2018 Autism Awareness WALK Organized jointly with TOPS and ALC

The Vocational/Activities Specialist is a new position, created to assist clients in several ways.

1. Creating volunteer sites and assist-ing clients with their volunteer re-sponsibilities as they give back to the community.

2. Create small group and individual exercise opportunities with clients.

A Message from April LaRue, Vocational/Activities Specialist

By Kate Wingert, Andrea Halliday & Steven Silva

I really enjoyed the Autism Awareness Walk. Autism Awareness is a great cause. My favorite part of the Walk was the Star Wars Characters from the Golden Gate Gar-rison 501st Legion. I liked the walk, and couldn’t believe that so many people showed up this year. The weather was beautiful, it was not too hot or cold, just right. I got my picture taken with Darth Vader, and I got to walk

Autism Awareness Walk

1

Staff Message 2

Drum Circle 3

ALC Client Interview 4

Inside this issue:

ALC STAFF:

Donna Feingold,

Executive Director

Jordane Tofighi,

Associate Director

Jeannine Chang, Educa-

tion & Day Program Director

Barbara Simpson,

Community Living

Coordinator

Shawn Tan, Supported

Employment Coordinator

April LaRue, Vocational/

Activities Specialist

Carolyn Gomer,

Employment Specialist

Jose Angara,

Fiscal Accountant

Rodney Kline,

Office Manager

Curisa Stacker,

Medical Coordinator

Conchita Rodriguez,

Art Program Coord./IT

Sharron Andrews

Community Integration

Specialist

Carol Bishop, Lead Case

Manager

Case Managers:

Jane Sandholdt

Jenny Lucero-Wilcox

Antaniya Zeno

Roxanne Ratterman

Rebecca Henderson

Paul Taylor

Newsletter Group Contributors:

Kate W., Steven S., An-

drea H., Shari K., Jeffrey

G., Brad W., Brian C.

Newsletter Staff:

Conchita Rodriguez

April LaRue, Vocational/

Activities Specialist

(Continued on page 4)

(Continued on page 2)

3227 Clayton Road

Concord, CA 94519

Phone: 925-827-3863

E-mail: INFO@ALC-CA.ORG

Mission Statement: The mission of the Adaptive Learn-

ing Center is to provide a safe and healthy community for adults

with neurodevelopmental disabilities and Autism Spectrum Dis-

orders to realize their individual potential for self-reliant living as

defined by the ability to engage in productive work, to socialize

successfully, to attend to their own physical and emotional health,

and to experience on-going personal growth.

A Key To Individual Potential

Volume 5, I ssue 2 ALC T IMES

Follow us on @AdaptiveLC

SUMMER 2018

ALC Times SUMMER 2018

Volume 5, Issue 2

Newsletter of the Adaptive Learning Center, Created by ALC Clients

Photo by

Steven Silva

and prepare toys and clothes to be given away at a free general store. On the other side we sort donated bread, prepare potted plants and cut flowers for give away, and clean/dry the carts the food is transported on. The food is then donated to several bay area charities to help feed the poor.

b. Meals on Wheels - We stop by the senior center to pick up meals. We then distribute those meals to the elderly in our city who have signed up for the program.

c. The Concord Senior Cen-ter - The participating clients assist with tidying up the center, care and storage of decorations, making sandwiches, and other small tasks.

There are many opportunities for exercise offered at ALC. In addition to the YMCA, Zumba, and walk offerings, I take peo-ple to an arthritis aerobics class at the YMCA, and some other individual opportunities. I am teaching a health class and take clients to Friday outings with day program, and co-facilitate the Job club class with Shawn, Supported Employment Coordina-tor, and Carolyn Gomer, Employment Specialist. Since Sep-tember 2016, I also offer a creative writing class. - AL

April LaRue, ALC Vocational/Activities Specialist (continued from pg.1)

3. Provide student services to those who are college bound.

The current volunteer sites are as follows:

a. White Pony Express – The participating clients and I help to improve the lives of those less fortunate. On one side of the building we clean

VALUE STATEMENT At the Adaptive Learning Cen-

ter, we strive to grow a com-

munity that values respect, in-

tegrity, a positive attitude,

teamwork, a sense of humor

and we embrace the differ-

ences of one another.

A Key to Individual

Potential Since 1988

ALC’S VISION:

A community where

individuals of all

abilities have

limitless opportunities

WWW.ALC-CA.ORG

Group photo, this year with Star Wars characters

Volunteering at White Pony Express

Page 2 ALC T IMES Vo lume 5, I ssue 2 Page 3 ALC T IMES SUMMER 2018

with Conchita this year. I enjoyed seeing the clients from the TOPS program also. Ron Isreal was the DJ, and ALC board member Sarah Chance lead a warm up before the speakers. The Mayor of Con-

cord, Edi Birsan, and Stuart Gilliam, ALC board presi-dent, talked at the beginning of the walk. A representa-tive for Congressman Mark DeSaulnier was also there. Donna Feingold, ALC Executive Director, and Karen Lingenfelter-Carman, TOPS Program Coordinator, called up some of the clients who designed the t-shirt artwork, Audrey Rutheford and Andrea Halliday. Pa-trice Hanlon spoke as a parent of a child with autism who went through the TOPS program. Patrice also runs the Garden Club at ALC. – Kate W.

2018 Autism Awareness Walk (Continued from page 1)

ALC Client Interview with Shari By the Newsletter Group

How long have you been at

ALC? Over one year

How do you like being at ALC?

Oh, I love being here. I like having

my own apartment and my roommate, she’s really nice. I

like the activities, day program, Friday eve-

nings and the egg hunt. My team found the

most eggs and won a Bed Bath and Beyond

gift card.

What groups do you like? YMCA, music

appreciation, video, newsletter, and art. I

love drum circle.

How does ALC help you be more inde-

pendent? I like living on my own, and

learning new recipes with my case manager.

What’s your favorite movies and tv

shows? Harry Potter series & star wars series, my favorite

TV show is ER.

What is your favorite type of music? The soundtrack

from Harry Potter, and I really like the song, “Tonight Is

a Good Night.”

What is the most interesting food you’ve eaten? Ribs,

steak and sushi, those are my favorite foods.

What’s your favorite outing you’ve been on so far?

Going to San Francisco, Chinatown,

it was fun to hang out with friends

there. I can’t wait to go to North

Berkeley.

What are some of your career in-

terests? I want to be a medic, like in

a hospital I like to help kids and peo-

ple. Help people be safe and perform

first aid. I have a certificate in first

aid.

What is your favorite type of dog?

Newfoundland Dog

What do you like to do for fun? Hang out with friends,

my brother and my boyfriend. I like to go SWIMMING,

and ice skating.

The Adaptive Learning Center has a drum

class Wednesday evenings, taught by Ron

Neuhauser, with ALC case manager Jane

Sandholdt’s help. The band name we gave

ourselves is the “Weirdos”. Sometimes we

play games with the drums, like Simon

Says.

In Drum Circle we create different

types of music using instruments. It is a

fun way to learn. We echo sounds. It is

a fun class. You can learn about where

music comes from. My favorite

instrument is the snare drum, because I

like the sound it makes. – Andrea H.

We play the cymbal (which makes a crash sound), high hat, snare drum, drum pad, xylophone, 4 sets of different tambourines, jimbe, cow bell (it is really loud), congos, bongos, and maracas. We play drum music and the song jingle bells. It is fun to play the drums. We play a lot of drum music with the drum sticks and with our hands. The teacher, Ron, helps

us. You can give drumming a try, you will have fun. – Shari K.

“ The Autism Awareness Walk, the

weather, and the Star Wars people were

nice. All in all, it was a good day.”

– Steven S. Adaptive Learning Center’s

30th Anniversary Gala

DIAMOND LEVEL

Jerry & Wendi

Alves

SAPPHIRE LEVEL

Presidio Bank

BPM

Becky McDermith

2018 SPONSORS*:

ALC 30th Anniversary Gala

Friday, October 12, 2018, 6:30 pm

at Crowne Plaza, Concord

Dinner, Dance, Live Music,

DJ & Silent Auction

RSVP by Friday, 9/28

RUBY LEVEL

Bztek Solutions

Destination Wealth

Management

Santa Maria and Company

Stuart Gilliam and Rhonda Hughes

Susan and Ronald Rothenberg

Michael and Sylvia Conant

Marilyn and Rick Fowler

Muriel Wilson

Cynthia Zimmerman

Lynne and Richard Heyne

The Autism Awareness Walk

had guest speakers and Star

Wars characters. My favorites

were Rey and Princess Leia,

because they are very helpful

and help their team. I got an

award for designing the back

of the tshirt. I was able to see

the video on facebook live

from Adaptive Learning Cen-

ter’s page, @AdaptiveLC

- Andrea H.

The Fun Drum Circle at ALC By Andrea Halliday and Shari Kimball

Showing everyone how to play the dreidel for Hanukkah

* As of 9-21-18

Page 2 ALC T IMES Vo lume 5, I ssue 2 Page 3 ALC T IMES SUMMER 2018

with Conchita this year. I enjoyed seeing the clients from the TOPS program also. Ron Isreal was the DJ, and ALC board member Sarah Chance lead a warm up before the speakers. The Mayor of Con-

cord, Edi Birsan, and Stuart Gilliam, ALC board presi-dent, talked at the beginning of the walk. A representa-tive for Congressman Mark DeSaulnier was also there. Donna Feingold, ALC Executive Director, and Karen Lingenfelter-Carman, TOPS Program Coordinator, called up some of the clients who designed the t-shirt artwork, Audrey Rutheford and Andrea Halliday. Pa-trice Hanlon spoke as a parent of a child with autism who went through the TOPS program. Patrice also runs the Garden Club at ALC. – Kate W.

2018 Autism Awareness Walk (Continued from page 1)

ALC Client Interview with Shari By the Newsletter Group

How long have you been at

ALC? Over one year

How do you like being at ALC?

Oh, I love being here. I like having

my own apartment and my roommate, she’s really nice. I

like the activities, day program, Friday eve-

nings and the egg hunt. My team found the

most eggs and won a Bed Bath and Beyond

gift card.

What groups do you like? YMCA, music

appreciation, video, newsletter, and art. I

love drum circle.

How does ALC help you be more inde-

pendent? I like living on my own, and

learning new recipes with my case manager.

What’s your favorite movies and tv

shows? Harry Potter series & star wars series, my favorite

TV show is ER.

What is your favorite type of music? The soundtrack

from Harry Potter, and I really like the song, “Tonight Is

a Good Night.”

What is the most interesting food you’ve eaten? Ribs,

steak and sushi, those are my favorite foods.

What’s your favorite outing you’ve been on so far?

Going to San Francisco, Chinatown,

it was fun to hang out with friends

there. I can’t wait to go to North

Berkeley.

What are some of your career in-

terests? I want to be a medic, like in

a hospital I like to help kids and peo-

ple. Help people be safe and perform

first aid. I have a certificate in first

aid.

What is your favorite type of dog?

Newfoundland Dog

What do you like to do for fun? Hang out with friends,

my brother and my boyfriend. I like to go SWIMMING,

and ice skating.

The Adaptive Learning Center has a drum

class Wednesday evenings, taught by Ron

Neuhauser, with ALC case manager Jane

Sandholdt’s help. The band name we gave

ourselves is the “Weirdos”. Sometimes we

play games with the drums, like Simon

Says.

In Drum Circle we create different

types of music using instruments. It is a

fun way to learn. We echo sounds. It is

a fun class. You can learn about where

music comes from. My favorite

instrument is the snare drum, because I

like the sound it makes. – Andrea H.

We play the cymbal (which makes a crash sound), high hat, snare drum, drum pad, xylophone, 4 sets of different tambourines, jimbe, cow bell (it is really loud), congos, bongos, and maracas. We play drum music and the song jingle bells. It is fun to play the drums. We play a lot of drum music with the drum sticks and with our hands. The teacher, Ron, helps

us. You can give drumming a try, you will have fun. – Shari K.

“ The Autism Awareness Walk, the

weather, and the Star Wars people were

nice. All in all, it was a good day.”

– Steven S. Adaptive Learning Center’s

30th Anniversary Gala

DIAMOND LEVEL

Jerry & Wendi

Alves

SAPPHIRE LEVEL

Presidio Bank

BPM

Becky McDermith

2018 SPONSORS*:

ALC 30th Anniversary Gala

Friday, October 12, 2018, 6:30 pm

at Crowne Plaza, Concord

Dinner, Dance, Live Music,

DJ & Silent Auction

RSVP by Friday, 9/28

RUBY LEVEL

Bztek Solutions

Destination Wealth

Management

Santa Maria and Company

Stuart Gilliam and Rhonda Hughes

Susan and Ronald Rothenberg

Michael and Sylvia Conant

Marilyn and Rick Fowler

Muriel Wilson

Cynthia Zimmerman

Lynne and Richard Heyne

The Autism Awareness Walk

had guest speakers and Star

Wars characters. My favorites

were Rey and Princess Leia,

because they are very helpful

and help their team. I got an

award for designing the back

of the tshirt. I was able to see

the video on facebook live

from Adaptive Learning Cen-

ter’s page, @AdaptiveLC

- Andrea H.

The Fun Drum Circle at ALC By Andrea Halliday and Shari Kimball

Showing everyone how to play the dreidel for Hanukkah

* As of 9-21-18

2018 Autism Awareness WALK Organized jointly with TOPS and ALC

The Vocational/Activities Specialist is a new position, created to assist clients in several ways.

1. Creating volunteer sites and assist-ing clients with their volunteer re-sponsibilities as they give back to the community.

2. Create small group and individual exercise opportunities with clients.

A Message from April LaRue, Vocational/Activities Specialist

By Kate Wingert, Andrea Halliday & Steven Silva

I really enjoyed the Autism Awareness Walk. Autism Awareness is a great cause. My favorite part of the Walk was the Star Wars Characters from the Golden Gate Gar-rison 501st Legion. I liked the walk, and couldn’t believe that so many people showed up this year. The weather was beautiful, it was not too hot or cold, just right. I got my picture taken with Darth Vader, and I got to walk

Autism Awareness Walk

1

Staff Message 2

Drum Circle 3

ALC Client Interview 4

Inside this issue:

ALC STAFF:

Donna Feingold,

Executive Director

Jordane Tofighi,

Associate Director

Jeannine Chang, Educa-

tion & Day Program Director

Barbara Simpson,

Community Living

Coordinator

Shawn Tan, Supported

Employment Coordinator

April LaRue, Vocational/

Activities Specialist

Carolyn Gomer,

Employment Specialist

Jose Angara,

Fiscal Accountant

Rodney Kline,

Office Manager

Curisa Stacker,

Medical Coordinator

Conchita Rodriguez,

Art Program Coord./IT

Sharron Andrews

Community Integration

Specialist

Carol Bishop, Lead Case

Manager

Case Managers:

Jane Sandholdt

Jenny Lucero-Wilcox

Antaniya Zeno

Roxanne Ratterman

Rebecca Henderson

Paul Taylor

Newsletter Group Contributors:

Kate W., Steven S., An-

drea H., Shari K., Jeffrey

G., Brad W., Brian C.

Newsletter Staff:

Conchita Rodriguez

April LaRue, Vocational/

Activities Specialist

(Continued on page 4)

(Continued on page 2)

3227 Clayton Road

Concord, CA 94519

Phone: 925-827-3863

E-mail: INFO@ALC-CA.ORG

Mission Statement: The mission of the Adaptive Learn-

ing Center is to provide a safe and healthy community for adults

with neurodevelopmental disabilities and Autism Spectrum Dis-

orders to realize their individual potential for self-reliant living as

defined by the ability to engage in productive work, to socialize

successfully, to attend to their own physical and emotional health,

and to experience on-going personal growth.

A Key To Individual Potential

Volume 5, I ssue 2 ALC T IMES

Follow us on @AdaptiveLC

SUMMER 2018

ALC Times SUMMER 2018

Volume 5, Issue 2

Newsletter of the Adaptive Learning Center, Created by ALC Clients

Photo by

Steven Silva

and prepare toys and clothes to be given away at a free general store. On the other side we sort donated bread, prepare potted plants and cut flowers for give away, and clean/dry the carts the food is transported on. The food is then donated to several bay area charities to help feed the poor.

b. Meals on Wheels - We stop by the senior center to pick up meals. We then distribute those meals to the elderly in our city who have signed up for the program.

c. The Concord Senior Cen-ter - The participating clients assist with tidying up the center, care and storage of decorations, making sandwiches, and other small tasks.

There are many opportunities for exercise offered at ALC. In addition to the YMCA, Zumba, and walk offerings, I take peo-ple to an arthritis aerobics class at the YMCA, and some other individual opportunities. I am teaching a health class and take clients to Friday outings with day program, and co-facilitate the Job club class with Shawn, Supported Employment Coordina-tor, and Carolyn Gomer, Employment Specialist. Since Sep-tember 2016, I also offer a creative writing class. - AL

April LaRue, ALC Vocational/Activities Specialist (continued from pg.1)

3. Provide student services to those who are college bound.

The current volunteer sites are as follows:

a. White Pony Express – The participating clients and I help to improve the lives of those less fortunate. On one side of the building we clean

VALUE STATEMENT At the Adaptive Learning Cen-

ter, we strive to grow a com-

munity that values respect, in-

tegrity, a positive attitude,

teamwork, a sense of humor

and we embrace the differ-

ences of one another.

A Key to Individual

Potential Since 1988

ALC’S VISION:

A community where

individuals of all

abilities have

limitless opportunities

WWW.ALC-CA.ORG

Group photo, this year with Star Wars characters

Volunteering at White Pony Express