This week, we introduce you to the last two homes from our visit to the Sidney Plains Region. The two homes we visited are located on Route 23, with about a five-minute distance between them. Despite their relatively close location to one another, each house was very different in terms of size and number of residents. With that said, we were equally welcomed by both and spent the latter half of our afternoon being introduced to staff and residents at the homes. In turn, we want to welcome the final two houses of the Sidney Plains Region to the Springbrook Community.

The third house that we visited was one of the busiest! Direct support professionals and residents were engaged within every room, either enjoying time to themselves or working on personal goals. There are currently five residents who live at the house and one large fish tank filled with various exotic fish. This house is also home to a star artist: a gentleman who goes by “Pepper,” who was featured in an article in the Daily Star. We were privy to the artist’s work and hope that he’ll be able to share it with the Springbrook community in the future.

At this home we were also introduced to two Kelly’s, the residential manager Kelly Phelps (Kelly P.) and former manager Kelly Gardepe (Kelly G.), as well as direct support professionals and many of the residents of the home. Kelly G. has worked for about nine years in the Sidney houses and gradually worked her way up after starting her career as a DSP. She has worked alongside Springbrook to ensure that the transition would be easy for everyone, across the four houses. Before Springbrook came in, Kelly G. managed each house, and, at one time, all simultaneously. She expressed her gratitude for Springbrook’s leadership and the changes that have been made. She was also thankful for being relieved of the many duties that she once held, saying, “My stress level has dropped significantly and my phone doesn’t ring! […] I have been waiting for this!” Now, she has time to focus on the needs of residents and staff at this house.

The fourth and final house in the Sidney Plains Region was sleepy (by contrast to the third) when we visited. Two trees were decorated in the living room for the holiday, and a few strings of lights gave the house a warm glow. It was late afternoon and most of the residents were engaged in their rooms, either watching TV or working on an art project. The DSPs here, too, expressed that everyone was looking forward to new changes and, most of all, the opportunity to partake in new experiences.

Kelly P. summed up our visit to the Sidney Plains Region by saying, “Change is a hard thing for a lot of people, but everyone who lives and works here accepted the challenge. It is such a positive thing to see everyone working together.”