aaronsfund.com

The Tuneberg Residential Safety Technology Program

Thanks to the generosity of Aaron's Fund, Imagine! has created a technology demonstration project to improve and support the safety needs for adults with disabilities. The project is currently supporting five individuals in Boulder County. Because of the initial success, five more individuals have indicated their interest and are being added. The Tuneberg Project has developed a specific tool to assess individual support needs and identify the technologies that will best help meet those needs. The technology that has been purchased is individualized to the identified needs. It includes door and window sensors, heat and stove detectors, medication reminders, visual doorbells, and prompting systems for daily tasks. All of these are integrated into a notification system that provides alerts to caregivers or 911.

This technology allows people to be monitored remotely and notifies loved ones or caregivers when people are home and what area of the apartment or living space they are accessing. All systems allow the individuals to remain independent while still promoting their safety by remotely locking doors, monitoring when someone comes to their doors, and providing alerts when a door or window is opened at an unusual time. In one case the system was able to alert us that one of the individuals was wandering in the middle of the night and it notified a nearby caregiver to help and address the support needs.

The Tuneberg Project is helping to fill a huge gap that currently exists in services for adults with intellectual disabilities who are mostly independent but need some assistance to remain safe and self-reliant. Throughout this three-year project, Imagine! will share the results with state and local leaders to encourage the adoption of technology into the service system.

Vocational training in bicycle repair

Since January 2015, Aaron's fund has been supporting a project at Community Cycles in partnership with Boulder Valley's Transitions Program. We have successfully worked with over 30 students to date, providing bicycles and training in bicycle mechanics to young adults with developmental disabilities. In early 2016, our program was approved as a vendor for Colorado Vocational Rehabilitation. In June 2016, we received a generous grant as well as important recognition from the Millennium Trust of the Community Foundation Serving Boulder County.

With this additional funding, we've hired a project-dedicated part-time staff person at Community Cycles, who's working with local bicycle shops to develop job placement for the gradates of our program, teaching classes, and developing new outreach with local organizations such as Imagine!, the Colorado Division of Vocational Rehabilitation, and Attention homes. A major focus for the coming year will continue to be on helping our graduates find work in the larger bicycle community.

Vinny, a Transitions student who has been interning at Community Cycles as an instructor assistant since November 2016, was part of our class in September and October of that year. In February of 2017 he started working at Boulder B-Cycle as a wheelsmith, dismantling B-Cycle wheels that have developed faulty hubs, rims or both, and rebuilding them with new parts. This work requires precision and attention to detail, but more importantly, it's a strong beginning for a partnership between two Boulder bicycling non-profits that each have much to gain, and to give.

We continue to fund raise for this project in order to ensure its long term success.