Please watch for Advocacy Affirmations each week, and keep your feedback coming to help shape future messages!

*If you haven't made a gift to the Wildwood Foundation yet this year, my personal plea is that you consider doing so before June 30th. Every donation that the Foundation receives goes directly to helping our loved ones lead active, productive, fulfilling, safe, healthy and happy lives in our community. There is no more precious gift that you can give to our family members living with developmental and intellectual disabilities.

*Keep checking for valuable information, updated frequently, on our website for families:

https://sites.google.com/wildwoodprograms.org/family-resources/home!

*If you have a message of support that you would be willing to share with our Direct Support Professionals (DSPs) about the impact of their work on your loved ones' lives or those of your families, please reach out to me or to Tom Schreck, our Director of Communications, at tschreck@wildwoodprograms.org. I am a firm believer that we can't say thank you enough, and I have heard time and time again that those messages are the most meaningful feedback that our DSPs can receive. They value your opinions and support more than anything else.

We are grateful beyond words for your trust in and your support of our mission, values and work. We hope to see you and be together soon as New York Forward continues, and we safely and carefully choose "life" over COVID-19. Stay healthy, stay safe and have hope for the future!!

With deep gratitude and warm wishes for your continued health and wellbeing,

Mary Ann

Dear Wildwood Families:

As we turned the calendar to June this week, and entered Week 13 of the COVID 19 pandemic, our world felt more chaotic and uncertain than ever. The global health emergency that none of us have ever before experienced was almost totally eclipsed by a global social justice movement aimed at correcting centuries of institutional racism, We all watched with great sadness and fright while violence and looting gripped much of our nation, including our own local communities, because many in our country seek to open a new chapter of conversation and action that hopefully will lead to equal dignity, respect and opportunity for all. Wildwood has always been dedicated to preserving and protecting the wellbeing of people who are marginalized by our society, and it has been very difficult for all of us to watch meaningful social activism derailed by senseless violence and death. As an organization, we felt a profound need, consistent with our mission and core values, to address all of these issues in a statement of support to our staff and the people and families we support, and that letter is attached for your reference. An abbreviated version has also been posted on Wildwood's Facebook page so the public is clear on our stance. We hope that you will join with us in supporting a better, more equitable future for our colleagues, families and the people we support, and we also hope that all of you are finding ways to stay emotionally healthy and safe, and to nurture and safeguard hope, despite the horrors of these past several days.

And now on to this week's updates:

*As in weeks past, I am very grateful to report that the environment at Wildwood remains calm, stable and positive. We continue to be totally committed to supporting your loved ones, your families and our co-workers in the very best ways that we can. Every day, new and creative ideas are developed and implemented to keep all parts of our Wildwood Family physically and emotionally healthy, safe, and engaged. There just aren't words to express our collective gratitude for the work ethic, dedication, and commitment of our incredible staff.

* The Capital District Region of NYS entered Phase 2 of "NY Forward" on Wednesday, June 3rd. As you might imagine, all of our staff are anxious to "get back to the office", and see their colleagues and friends again after many long months of separation. Our Leadership Team, with the guidance of our Chief Human Resources Officer, Anne deNoronha, and the HR Department Team, have been working hard to develop the Business Safety Plans and protocols that we need to have in place for all of our sites, and we are targeting a "soft" reopening at our Latham offices on or about June 17th. The number of staff in the building will be very limited; shifts will be staggered; rooms with poor ventilation will be off limits; all staff will be screened daily for symptoms before being allowed access to the building; masks will be required in all common areas; and social distancing protocols will be in full force, just to name a few of the very changed realities that we've never had to face before, just to go to work. We are currently putting the final touches on our Reopening Plan, and we will share the final product with you as soon as it's done.

* We continue to hear that the Office for People with Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD) will shortly release guidelines to support increased contact between family members and people with developmental and intellectual disabilities who live in certified residences. In our opinion, that can't happen soon enough, both for all of you, and for the people who live in Wildwood's residences. I have to say, though, that the flexibility, resilience and ongoing stability that we are seeing from our loved ones who can't see us right now have humbled and uplifted me--how often we underestimate them!! With the support of our dedicated and committed staff, in many ways they are the least affected of all of us by our very changed world--and how great is that?

*There continue to be no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in any of our residences or among our regular staff. We are deeply grateful for that gift every day, but we know that the risk of infection remains ever present. Our staff continues to work together as highly united and committed teams to enforce all applicable health and safety rules, so we can continue to protect your loved ones and our staff from infection.

*Staffing remains strong, stable and consistent both in our residences and elsewhere throughout the agency. Staff from programs that are currently closed continue to help out in Wildwood's residences with day activities, grocery shopping, cleaning and other necessary tasks. Despite their fears about the virus and its potential impact on themselves and their families, our caring, dedicated employees in all program areas are consistently reporting for their shifts, and they are giving their all to our loved ones. And the cross-collaborations have led to some amazing thoughts and ideas about how we can continue to do so in the future, to improve the services and supports that we can offer to your loved ones and families. We are forever grateful for this incredible level of commitment and creativity at all levels of the organization, and we particularly salute our Direct Support Professionals in all programs.

*Earlier this evening, Governor Cuomo issued an Executive Order allowing school districts to offer in-person special education services this summer, provided that they comply with all applicable federal and state regulations. This completely contradicts a very recent directive that all summer school activities must occur solely through distance learning. It is really unclear what tonight's Executive Order means for multi-district Section 853 schools like Wildwood, and we, along with other similar 853 educational programs throughout the state, are immediately reaching out to the NYS Education Department for clarification and further guidance. We ask for your patience and understanding as we do so. We can't wait to welcome our students back, but their health and safety, as well as the health and safety of our staff, need to be our top priorities. We are working quickly to identify what federal and state regulations are applicable, and whether we can comply and "staff up" in time for a meaningful summer program. We will do our very best to provide you with further concrete information by the end of next week. We know how hard this time has been for all of you, and we thank you for your partnership as we work together to keep all of our students learning, growing and moving forward.

*All end-of-the-year school activities have been cancelled, but that's not an acceptable "end point" for our dedicated and incredibly committed School staff. There are simply amazing plans underway to personally recognize the individual achievements of students who would otherwise be participating in Moving Up ceremonies--I don't want to spoil the surprise, but for all involved students and families, BE ALERT and BE PREPARED!!

*A "drive through" graduation ceremony has been planned for this year's Young Adult Program (YAP) 2020 graduates at our Curry Road School property, on June 23, 2020. I am incredibly impressed by the effort that has been devoted by so many caring, wonderfully talented School staff, to make sure that a very special celebration happens for all our YAP graduates and families, despite the chaos around us.

*The school backpack program remains extremely active, with school staff regularly collecting, packing and delivering food to school families in need. This has become an essential resource for many families, as the economic devastation of COVID-19 continues to grow, in the forms of unemployment, food insecurity and homelessness. We can't thank our school staff enough for the energy and time they are giving to this critical initiative.

*All of our day programs and most other supports and services remain closed at this time, but discussions have begun across the state to plan for the reopening of programs and what that might look like post-COVID-19. Our staff are participating in several statewide work groups, and we will keep you posted about what they learn and help to develop for the future.

*Our residential and community habilitation staff continue to check in regularly with people living on their own or in supportive apartments to make sure they are doing well and have the support they need. This is no small feat, as the weeks drag on--sometimes our staff are the only human, personal connections that these folks have, and they are giving their all to keeping people safe, healthy and stable.

*Our employment services staff continue to actively support many individuals who are working, and they are also providing strong support to people who have lost their jobs, to help them secure available unemployment benefits and be ready to apply for and secure new employment when opportunities become available.

* Our recreation/respite staff has also been outstanding in traveling to different residences to help out with meaningful arts, crafts and outdoor gardening/ planting activities, and in supporting individual volunteer activities, as appropriate and safe, for people living at home with their families.

* Wildwood's Adult Education program continues to be quite active in all of the areas described in last week's update.

*All staff, with the exception of those working in or redeployed to our residences, some employment services staff and our facilities team, continue to work from home but they are anxious for that to change, hopefully later this month!!

*All regular employees continue to receive their full compensation and available benefits, including health care. Late this afternoon, we finally received the information we needed from OPWDD to begin billing for the Retainer Day Billing Program covering community habilitation, day habilitation and prevocational services that we have been delivering without payment from the state since March 16th (Community Habilitation) and April 16th (Day Services and Prevocational Services). We will be working over the next several days to complete all necessary documentation submissions and begin to generate that Retainer Day billing, which will help us recoup some of the losses that we have incurred due to many programs and services being shut down in early March, so that we can continue to retain and compensate all of our staff for the simply incredible commitment that they continue to make to our loved ones and to Wildwood.

*Our staff continues to stay connected, and to support and care for each other in many wonderful ways. Online activities such as HEAL (Healthy Eating Active Living) contests, yoga and mindfulness sessions, virtual "get-togethers", video talent contests, "Thank You Thursday" email messages from one staff to another (shared to all staff), and learning opportunities offered by our Training Department and Behavioral Support Team, have all been incredibly well received in recent weeks and are helping everyone get through these challenging times.

*Wildwood's United Self Advocacy Committee, consisting of people who receive supports from our agency, continues to send out weekly uplifting advocacy messages during this health emergency, to keep everyone's spirits high. This week's message about gratitude and thankfulness really helped me shift my mindset to a far more positive place, at a time when I really needed a boost. I hope it was uplifting for you as well! Our self advocates really appreciate your feedback , and they are doing a fabulous job keeping us all strong during these difficult times. Please watch for Advocacy Affirmations each week, and keep your feedback coming to help shape future messages!

*If you haven't made a gift to the Wildwood Foundation yet this year, my personal plea is that you consider doing so before June 30th. Every donation that the Foundation receives goes directly to helping our loved ones lead active, productive, fulfilling, safe, healthy and happy lives in our community. There is no more precious gift that you can give to our family members living with developmental and intellectual disabilities.

*Keep checking for valuable information, updated frequently, on our website for families:

https://sites.google.com/wildwoodprograms.org/family-resources/home!

*If you have a message of support that you would be willing to share with our Direct Support Professionals (DSPs) about the impact of their work on your loved ones' lives or those of your families, please reach out to me or to Tom Schreck, our Director of Communications, at "tschreck@wildwoodprograms.org". I am a firm believer that we can't say thank you enough, and I have heard time and time again that those messages are the most meaningful feedback that our DSPs can receive. They value your opinions and support more than anything else..

We are grateful beyond words for your trust in and your support of our mission, values and work. We hope to see you and be together soon as New York Forward continues, and we safely and carefully choose "life" over COVID-19. Stay healthy, stay safe and have hope for the future!! We continue to see and feel that hope every day in the faces of your loved ones and our DSPs.

With deep gratitude and warm wishes for your continued health and wellbeing,

Mary Ann

Dear Wildwood Families:

As we honor and remember all those who have given their lives in service to our country this weekend, I hope you find safe and enjoyable ways to enjoy the beautiful warm weather that is expected!! It is so therapeutic and uplifting right now to see blue sky, brilliant sunshine, leaves on trees and vibrant, fragrant flowers blooming all around us! Please also give a special thought to all of the health care heroes and first responders who have lost their lives battling the COVID 19 pandemic in our country, keeping so many of us safe and healthy along the way.

Once again this week, I am grateful to report that conditions at Wildwood remain calm, stable and positive. We continue to support your loved ones, your families and our colleagues in the very best ways that we can, and everyone is rising to the occasion in really inspiring, innovative ways!

Here are this week's highlights:

* The Capital District Region of NYS entered Phase 1 of "NY Forward" this past Wednesday, after achieving all seven required metrics. Wildwood is an "essential business", and has remained operational throughout the pandemic, but most of our programs and services remain closed/ drastically reduced/ operating remotely at this time. However, our Leadership Team has been working hard to develop the Business Safety Plans and protocols that we need to have in place for all of our sites when we get the "green light" to reopen, and we are well positioned to immediately move forward when that occurs.

* Please be prepared that services and supports will definitely look different than they have in the past, because concerns about COVID 19 will not go away for the foreseeable future. Requirements for social distancing, the wearing of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), regular health screenings (including temperature checks) and staying away from each other when we are not feeling well will be more important than ever for all of us to commit to and observe as "NY Forward" continues. Despite all this, we are totally committed to our mission, our values, and to ensuring, to the best of our ability, that your loved ones and your families receive the most innovative, person-centered, meaningful and high quality supports and services that we can offer in this very changed world, with the "end goal" of meaningful, productive, fulfilling, safe, healthy and happy lives in our community.

Unfortunately, we still have not received any substantive guidance from the Office for People with Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD) about a time frame or plan to relax current restrictions and prohibitions that are keeping our loved ones from connecting with their families, and/or accessing their traditional programs and services. We are pushing hard for such guidance, along with every other service provider throughout NYS, and as soon as it is forthcoming, Wildwood is ready! Of course, we will keep you all immediately informed as we receive further information.

*There continue to be no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in any of our residences or among our regular staff. We are profoundly grateful for that gift every day, but we know that the risk of infection remains ever present. Our staff continues to work together as highly united and committed teams to enforce all applicable health and safety rules, in order to best protect the people we support and each other, from infection.

*Staffing remains strong, stable and consistent both in our residences and elsewhere throughout the agency. Staff from programs that are currently closed continue to help out in Wildwood's residences with day activities, grocery shopping, cleaning and other necessary tasks. Despite their fears about the virus and its potential impact on themselves and their families, our caring, dedicated employees in all program areas are consistently reporting for their shifts, even when redeployed to residences, and they are giving their all to our loved ones. We are profoundly grateful for this incredible level of commitment.

*As directed by Governor Cuomo, Wildwood School will remain closed for the rest of the school year. All end-of-the-year school activities have been cancelled. However, we DO still plan to hold a Young Adult Program (YAP) Graduation ceremony for this year's class at our Curry Road School property. Our School staff is doing everything it can to ensure that this very special "right of passage" is properly celebrated within the restrictions that currently exist, and further details will be forthcoming shortly!!

*Distance learning continues in the School program and a wide variety of resources continue to be offered to students and families. Music therapy, art therapy and pet therapy have now gone "virtual", and many students are also enjoying periodic video-conferences with their classroom staff. Teachers and social workers are in regular contact with families to make sure they have the assistance they need.

*The school backpack program is extremely active, with school staff regularly collecting, packing and delivering food to school families in need. This has quickly become an essential resource for many families, as the economic devastation of COVID-19 continues to grow, in the forms of unemployment, food insecurity and homelessness. We can't thank our school staff enough for the energy and time they are giving to this critical initiative.

*Earlier this week, Governor Cuomo directed that summer school programs must be delivered through distance learning this year. We are currently evaluating what that will mean for Wildwood School's summer session, and our Wildwood School Leadership expects to finalize plans that will be shared with all School families within the next two weeks. We are also working on plans for the potential reopening of WWS in September, which the Governor's Office has requested us to submit for approval by July. If and when we receive further guidance from SED and/or the Governor's Office concerning school reopening protocols, we will incorporate all such guidance into our final plans. Those plans will be shared in detail with school families and staff as soon as possible.

*All of our day programs and most other supports and services remain closed at this time. In many respects, our day services staff have been the people we have asked to pivot and change the most during this difficult time, and they have been simply amazing in terms of their response. Working in five teams, they have involved approximately 60 individuals in virtual group activities including socialization, imagination, music, karaoke, dancing, yoga, crafts, cooking and book club. Program participants have been able to take virtual tours of museums and zoos, take "rides" at Disney, and "watch" fireworks together. Community partners like AYCO and NY LIfe have been enlisted to play music in a "virtual" jam session (AYCO), and participate in online games (NY Life). THANK YOU AYCO and NY Life!! "Online" connections are also being used to help people learn safe behaviors like hand washing, mask wearing and social distancing, to get them ready for the time when they can connect with their friends "in person"!

*Our Day Support Staff are also making videos for our many community volunteer sites to let our partners know how much the people we support are looking forward to returning to their volunteer efforts as soon as possible.

*Day support staff are also meeting almost 50 program participants (one at a time and using safe practices) for walks and/or drives to help them cope with the huge changes in their routines and in the daily structure on which they have come to rely and depend. Families also deeply appreciate the engagement of their loved ones, and the break from this unexpected, constant caregiving. "In person" activities include caring for plants in the Wildwood greenhouse; visiting drive through food venues with staff for conversation and snacks; driving around singing at the top of their lungs to the radio; watching birds; painting outside; taking walks; counting steps; participating in yoga; and getting fit. Every day, our Day Support staff comes up with new and creative ideas to engage both the people in our residences and regular day program participants who are now home with their families, and our hats are off to them for their commitment, creativity and flexibility.

*Our residential and community habilitation staff continue to check in regularly with people living on their own or in supportive apartments to make sure they are doing well and have the support they need.

*Our employment services staff continue to actively support many individuals who are working, and they are also providing strong support to people who have lost their jobs, to help them secure available unemployment benefits and be ready to apply for and secure new employment when opportunities become available. This staff has also been incredible--they have been working in public, community-based settings where the risk of infection is always a reality, and in "virtual" settings where it takes all their energy to keep program participants engaged, comforted, and moving forward, and they haven't blinked an eye for a second!!

* Our recreation/respite staff has also been outstanding in traveling to different residences to help out with meaningful arts, crafts and outdoor gardening/ planting activities, and in supporting individual volunteer activities, as appropriate and safe, for people living at home with their families.

*All staff, with the exception of those working in or redeployed to our residences, some employment services staff and our facilities team, continue to work from home at this time, but we are hopeful that will change within the next month.

*All regular employees continue to receive their full compensation and available benefits, including health care.

*Our staff continues to stay connected, and to support and care for each other in many awesome ways. Online activities such as HEAL (Healthy Eating Active Living) contests, yoga and mindfulness sessions, virtual "get-togethers", video talent contests, "Thank You Thursday" email messages from one staff to another (shared to all staff), and learning opportunities offered by our Training Department and Behavioral Support Team, have all been incredibly well received in recent weeks and are helping everyone get through these challenging times.

*Wildwood's United Self Advocacy Committee, consisting solely of people receiving support from our agency, continues to send out weekly uplifting advocacy messages during this health emergency, to keep everyone's spirits high. I found particular inspiration in this week's message about the benefits of having pets, although our dog is going to be a total "diva" when we go back to work, after all this constant attention!! Our self advocates really appreciate your feedback , and they are even more motivated to help keep us all strong during this difficult time. Please watch for Advocacy Affirmations each week, and keep your feedback coming to help shape future messages!

*Thanks to all of you who participated in Wildwood's Catalog of Giving, which was launched online last Thursday, May 13th. With your help, we raised over $175,000 to help Wildwood recognize the ongoing generosity of our community, recover from the loss of our Gala and highlight some of Wildwood's emerging needs in response to the current environment. We are grateful beyond words for your caring support.

*Lots of valuable information, updated frequently, is available to you on our website for families:

https://sites.google.com/wildwoodprograms.org/family-resources/home!

* We hope you will check out the video we created this week to say a special thank you to all of our DSPs, across all programs and services, for their incredible commitment and dedication to our loved ones and to their work.

https://youtu.be/U8-LOtkCeAY

Our direct support staff are truly our unsung heroes. If you would like to share with them the impact of their work on your loved ones' lives or those of your families, please reach out to me or to Tom Schreck, our Director of Communications, at "tschreck@wildwoodprograms.org". I am a firm believer that we can't say thank you enough.

We deeply appreciate, as always, your trust in and support of Wildwood as we continue this challenging journey together. Stay home, stay healthy and stay safe!!

With warm wishes for a happy and healthy holiday long weekend, and another positive week on the "road to recovery"!

Mary Ann

Dear Wildwood Families:

I hope you all had the chance to enjoy some outdoor time on this beautiful spring day! I don't know about you, but my attitude about everything we are being asked to handle right now is so much better when the sun is shining and it's warm outside!!

Again this week, I am pleased to report that things at Wildwood remain calm and stable. Ten weeks and counting of NY on Pause are clearly wearing on everyone, but I am constantly inspired and invigorated by the positive attitudes and patience of the children and adults we support, your families, and our dedicated, creative, committed staff. We continue to support your loved ones, your families and our amazing staff in the very best ways that we can, and everyone is rising to the occasion in simply incredible ways!

Here are the week's highlights:

* The Capital District Region of NYS, including most of Wildwood's services, remains "On Pause" until May 28, 2020, pursuant to Governor Cuomo's latest directive. When our area achieves two more metrics as defined by the Governor and his staff, this region can begin to open in phases, spaced two weeks apart. There is no substantive guidance yet about what that will mean for services to people with developmental disabilities, and we are awaiting further direction from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the Office for People with Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD), the NYS Education Department (SED) and the NYS Department of Health (DOH).

*There have been no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in any of our residences or among our regular staff. We continue to be extremely vigilant in enforcing social distancing rules, visitation restrictions, regular use of personal protective equipment including masks and gloves, and routine temperature checks for staff and people receiving residential and other "in- person" supports.

*Staffing remains solid, stable and consistent both in our residences and elsewhere throughout the agency. Many staff from programs that are currently closed continue to help out in Wildwood's residences with day activities, grocery shopping, cleaning and other necessary tasks. Despite their fears about the virus and its potential impact on themselves and their families, our caring, dedicated employees in all program areas are consistently reporting for their shifts, even when redeployed to residences, and they are giving their all to our loved ones. We are profoundly grateful for this incredible level of commitment.

*As directed by Governor Cuomo, Wildwood School will remain closed for the rest of the school year. All end-of-the-year school activities have been cancelled, although we still plan to hold a Young Adult Program (YAP) Graduation ceremony for this year's class at our Curry Road School property. Our School staff is doing everything it can to ensure that this very special "right of passage" is properly celebrated within the restrictions that currently exist, and some very unique, incredibly creative ideas have emerged. Stay tuned for further details!!

*Distance learning continues in the School program and a wide variety of resources continue to be offered to students and families. Music therapy, art therapy and pet therapy have now gone "virtual", and many students are also enjoying periodic video-conferences with their classroom staff. Teachers and social workers are in regular contact with families to make sure they have the assistance they need.

*The school backpack program remains very active, with several school staff regularly collecting, packing and delivering food to school families in need.

*We are hopeful that Governor Cuomo will make a decision regarding summer school and camp programs within the next 10 days, and as soon as we have been advised of that decision, we will immediately communicate it to you. In the meantime, we continue to develop plans for all possible options, including the development of appropriate safety and space plans to keep our students and staff safe, well-protected and healthy. This week, through our affiliation with a downstate association of educational providers, we have been able to access plans developed by other states that are ahead of NY in the reopening process, and we will review them for best practices, policies and protocols that we feel can help us in our own efforts. We also continue to await further guidance from SED and the Governor's Office concerning school reopening protocols, and we will incorporate all such guidance into our plans. Our plans will be shared in detail with school families and staff well before Wildwood School ultimately resumes.

*All of our day programs and most other supports and services remain closed until at least May 28th. We are hopeful that we will soon receive further information from the Governor's office, and OPWDD about reopening time frames and protocols for Wildwood's day services, and we are also hard at work on the development of our own safety and space plans to enable that to happen .

*Our residential and community habilitation staff continue to check in regularly with people living on their own or in supportive apartments to make sure they are doing well and have the support they need.

*Our employment services staff continue to actively support individuals who are working, and they are also providing strong support to people who have lost their jobs, to help them secure available unemployment benefits and be ready to apply for and secure new employment when the "Pause" period is done.

*Where appropriate and safe, our day services, community habilitation, recreation and respite staff members are working with children and adults who are home with their families and not able to participate in their normal Wildwood activities, to maintain some semblance of normalcy for them, and to give their families a much-needed break during this difficult time. Car rides, walks outdoors, videoconferences, virtual "happy hours", online group games, "virtual scavenger hunts", outdoor arts and crafts and other activities are among the most popular activities, and are happening more and more frequently.

*All staff, with the exception of those working in or redeployed to our residences, some employment services staff and our facilities team, continue to work from home at this time.

*All regular employees continue to receive their full compensation and available benefits, including health care.

*A wide range of opportunities has developed for our staff to stay connected and to support and care for each other in many wonderful ways. Online activities such as HEAL (Healthy Eating Active Living) contests, yoga and mindfulness sessions, video-conference "get-togethers", learning opportunities offered by our Training Department and Behavioral Support Team, and virtual "team talent contests", complete with very entertaining videos, have all emerged in recent weeks and are helping everyone get through these difficult times.

*Wildwood's United Self Advocacy Committee, consisting solely of people receiving support from our agency, continues to send out weekly uplifting advocacy messages during this health emergency, to keep everyone's spirits high. They are thrilled with the feedback they have received to date, and even more motivated to help keep us all strong during this difficult time. Please watch for Advocacy Affirmations each week, and keep your feedback coming to help shape future messages!

*The Sharing Is Caring initiative developed by a group of our staff to collect gently used puzzles, books, balls, board games, art materials, magazines and the like from community friends looking to "declutter", and redistribute those items to Wildwood families and community members in need of things to do while stuck at home, has been incredibly well received both within the Wildwood Family, and by our larger community. Wildwood's "Mighty Transportation Department" continues to pick up donations and drop off needed materials throughout the Capital Region!! If you have items to offer, or need games and activities to keep family members occupied, please don't hesitate to contact us!

*We hope all of you have had a chance to see Wildwood's Catalog of Giving, which was launched online this past Thursday, May 13th. It is an incredibly unique and creative way to help Wildwood recognize the ongoing generosity of our community, celebrate the inspiring work of our staff, recover from the loss of our Gala and highlight some of Wildwood's emerging needs in response to the current environment. Each year, our Gala adds over $200,000 in financial support to Wildwood's programs and services, and the Catalog of Giving will hopefully enable us to continue that support, despite the cancellation of this year's Gala. Every gift counts, so please check it out and contribute if you can. You can do so right from the comfort of your own home!! Here is the link:

https://www.flipsnack.com/C5FDBADEFB5/wildwood-foundation-s-catalog-of-giving/full-view.html

You can also access the Catalog through Wildwood's Facebook page and our website. We deeply appreciate any support you can give.

*Lots of valuable information, updated frequently, is also available to you on our website for families:

https://sites.google.com/wildwoodprograms.org/family-resources/home!

* Lastly, several of you have contacted me recently to voice your frustrations over your inability to visit with your loved ones who live in Wildwood's certified residences, or to bring them to your homes for short visits. Please know that I share your feelings--like you, John and I have not seen our son since mid-March. Matthew absolutely does not understand the concepts of a "virus" or a global "pandemic", and my constant stomach ache is that he has concluded that we just don't care anymore. However, I do think there is a connection between Wildwood's strict enforcement of a "no visitors" policy in our certified residences, and our ability to report to you for the last 10 weeks that we have no confirmed COVID cases in our residences (including staff).

I know that similar concerns exist for the students of Wildwood School who are experiencing profound disruption of their routines and significant isolation due to the prolonged closure of schools, and also for everyone who participates in all of our adult services, including day, employment, respite and recreation.

Isolation, and profound changes in routine, have an impact on all of us, and particularly our loved ones with developmental disabilities. Our family members' mental and emotional wellbeing is critical to their physical wellbeing, and that is true for everyone we serve--children, adolescents and adults--regardless of whether they are home with their families, living independently, or living in Wildwood's residences.

Please don't be afraid to share your thoughts via letters, email or phone calls with the Governor's Office, SED, OPWDD and DOH, so that this issue is given thoughtful consideration by policy makers in the coming weeks, as the "unpausing of NY" continues. We CAN inform the process in very meaningful ways.

Thank you, as always, for your trust in and support of Wildwood as we continue this challenging journey together. Stay home, stay healthy and stay safe!!

With warm wishes for another positive week on the "road to recovery",

Mary Ann

Dear Wildwood Families:

I am happy to report that although NY on Pause is dragging on far longer than any of us ever imagined, it has been a calm and stable week at Wildwood, as we continue to support your loved ones, your families and our amazing staff in the very best ways that we can. Despite the forecast for snow tonight and cold, blustery weather this weekend (Bah, humbug!!), there have been lots of activities occurring this past week to take full advantage of the beautiful weather in recent days, and many wonderful, creative interactions have happened online as well.

Here are the week's highlights:

*There continue to be no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in any of our residences or among our regular staff. We are being extremely vigilant in enforcing social distancing rules, visitation restrictions, regular use of personal protective equipment including masks and gloves, and routine temperature checks for staff and people receiving residential and other "in person" assistance and support.

*Staffing remains strong, stable and consistent both in our residences and elsewhere throughout the agency. Many staff from programs that are currently closed continue to help out in Wildwood's residences with day activities, grocery shopping, cleaning and other necessary tasks. Despite their fears about the virus and its potential impact on themselves and their families, our caring, dedicated employees in all program areas are consistently reporting for their shifts, even when redeployed to residences, and they are giving their all to our loved ones. Many are even taking on additional duties above and beyond the call of duty. There just aren't words to thank them for this incredible level of commitment.

*Where appropriate and safe, several of our day services, community habilitation, recreation and respite staff members are working in person or remotely with people who are home with their families and not able to participate in their normal Wildwood activities, to maintain some semblance of normalcy for those individuals, and give their families a chance to catch their collective breath during this long, hard stretch of uncertainty. Car rides, walks outdoors, videoconferences, virtual "happy hours", online group games and other activities are among the most popular activities, and are happening more and more frequently.

*Our employment services staff continue to support individuals who are still working, and they are also providing strong support to individuals who have lost their jobs, so that they can receive available unemployment benefits, and be ready to apply for and secure new employment when the "Pause" period is done.

*As directed by Governor Cuomo last week, Wildwood School will remain closed for the rest of the school year. All end-of-the-year school activities have been cancelled, although we still hope to hold the Young Adult Program (YAP) Graduation for this year's class at our Curry Road School building. Some really creative planning is emerging!! Our School staff is simply amazing in terms of its collective ability to make lemonade from lemons--stay tuned for further details!!

*Distance learning continues in the School program and a wide variety of resources have been offered to students and families. Music therapy, art therapy and pet therapy have now gone "virtual", and many students are also enjoying periodic video-conferences with their classroom staff. Teachers and social workers are in regular contact with families to make sure they have the assistance they need.

*The school backpack program remains very active, with several school staff regularly collecting, packing and delivering food to school families in need.

* Governor Cuomo has indicated that a decision regarding summer school and camp programs will be forthcoming by the end of May, and as soon as we have been advised of that decision, we will immediately communicate it to you. We are in the meantime developing plans for all possible scenarios.

* We continue to plan for the eventual reopening of Wildwood School, including the development of appropriate safety and space plans to keep our students and staff safe, well-protected and healthy. We are awaiting further written guidance from the NYS Education Department and the Governor's Office concerning reopening protocols, and we will incorporate all such guidance into our plans. Our final plans will be shared in detail with school families and staff well before Wildwood School ultimately resumes.

* We "virtually" celebrated Teacher Appreciation Week this week, with a wonderful video created by the School staff, with help from students and families. We are so very grateful to all of Wildwood's talented teachers for their tireless efforts to help our students achieve their highest potentials, even in unprecedented times like this! Thank you to everyone who contributed to the video--it was deeply appreciated and very well received!!

Check out the video here

*All of our day programs and most other supports and services remain closed until at least May 15th, pursuant to an executive order issued by Governor Cuomo. The Governor has begun to release conceptual plans for the reopening of businesses throughout the state and we are hopeful that we will soon receive further information from his office, and the Office for People with Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD), about what that will mean for Wildwood's adult services. As soon as we have that information, we will immediately pass it on to you.

*We continue to work on the development of safety and space plans that will be implemented as adult services eventually begin to reopen.

*Our residential and community habilitation staff continue to check in regularly with people living on their own or in supportive apartments to make sure they are doing well and have the support they need.

*All staff, with the exception of those working in or redeployed to our residences, some employment services staff and our facilities team, are working from home at this time.

*All regular employees continue to receive their full compensation and available benefits, including health care.

*We celebrated Nurse's Appreciation Week this week, complete with car parades, a thank you video, and many wonderful individual messages of gratitude and support. Wildwood's nursing staff has been "on the front lines" throughout this global health crisis, and the support and guidance they have given to all of us has been invaluable. You can watch our "thank you "video here!!

https://youtu.be/15Tyy5sw4N0

*Through online activities such as HEAL (Healthy Eating Active Living) contests, yoga and mindfulness sessions, and video-conference "get-togethers" and learning opportunities offered by our Training Department and Behavioral Support Team, our employees continue to stay connected, and to support and care for each other in many really meaningful, positive ways.

*Wildwood's United Self Advocacy Committee, consisting solely of people receiving support from our agency, continues to send out weekly uplifting advocacy messages during this health emergency, to keep everyone's spirits high. They are thrilled with the feedback they have recieved to date, and even more motivated to help keep us all strong during this difficult time. Please watch for Advocacy Affirmations each week, and keep your feedback coming to help shape future messages!

*The Sharing Is Caring initiative developed by a group of our staff to collect gently used puzzles, books, balls, board games, art materials, magazines and the like from community friends looking to "declutter", and redistribute those items to Wildwood families and community members in need of things to do while stuck at home, has been incredibly well received both within the Wildwood Family, and by our larger community. Special thanks go out to Wildwood's "Mighty Transportation Department", for all of its hard work picking up donations and dropping off needed materials throughout the Capital Region!! If you have items to offer, or need games and activities to keep family members occupied, please don't hesitate to contact us!!

*Once again, we offer special thanks to Wildwood's Graham family and its band "Watch Reggie Run", for scheduling yet another musical concert to entertain families in this time of high anxiety and stress. Check out https://youtu.be/9dZ-1sGeFNw at 1:00 p.m. tomorrow (Saturday, May 9th) for the band's latest performance. It is efforts like this, given from the heart and celebrating the growth of the people we support, that keep us positive and optimistic right now!!

*We hope all of you received an electronic invitation this week from the Wildwood Foundation to join in an online initiative it has developed to help us recognize the ongoing generosity of our community, celebrate the inspiring work of our staff, recover from the loss of our Gala and highlight some of Wildwood's emerging needs in response to the current environment. Wildwood's Catalog of Giving will be launched at 7 p.m. next Thursday, May 13th, and we hope you will consider participating. You will be able to do so right from the comfort of your own home!!

*Lots of valuable information, updated frequently, is available to you on our new website for families:

https://sites.google.com/wildwoodprograms.org/family-resources/home!

* Last but not least, Happy Mother's Day to all of the Wildwood mothers out there, both among our families and our staff. There have been wonderful craft activities, flower plantings, card-makings and other gifts from the heart occurring throughout this past week, and I hope that many of you will be loving recipients of those efforts in the days to come. And if you are (like me) unable to spend this special day with the loved one who is at the core of your commitment to Wildwood, please know that I feel your pain (Matthew and I have NEVER EVER been apart on Mother's Day in 33 years). However, I also hope that you will be comforted in knowing that our amazing, dedicated staff who will be with your family members on Sunday are doing their very best to surround them with the comfort,security, friendship and love that are the "essence" of our collective Wildwood Family.

Thank you, as always, for your trust in and support of Wildwood as we continue this difficult journey together. Stay home, stay healthy and stay safe!!

With warm wishes for another positive week on the "road to recovery",

Mary Ann

Dear Wildwood Families:

At the end of another long week of NY on Pause, we remain positive, hopeful and looking forward as we continue to support your loved ones, your families and our amazing staff in the very best ways that we can. We all really enjoyed the glimpses of spring sunshine this week, and as the leaves on the trees sprout and flowers begin to bloom, we are encouraging everyone to get outside, even if it's only for 5 minutes and a short walk around the house. There's no better way to keep our spirits up!!

Here are the latest Wildwood updates:

*There have still been no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in any of our residences or among our regular staff. We continue to take every possible precaution to vigilantly safeguard everyone's health and wellbeing, including strict enforcement of social distancing rules and visitation restrictions, regular use of personal protective equipment including masks and gloves, and routine temperature checks for staff and people receiving residential and other "in person" assistance and support .

*We are paying close attention to people's emotional and mental health by making sure that they have plenty of opportunities to ask questions and receive information about what is going on around us; trying to keep everyone engaged in meaningful activities throughout the day; and doing everything we can to keep morale strong and routines as normal as possible.

*We continue to experience strong staffing levels in our residences, and we are profoundly grateful to the many staff from programs that are currently closed, who are helping out in those residences with day activities, grocery shopping, cleaning and other necessary tasks.

*We also deeply appreciate those staff working either remotely or in person with people who are home with their families and not able to participate in their normal Wildwood activities, and our employment services staff who continue to support individuals still working.

*Special thanks to one of our residential teams that worked incredibly hard to pull off a "virtual 50th birthday party", complete with a wished-for lobster dinner, for someone who was unable to be with his family on his milestone birthday. From all reports, his smiles and excitement were priceless. These kinds of "above and beyond the call of duty" staff efforts are happening in multiple ways every day across the agency, and they make us all proud and humbled to be part of the Wildwood Family.

*As directed by Governor Cuomo earlier today, Wildwood School will remain closed for the rest of the school year. All end-of-the-year school activities have been cancelled, although we still hope to hold the Young Adult Program (YAP) Graduation at our Curry Road School building later this summer, depending on the future course of the pandemic.

*The Wildwood School Staff continues to reach new heights of creativity as they develop and offer a wide variety of distance learning resources to our students and their families. Music therapy, art therapy and pet therapy have now gone "virtual", and many students are also enjoying periodic video-conferences with their classroom staff. Teachers and social workers are in regular contact with families to make sure they have the assistance they need. The school backpack program also continues to be quite active, with several school staff working hard to collect, pack and deliver food to school families in need at this time.

* Special congratulations to WWS intermediate-level teacher Pam Hojohn who this week received (virtually) the 2020 Carolee Wilson Scholarship Award, intended to recognize excellence and creativity in a promising new teacher, in memory of Carolee Wilson, an innovative teacher and coordinator who helped to create the WWS program in the 1990s.

* Governor Cuomo has indicated that a decision regarding summer school and camp programs will be forthcoming by the end of May, and as soon as we have been advised of that decision, we will immediately communicate it to you.

* In the meantime, we are continuing our planning around the eventual reopening of Wildwood School, including the development of appropriate safety and space plans to keep our students and staff well-protected and healthy when that does happen. We expect that at some point, we will receive written guidance from the NYS Education Department concerning reopening protocols, and we will incorporate that guidance into our plans. Our final plans will be shared in detail with all school families and staff well before Wildwood School ultimately resumes.

*All of our day programs and most other supports and services remain closed until at least May 15th, pursuant to an executive order issued by Governor Cuomo. The Governor has indicated that he will decide next week whether to further extend NY on Pause and the closures of these programs, and as always, as soon as we have that information, we will immediately pass it on to you.

*In the meantime, we are working on the development of safety and space plans that will be implemented as these programs eventually begin to reopen as well.

*Our residential and community habilitation staff continue to check in regularly with people living on their own or in supportive apartments to make sure they are doing well and have the support they need.

*All staff, with the exception of those working in or redeployed to our residences, some employment services staff and our facilities team, continue to work remotely at this time.

*All regular employees continue to receive their full compensation and available benefits, including health care.

*Through online activities such as HEAL (Healthy Eating Active Living) contests, yoga and mindfulness sessions, and video-conference "get-togethers" and learning opportunities offered by our Training Department and Behavioral Support Team, our employees continue to stay connected, and to support and care for each other in wonderful ways.

*Wildwood's United Self Advocacy Committee, consisting solely of people receiving support from our agency, has been creating and sending out weekly uplifting advocacy messages during this health emergency, to keep everyone's spirits high. They have been extremely well-received to date. Please watch for Advocacy Affirmations each week, and send us your feedback to help shape future messages!

*The initiative developed by a group of our staff to collect gently used puzzles, books, balls, board games, art materials, magazines and the like from community friends looking to "declutter", and to redistribute those items to Wildwood families and community members in need of things to do while stuck at home, has been incredibly well received both within the Wildwood Family, and by our larger community. If you have items to offer, or need games and activities to keep family members occupied, please don't hesitate to contact us!!

*A new (weekly) podcast from Wildwood's Behavioral Support Team is now available on our web site with tips and strategies for managing interruptions and disruption.

*We continue to celebrate our core values--Respect, Integrity, Creativity and Holism--through (virtual) monthly awards to individual staff members, based on nominations from their coworkers. Congratulations to Lauri Koen, a speech and language therapist at Wildwood School, who received the March Values in Action Award for her creativity, and to Allen Case, a member of Wildwood's Technology Team, who received April's Values in Action Award for his creativity!

*We are also making plans for the Annual Values in Action Awards, traditionally presented by members of Wildwood's Board of Directors at Spring Staff Day in June. Although we have been forced to cancel Spring Staff Day this year because of COVID-19, we are working with the Board to ensure that the annual Values in Action Awards are presented "virtually" before the end of June.

*On May 13th, the Wildwood Foundation Team will launch an online initiative it has developed to recognize the ongoing generosity of our community. and the inspiring work of our staff, while highlighting some of Wildwood's emerging needs in response to the current environment. Watch for a special invitation next week, and if you are looking for ways to help, please consider participating. You will be able to do so right from the comfort of your own home!!

*You can access lots of valuable information, updated frequently, on our new website for families:

https://sites.google.com/wildwoodprograms.org/family-resources/home!

*Our heartfelt thanks to everyone who has sent a meal to a residence, or a card or kind word to our staff on the front line of this battle. Their focus is always on our loved ones, and we are hearing over and over again how wonderful it is to receive supportive, positive feedback from families, and not to have to think about cooking dinner after yet another long hard day of everyone being cooped up with no understanding of why they can't go out. In big and small ways, your gestures mean so much and they are deeply appreciated by our staff!!

It is both uplifting and inspiring to watch the Wildwood Family not only survive, but actively thrive and strengthen in the face of this life-altering crisis all around us. The person-centered responsiveness to the individuals and families we serve, and the creativity and innovation that have always been hallmarks of our staff and our services are alive and well, and we have great hope for Wildwood's future.

Thank you, as always, for your trust in and support of Wildwood as we continue this challenging journey together. Stay home, stay healthy and stay safe!!

Wishing you all peace, safety, comfort and good health,

Mary Ann Lou Nelson Anne Lauren

Dear Wildwood Families:

It's hard to believe that over 5 weeks have passed since Governor Cuomo announced NY on Pause and the closure of most of our programs, in response to the global COVID pandemic. Although there are days when it feels like life will never return to "normal" (and it probably won't), it's also incredibly amazing and uplifting to see how much has been accomplished at Wildwood during these past five weeks, through the innovation and creativity of our staff, and our strong partnerships with so many of you. Here are the latest updates:

* To date, there have been no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in any of our residences or among our regular staff. However, we know that infections have begun to appear in other residential programs throughout the Capital District as the spread of the virus increases in this area, so we continue to be on high alert, and to vigilantly safeguard the wellbeing of both the individuals we support, and the staff working in Wildwood's residences.

* All staff are now wearing masks while working, and we are encouraging the people who live in our residences to do the same, if they can. We are also checking people's temperatures on a daily basis, and watching for non-verbal signs, such as loss of appetite that may signal loss of taste or smell (a frequent symptom of COVID-19); unsteady gait; and/or lethargy/ withdrawal from social contact, all of which have been recently noted in our field to potentially signal infection in the people we support. We are also doing everything we can to keep everyone's spirits high and their routines as normal as possible.

*Some good news--the individual from our residential program who contracted COVID-19 while home with family was discharged from the hospital earlier this week, and is now recuperating in the family's home.

*We continue to maintain strong staffing levels in our residences, and we are very grateful to the many staff from programs that are currently closed, who are helping out in those residences with day activities, grocery shopping, and other necessary tasks.

*We are very thankful as well to those staff working either remotely or in person with people who are home with their families and not able to participate in their normal Wildwood activities, and to our employment services staff who continue to support individuals who are still working.

* Wildwood School, all of our day programs and most other supports and services remain closed until at least May 15, 2020, pursuant to the Governor's latest Executive Order. Governor Cuomo has indicated that he will make an announcement next week regarding a potential further extension of NY Pause beyond May 15th, and we will pass that information along as soon as we know how it will affect our operations..

* All large-group, end-of-the-year school activities, including the prom, class field trips and moving up ceremonies have now been cancelled. We are still planning to hold the Young Adult Program (YAP) Graduation at the Curry Road School building, either in late June or at the end of the summer, depending on the future course of the pandemic. Graduation will be limited to families and necessary staff.

* The staff of Wildwood School continues to offer a wide variety of distance learning resources to our students and their families, and they are in frequent contact with those students and families. Recently, the staff created a video, set to music by members of the Wildwood staff "WOW" band, to say hello to the students and show them how much they are missed. Efforts are also underway to create "virtual" pet therapy opportunities for students who may benefit. And the school backpack program continues, with many school staff working hard to collect, pack and deliver food to school families in need at this time.

* A group of caring staff from across the agency has developed an initiative to collect gently used puzzles, books, balls, board games, art materials, magazines and the like from community friends looking to "declutter", and to redistribute those items to Wildwood families and community members in need of things to do while stuck at home. Please see Wildwood's Facebook page for further details.

* Wildwood's Behavioral Support Team is now offering podcasts to families and the general public, with tips and strategies to help everyone, and particularly families who have loved ones with developmental and intellectual disabilities, cope with the chaos and uncertainty created by the current health emergency. Again, further information can be found on Wildwood's Facebook page.

* Our residential and community habilitation staff are checking in regularly with people living on their own or in supportive apartments to make sure they are stable and well supported.

* All staff, with the exception of those working in or redeployed to our residences, some employment services staff and our facilities team, are working remotely at this time.

* All regular employees continue to receive their full compensation and available benefits, including health care.

* Through online activities such as HEAL (Healthy Eating Active Living) contests, yoga and mindfulness sessions, and video-conference "get-togethers", our staff continue to stay connected, and to support and care for each other in wonderful ways. Positive morale and unity of purpose are strong throughout the agency, and remain totally focused on everyone's wellbeing.

* Wildwood's United Self Advocacy Committee, consisting solely of people receiving support from our agency, has recently focused its efforts toward keeping the agency and all of its stakeholders well-supported and strong, by sending uplifting advocacy messages every week during this health emergency. Please keep an eye out for Advocacy Affirmations, and send us your feedback to help shape future messages!

* This week, Wildwood's Communications Team distributed an online Family Newsletter documenting some of the fun activities taking place in our residences while people are stuck at home. You can also access lots of valuable information, updated frequently, on our new website for families: https://sites.google.com/wildwoodprograms.org/family-resources/home!

* The Executive Management Team is in constant contact with each other and with Wildwood's Leadership Team to stay ahead of this health emergency that has turned life on end for all of us. We are now working on plans for the eventual reopening of buildings, programs and services.

* Our administrative and support functions continue to be "all hands on deck" in support of the rest of our staff and our services for people and families, even as billing and compensation protocols change (sometimes daily), and staff anxieties and concerns become more complex. We would never be where we are today without them.

* Look for an announcement from the Wildwood Foundation Team next week about the initiative they have developed to replace the 2020 Gala, and to respond to your inquiries about how you can help. I hope you find it as creative, inspiring and responsive as I do, both with respect to Wildwood's emerging needs as a result of this crisis, and your desires to help!!

*Just today, a community volunteer who was alerted to Wildwood's current needs by one of our Foundation Board members dropped off a bag of handmade masks on my doorstep. So many other caring community groups and volunteers have stepped forward in similar ways over the past few weeks, and without them, we would have virtually no personal protective equipment to give our staff, even in the face of the governmental edict that everyone who is an essential worker must wear a mask. We are grateful beyond words for the generosity of these caring people and groups.

* We are also ever so grateful to all of you who have sent a meal to a residence, or a card or kind word to our staff on the front line of this battle. Their focus is always on our loved ones, and we are hearing over and over again how wonderful it is to receive supportive, positive feedback from families, and not to have to think about cooking dinner after yet another long hard day of everyone being cooped up with no understanding of why they can't go out. In big and small ways, these gestures mean so much and they are deeply appreciated by our staff!!

A special thanks to Wildwood's Graham family and its band "Watch Reggie Run", for its incredible musical concerts to entertain families in this time of high anxiety and need. Check out https://youtu.be/zFI5jJIE74I for the band's latest performance and stay tuned for further announcements. It is efforts like this, given from the heart and celebrating the growth of the people we support, that keeps us moving forward right now!!

Wildwood was founded on and has always been about family. Our family has many parts, and the entire Executive Management Team can't find the words to express how grateful and inspired we are to watch all of our parts, each in their own special ways, come together as a united whole, to ensure that the people we support, and your families, get through this crisis safe, sound and with as little trauma as possible.

Thank you, more than ever, for your trust and support in Wildwood as we continue this unpredictable journey together. Stay home, stay healthy and stay safe!!

Wishing you all peace, safety, security and good health,

Mary Ann Lou Nelson Anne Lauren

Dear Wildwood Families:

As we come to the end of another long week of the global COVID 19 health emergency, here are a few important updates to keep you current with what's happening at Wildwood.

* There continue to be no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in any of our residences or among our regular staff. One person who has worked sporadically in Wildwood's in-home respite program did test positive for COVID, but was only working with their own family member at the time, and no one else at Wildwood was exposed. The individual from our residential program who contracted COVID while home with family remains hospitalized, but is showing improvement. Please keep these people in your thoughts and prayers, and send some of those thoughts and prayers our way as well, that we may continue to keep everyone safe and healthy.

* We have been able to maintain strong staffing levels in our residences, and we are very grateful to the many staff from programs that are currently closed, who are helping out in those residences with day activities, grocery shopping, and other necessary tasks. Kudos as well to those staff making remote outreach to people who are home with their families and not able to participate in their normal Wildwood activities at this time, and to our employment services staff who continue to support individuals still working. We are very humbled by and grateful for our staff's unwavering dedication and commitment to our loved ones.

* Pursuant to an Executive Order issued by Governor Cuomo earlier this week, Wildwood School, all of our day programs and most other supports and services will remain closed until at least May 15, 2020. All staff, with the exception of those working in our residences, some employment services staff and our facilities team, are working remotely at this time.

* The staff of Wildwood School continues to offer a wide variety of distance learning resources and supports for our students and their families, and they are in frequent contact with those students and families . They are also collecting, packing and delivering food to school families that have been particularly hard hit by this crisis.

* Our residential and community habilitation staff continue to check in regularly with people living on their own or in supportive apartments to make sure they are stable and well supported.

* All regular employees continue to receive their full compensation and available benefits, including health care.

* NYS has recently reached agreement with the federal Centers for Medicaid Services (CMS) on a methodology that will allow providers like Wildwood to provide services in alternative ways while our site-based, without walls, and community-based programs are closed, and to continue to be compensated for those services. The NYS Education Department has approved a similar approach. This will allow Wildwood to continue to pay our staff during the ongoing health crisis, so as you can imagine, we are very thankful for these recent developments.

* There is a strong spirit of moral support and collaboration among all of our staff, and everyone is really doing a wonderful job of taking care of each other and keeping morale high in these challenging times.

* As we advised last week, the Communications Team has created a website for families containing on-line resources, up-to-date information on COVID 19, and videos, blogs and other ways to learn about what's happening every day at Wildwood. We hope you've had a chance to visit it, but if not, please check it out at https://sites.google.com/wildwoodprograms.org/family-resources/home!

* The Executive Management Team continues to be in regular contact to assess and guide Wildwood's response to this ever-changing health pandemic.

* All administrative and support functions continue to work hard to support the rest of our staff, and our services to people and families.

* The Wildwood Foundation team continues its outreach to families, friends and supporters to thank them for their loyalty to Wildwood. Hopefully most, if not all of you will have received a letter this week from the Foundation highlighting some of the ways in which Wildwood is serving as a beacon of hope for the people we support, even as their worlds have been turned upside down.

* Wildwood's internal emergency response teams remain active and very busy.

*Wildwood's families and community partners continue to offer their support in multiple ways, including providing meals and treats for the residences, sewing and/or obtaining cloth masks and other personal protective equipment for the staff, rounding up games and activities for use at the residences, sending messages of support to our staff, etc. All of these gestures mean so much and are so deeply appreciated by our staff!! We can't thank you enough for your thoughtfulness, and your generosity of spirit and deed.

In summary, as NY Pause extends on, Wildwood remains strong, vibrant and forward-looking!! Our collective efforts are centered on the wellbeing of your loved ones, your families, and our amazing staff, and the unity of purpose, kindness, creativity, selflessness, gratitude, stability, smiles and progress that shine through each and every day are simply incredible, and truly inspiring.

Thank you for your trust and support as we negotiate this pandemic together. As always, please don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions or concerns, and also check out our website and Facebook page for regular updates and resources that you may find helpful. Most of all, stay well and safe!!

With warm regards,

Mary Ann

Dear Wildwood Families:

As we come to the end of another week of the global COVID 19 health emergency, here is an update on how Wildwood is faring.

* There continue to be no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in any of our residences or among our staff. The only person who has become ill so far chose to go home with family in mid-March and was at the family home for several days before symptoms occurred, No one else at Wildwood was exposed. We ask for your continued well wishes and prayers for that individual, who remains hospitalized at this time.

* So far, Wildwood has not experienced significant staffing absences or shortages, and we are very grateful for our staff's continuing dedication and commitment to our loved ones.

* Pursuant to an Executive Order issued by Governor Cuomo earlier this week, Wildwood School, all of our day programs and most other supports and services will remain closed until at least April 29, 2020. All staff, with the exception of those working in our residences and our facilities team, are working remotely at this time.

* The staff of Wildwood School continues to offer a wide variety of distance learning resources and supports for our students and their families, and they are in frequent contact with those students and families .

* All of our residential supports remain fully operational and appropriately staffed, and we are working hard to make sure that continues “for the long haul”.

* Our residential and community habilitation staff continue to check in regularly with people living on their own or in supportive apartments to make sure they are stable and well supported.

* Many staff from our day programs and the school are working in our certified residences during the day to assist in providing meaningful day activities for the people who live there. These staff also continue to shadow the regular residential staff to “learn the ropes” in case we need their assistance staffing the residences in the weeks ahead.

* All regular employees continue to receive their full compensation and available benefits, including health care.

* In recognition of the emotional and mental health toll that the ongoing stress and anxiety of this situation can inflict, colleagues from across the agency have offered "virtual "opportunities for their co-workers to connect and unwind, including trivia games, yoga sessions, you tube music videos, HEAL (Healthy Eating Active Living) scavenger hunts and word searches, and more. Staff are also sharing with each other pictures and videos of various creative activities that are occurring in the residences with their help. All of this is helping to keep morale strong and positive in these trying times.

* The Communications Team has created a website for families containing on-line resources, up-to-date information on COVID 19, and videos, blogs and other ways to learn about what's happening every day at Wildwood. We hope you will check it out at https://sites.google.com/wildwoodprograms.org/family-resources/home!

* The Executive Management Team continues to meet regularly via video conference to assess and guide Wildwood's response to this ever-changing health pandemic.

* All other administrative and support functions continue to work hard to support the rest of our staff, and our services to people and families.

* The Wildwood Foundation team continues its outreach to families, friends and supporters to thank them for their loyalty to Wildwood, and to share some of the many inspirational ways in which Wildwood is serving as a beacon of hope in this crisis for the people and families at the heart of our mission.

* Wildwood's internal emergency response teams remain active and very busy at this time.

*Wildwood's families and community partners continue to offer their support in multiple ways, including providing meals and treats for the residences, sewing and/or obtaining cloth masks for the staff, rounding up games and activities for use at the residences, sending messages of support to our staff, etc. We can't thank you enough for your thoughtfulness, and your generosity of spirit and deed. Your efforts mean more than you can know during this difficult time.

At the end of every day, Wildwood's mission and values stand tall and vibrant, and our collective efforts remain laser-focused on the wellbeing of your loved ones, your families, and our invaluable staff. With those crucial goals to guide us, I have no doubt that we will conquer this COVID 19 challenge!

For those who are observing Passover and Easter this weekend, we wish you safe and healthy holy days. As always, please don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions or concerns, and also check out our website and Facebook page for regular updates and resources that you may find helpful. Most of all, be well and be safe!!

With warm regards,
Mary Ann

April 3, 2020

Dear Wildwood Families:

As we do our best to adjust to this strange new world of social distancing and “working remote”, I wanted to update you on our current status and how Wildwood continues to respond to the COVID 19 health emergency.

· Wildwood School and all of our day services programs remain closed, and we are awaiting further direction from the State on when they will be able to reopen.

· The staff of Wildwood School have worked very hard and creatively from their homes to create a wide variety of distance learning resources and supports for our students and their families, which can be accessed electronically or through “hard copies” that are being regularly prepared, updated and delivered to families as needed.

· In addition, the School’s teachers and social workers are reaching out through phone and email on a regular basis to make sure that all School families are receiving the support they need from Wildwood.

· All of our residential supports remain fully operational and appropriately staffed, and we are working hard to make sure that continues “for the long haul”.

· Our residential and community habilitation staff are regularly checking in with people living on their own or in supportive apartments to make sure they are stable and well supported during this ongoing health emergency.

· Many staff from our day programs and the school have been redeployed to Wildwood’s certified residences, to assist in providing meaningful day activities for the people who live there, now that those individuals are confined, like the rest of us, to home. These staff are also shadowing the regular residential staff to “learn the ropes” in case we need their assistance staffing the residences in the days and weeks ahead.

· Over 130 employees from all program areas have “volunteered” to be the first assigned to work in the residences should the need arise in the next phase of our emergency plan, and we are in the process of providing those employees with the training they require to be able to do so.

· We are supporting our staff in every possible way throughout this crisis, because when it is over, we want them to still be here with us so that we can continue to provide the quality supports and services that our loved ones need and deserve.

· Wildwood has not laid off any staff, nor does it have any intention of doing so. In addition, to date, all employees have received their full compensation and available benefits, including health care, and we are working hard to make sure that continues as long as possible.

· The Executive Management Team meets regularly via video conference to address each day’s very fluid, often unexpected developments, as well as the rapidly changing directives received from our oversight agencies, including the Governor’s Office, the Office for People with Developmental Disabilities and the State Education Department.

· All other administrative and support functions, including the business office team and the human resources team, are working very hard to keep Wildwood functioning as normally as possible, and to support the rest of our staff, and our services to people and families.

· Finally, we are closely interacting with the various internal emergency response teams that have been formed—Staffing, Communications, Business Continuity, Staff Concerns, Health and Safety and an overall Oversight Committee—to share the workload and address any and all issues and concerns that develop.

I can honestly say that I have never been more grateful and proud to be a part of Wildwood. The strength of our staff, along with their courage, creativity and commitment, takes my breath away. The support, understanding and cooperation we have received from our families and community partners, and your willingness to help in any way that we need have been both uplifting and inspiring. In the worst of circumstances, the best of Wildwood is alive and thriving, and I hope you all feel the confidence that I do that together, we WILL get through this, and emerge even stronger than before.

Please don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions or concerns, and also check out our website and Facebook page for regular updates and resources that you may find helpful. Most of all, stay safe and healthy!!

With warm regards,

Mary Ann

April 3, 2020

From Mary Ann Allen to Staff and Families:

We want to let you know that a person who receives residential supports from Wildwood has tested positive for the COVID-19 virus, and is currently hospitalized. The individual in question has been staying at their family home for a couple of weeks now, and symptoms did not emerge until several days after leaving their Wildwood residence.

We have notified the applicable County Health Department, the Office for People with Developmental Disabilities and the Justice Center. At this point, we have been advised by the Health Department that because of the time lag between leaving the Wildwood residence and the onset of symptoms, it is unlikely that other residents or staff were exposed, and no quarantine is necessary.

We have already been in touch with individual staff and families from the residence in question, and we will continue to be in communication with them as we receive additional guidance/ instructions from our oversight authorities.

Because of privacy and confidentiality considerations, we cannot share any additional information, but please rest assured that we have a solid plan in place to address this situation and any others that may emerge, and we are all working diligently to keep everyone safe and healthy.

Lastly, and most importantly, please keep this Wildwood family and their loved one in your thoughts and prayers.

March 24, 2020

Pursuant to our commitment to keep you all informed of the latest developments here at Wildwood, we want you to know that we have just received a directive from the Office for People with Developmental Disabilities suspending all visits to family homes for the people who live in our certified residential settings, effective at 5:00 p.m. tomorrow evening, March 25th.

Like all of the changes so far, we know that this change is abrupt and we want to assure you that we are absolutely committed to taking every safe and effective action that we can to maintain as much normalcy as possible for your loved ones as the COVID-19 health emergency continues. We will be working diligently with our Residential Leadership Team and each house team to implement this new directive in as person and family centered a way as possible for each person and family.

Additional communication will be forthcoming from the Residential Leadership Team as soon as possible to give you further specifics on how we will be handling this latest development. In the meantime, we deeply appreciate everyone's understanding and cooperation as we continue to follow the directives of our state and federal governments, as well as the Office for People with Developmental Disabilities, in order to protect the health and safety of your loved ones, your families and our staff. That is always our top priority.

Please feel free to reach out to any member of the residential leadership team, the emergency response teams or the Executive Management team with any questions or concerns.

Stay safe, stay healthy, and keep your spirits high!! We WILL get through this together!

Sincerely,

Mary Ann
Lou
Nelson
Anne
and Lauren

End of March 2020

Dear Families,

With the ever changing guidance that continues to come out stemming from the coronavirus, late last night we received a directive from OPWDD concerning enhanced restrictions involving visits at our IRA's (community residences.)

As of right now, only essential, regular staff are allowed inside houses. This includes the house, clinical and medical teams.

The restricted people includes unnecessary outside vendors as well as family members. We know that this change is abrupt and is deeply troubling for both families and to your loved ones and want to assure you that we will take every safe and effective measure to bring as much normalcy to the situation as we possibly can. We will do everything we can to facilitate transportation to your homes or to facilitate visits outside of the house and have the ability to use technology as a means to communicate (skype, facetime, etc,). We will have guidance out to all staff and will work with each house team to work as person and family centered as possible during these times to accommodate alternative visits.

In the meantime, we ask family members to not visit any homes without special arrangements that will be facilitated by the team We are instructing all staff to ask all families (3) questions in the event that your loved one travels home with you or visits outside of the home:

1. have you traveled outside of the country within the past 14 days
2. have you been exposed to someone with a confirmed case
3. Do you have any symptoms associated with the coronavirus (headache, sore throat, fever, body aches, etc.)

If the answer to any of these is "yes", we will ask that those alternative visits be suspended until it is cleared.

We are very sorry for the inconvenience and abruptness that this all brings and continue to pledge to you that the health and safety of all involved is of the utmost importance. Please feel free to reach out to any member of the residential leadership team or Executive Management team for any questions or concerns.

Thank you,

Mark Armstrong

March 19, 2020

In an effort to keep everyone in the loop and make it as easy as possible to answer questions from families and others, The Emergency Response Oversight Team wants you to know that late last night we received a directive from OPWDD imposing enhanced restrictions on visits to Wildwood residences.

Effective immediately, only essential, regular staff are allowed inside houses. This includes ONLY the house, clinical and medical teams. Therefore, we can no longer permit families or any other people who are not Wildwood staff to enter our residences, and even with respect to Wildwood staff, we will be limiting access to the houses as necessary to comply with this new order .

We know that this change is abrupt and we want to assure our families that we are absolutely committed to taking every safe and effective action that we can to maintain as much normalcy as possible for their loved ones and their families. We are making plans to do everything we can to facilitate transportation to family homes, to bring the people we support outside their houses for pickup by a family member if desired, to facilitate visits outside of the house in the open air (we do have to ask families to avoid taking their loved ones to public places or locations where more than 10 people may be congregated) and to facilitate the use of technology to keep families connected with their loved ones, when face to face visits are not feasible (skype, facetime, etc,). Through the Residential Leadership Team, we have issued specific guidance to all residential staff and we will be working with each house team to implement this new directive in as person and family centered a way as possible for each person and family.

In the meantime, we ask everyone NOT to come to any of our residences unless you are specifically asked to do so by a member of the Residential Administration Team (Mark Armstrong, Sue Hanson or the CIT Leaders) or the Executive Management Team. You will NOT be allowed inside. We will also be instructing all residential staff to ask all families (3) questions before we can bring and/ or release their family member to them for a visit to their family home or some other location outside our residences:

1. Have you traveled outside of the country within the past 14 days?
2. Have you been exposed to someone with a confirmed case?
3. Do you have any symptoms associated with the coronavirus (headache, sore throat, fever, body aches, etc.)?

If the answer to any of these is "yes", we will NOT be able to go forward with the family visit.

We deeply appreciate everyone's understanding and cooperation as we continue to follow the directives of our state and federal governments, as well as the Office for People with Developmental Disabilities, in order to protect the health and safety of all involved. That is always our top priority.

Please feel free to reach out to any member of the residential leadership team, the emergency response teams or the Executive Management team with any questions or concerns.

Stay safe, stay healthy, and keep your spirits high!! We WILL get through this together!

Sincerely,

Mary Ann and the Emergency Response Oversight Team

March 11, 2020

Dear program participants, parents, guardians, & residential programs:

As part of our commitment to keep you informed regarding Wildwood’s response to on-going concerns around the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), we want to assure our participants and their families that we have a plan in place to manage through the worst-case scenarios, even as we hope that it won’t be necessary.

Wildwood’s Infectious Disease Emergency Response Plan is in place to address potential phases of a regional health concern. We are closely monitoring the fluid situation and following guidance from U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH), Albany County Department of Health, the Office of People With Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD) and the New York State Education Department.

The serious attention COVID-19 is getting is because it is highly contagious and effective treatments don’t yet exist. In some communities where it is occurring, health authorities are taking measures to contain the spread that may seem unusual, such as imposing limited quarantines. Even though that is for the protection of all, it may be worrisome for many. That is why we will make every effort to provide frequent updates and factual, medically based information.

Wildwood’s Plan is summarized below, along with how it may impact students, participants and residents in each phase. Please read the following information carefully:

Phase One: Education & Prevention

• We will continue to provide medical facts and prevention education to staff, families & the people we serve.

• We will continue to consistently apply all the infection control precautions already in place in our policies.

• Visitors to all programs, including residences, must be screened prior to admittance per guidance from state agencies.

• Program participants who are not feeling well or who have signs of illness – fever, shortness of breath, cough, nasal congestion, runny nose, sore throat, nausea, vomiting and/or diarrhea - should remain at home.

• For the health and safety of participants and staff, transportation drivers will not transport individuals exhibiting symptoms of infectious illness.

• Please understand that individual participants will be sent home from programs if exhibiting signs of infectious illness. Please ensure that contact information is up to date so that staff can easily reach you if needed.

• Participants and staff who have traveled or have a household member who has traveled to an area with an active outbreak may not come to Wildwood programs without a medical clearance. (check cdc.gov if unsure)

• In following with the program illness policy, if a program participant is diagnosed with a contagious condition, please notify the Wildwood Program administrator/advocate/nurse to discuss the individual’s return to program. Participants must be free of diarrhea, vomiting or fever (without the use of fever reducing medications) for 24 hours before returning to the program.

• Residential staff have protocols in place to screen and obtain medical care for residents who show signs of illness.

• Response teams have been formed to manage specific functions in Phase Two and Phase Three if needed.

• Additional program-specific information may be sent out as needed.

Phase Two: Social Distancing

• This phase will be implemented if appropriate based on the guidance of the local Department of Health.

• Emergency Response teams will be activated to address issues around consistent staffing and other concerns.

• Programming changes will occur. Outings will be limited to those that can maintain social distancing protocols.

• Wildwood administration and non-direct service staff will be working from home, and access to the Latham site will be restricted.

• If advised to do so by the relevant state agencies, day programs and other services will be suspended.

Phase Three: Regional Emergency

• This phase will be activated if there is a regional health emergency.

• Emergency teams will remain active and information will be updated frequently.

• Administrative sites and most programs will be closed.

For more information on the coronavirus, consider consulting these additional resources:

• Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19)
  https://www.health.ny.gov/diseases/communicable/coronavirus/

• Travel: Frequently Asked Questions and Answers
  https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/faqs.html

• COVID-19: What is Stigma and What Causes It?
  https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/faq.html?CDC_AA_refVal=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cdc.gov%2Fcoronavirus%2F2019-ncov%2Fstigma-faq.html

• Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) – Frequently Asked Questions – Prevention
  https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/faq.html#prevention

• Prevention, Treatment of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)
  https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/about/prevention-treatment.html

• Albany County Department of Health
  Phone: 518-447-4580
  https://www.albanycounty.com/departments/health

In addition, New York has established a Novel Coronavirus Hotline, which can provide additional information. Call 1-888-364-3065 with questions or concerns about travel and symptoms.

Please know, that always, the health and safety of the students, program participants and staff is our highest priority, and we remain vigilant in our efforts to help the prevent the spread of illnesses. We thank you for your help in these efforts.