November Anniversaries
| First Name | Last Name | Hire Date | Tenure |
| BRENDA | LORY | 11/07/2002 | 19 years |
| CHRISTINE | THEOFANOPOULOS | 11/19/2019 | 2 years |
| DIANE | LOWE | 11/11/2019 | 2 years |
| ERIC | MOORE | 11/30/2020 | 1 year |
| GERALD | STALTER | 11/03/2014 | 7 years |
| MARY | DRAGON | 11/17/2009 | 12 years |
| SARAH | STALTER | 11/03/2014 | 7 years |
| VIVIAN | PITTMAN | 11/30/2020 | 1 year |
November Birthdays
| First Name | Last Name | Birth Date |
| AMY | OGG | 11/13 |
| ERIN | TAYLOR | 11/10 |
| TRAVIS | SAINE | 11/1 |
| DEANNA | STEPHENS | 11/20 |
| Pamela | Hodges | 11/21 |
| DIANE | LOWE | 11/5 |
| LISA | BARNETT | 11/18 |
| ANGELIA | CROWELL | 11/9 |
| MARILYN | BULLION | 11/10 |
| NANCY | ELEAZER | 11/30 |
| PAMELA | HOLLIS | 11/29 |
| CHERYL | JACKSON | 11/10 |
| CARYN | GRICE | 11/29 |
| SANDRA | HOOPER | 11/23 |
| MARTHA | TINNELL | 11/21 |
| RANDALL | SMITH | 11/18 |
"Fun Facts"
1) Competitive art used to be in the Olympics
2) A chef’s hat has exactly 100 pleats
3) The majority of your brain is fat
4) There was a successful Tinder match in Antarctica in 2014
5) Most wasabi we eat in the U.S. isn’t really wasabi
6) There is a fruit that tastes like chocolate pudding (black sapote)
7) Queen Elizabeth II is a trained mechanic
8) It takes 364 licks to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop
9) Dolphins have names for one another
10) Parrots have the power of reason
DSDC Halloween 2021
Person- Centered Thinking
We here are Developmental Services strive to be Person-Centered for those we support. We learn and strive daily to be good listeners!
What exactly is Person-Centered Thinking? Well, here at D.S.D.C it is very important to each of us that we are an extension of support to those we serve. It is changing our thinking a bit! It is about stretching ourselves and listening to those we support on what they want. It is not about just completing a job or just finishing a shift. Person-Centered Thinking is about the bigger picture on what goals the person wants for their life. Person-Centered thinking encompasses listening to both verbal and non-verbal communication. Being Person-Centered is about learning and listening to the person through the way they communicate to us!
What is a person-Centered approach to people’s lives? A person-centered approach recognizes the right of individuals to make informed choices. It gives people the ability to choose as well as to take responsibility for those choices with Dignity of Risk. A Person-Centered Approach builds on talents, dreams and skills, while we highlight those choices and support the person as needed to live safe and healthy lives.
How can we better know a person? We can start with a One-Page Profile!
What is a One Page Profile? Well, it is a tool we use to find out more about someone. This tool can be used for staff, a person supported or really anyone! You can even use it at an event you host to learn more about people!
Below are some examples of questions.
What do people appreciate about me? This can be anything! It is Your personal thoughts on what you think others really like about you! Such as I have great hair, I am a leader, I am a people person, I am a great son, it can be anything YOU feel that others appreciate about you!
What is important to me? This section can be anything that you feel is important, it can be things like, my family, a pet, taking a shower in the evenings, having coffee each morning, watching a specific program, eating a specific food, attending a certain community event or place you like to frequent, exercising, certain beliefs and values you hold. You can add as much as you like here!
How to Best Support Me? This is the section where you would put what you need assistance with. For a staff person you might want to say here what you need from your employer. This could be I learn best by someone showing me something, or I like to have written instructions. For someone supported it might be something like I need transportation, or I need assistance with showering or whatever the person feels they need support for.
Remembering Our Staff
This year we have lost three amazing staff here at Developmental Services. Each one of them will hold a special place in our hearts. Being a Direct Support Professional is such a special calling. It is not a “Job” it is choosing to serve others. Serving by mentoring, being a true team player, respecting and uplifting those we serve and their homes. Please see below.
Felicia Denise Wells | Obituaries | dicksonpost.com
Donna Marie Dietzel | Obituaries | dicksonpost.com
Brian Leo Coughlin Obituary – The Tennessean
What is a Direct Support Professional?
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Support Professionals (DSPs) are people who work directly with people with physical disabilities and/or intellectual disabilities with the aim of assisting the individual to become integrated into his/her community or the least restrictive environment.
A direct support professional is a person who assists an individual with a disability to lead a self-directed life and contribute to the community, assists with activities of daily living if needed, and encourages attitudes and behaviors that enhance community inclusion. A DSP may provide supports to a person with a disability at home, work, school, church, and other community places. A DSP also acts as an advocate for the disabled individual, in communicating their needs, self-expression and goals.
It is an amazing support and extension of Courage, Kindness and Love. It is a personal calling on someone’s life. Serving others and sharing life skills with those who have intellectual disabilities. It is sharing accomplishments with others, it is following the person’s wishes and allowing them to make their own choices, but being an extension when they need you. It is sharing in the true joy of assisting someone in accomplishing a goal they have chosen. It is watching someone who is working really hard to get something accomplished and making it happen!
A DSP is so many things! It can be someone who is a cook, a teacher, driver, someone who assists with bathing and hygiene, someone who lifts people, uses all types of different equipment too! A DSP is also a great community contact and bridge for those we support. They assist those we serve in making new community friends and the start to people making new relationships.
A very special thank you to those families who shared their loved one with us here at DSDC and gave back to others and their community. May you feel Peace and Love as you remember and honor your family, we are so proud to have been able to work with them and for them and they will forever be a part of the D.S.D.C. family.
