April 10, 2003 Governing Board Meeting

The Governing Board met on April 10, 2003 at Prenger’s Restaurant in Norfolk for its regular meeting. Business was conducted in 2 parts, the first NorthStar Services and the second Region IV Inc.

During the NorthStar Services meeting Lita Leach, Support Supervisor from O’Neill presented Shelly Hobbs with a plaque for 15 years of service. Shelly was unable to attend in January when other awards were given.

Scott Lambrecht, Finance Director provided an update on the retirement fund for employees. He will be visiting each area program in May with Mary Herzberg, financial consultant with Nationwide Services to discuss the plan with eligible employees.

Alan Zavodny, CEO, reviewed revenue and expenses with the Board, indicating that we are going into the last quarter doing fiscally well.

After a search conducted by Alan and Scott, and interviews with the Executive Committee it was recommended that the law firm of Jewell, Collins, Delay and Gray be retained and represent both NorthStar Services and Region IV, Inc. The Board voted unanamously in favor of the recommendation.

Alan discussed recent legislative activity with the Board, informing them that LB 413 which would consolodate the 6 geographic services regions into 3 was killed in committee. Alan, Jim Prauner, Chairman of the Board and Fred Pinkelman, Cedar County Commissioner testified against the bill. Alan also indicated that the state is looking at cutting employees with a staff reduction of up to 350 positions. Other issues which may affect us include Appropriations and LB 297 which clairifies services for people between high school graduation and age 21.

Several building and repair issues were on the agenda for Region IV, Inc. action. The new Central Office building bid was awarded to B-D Construction of Columbus (See the article Groundbreaking for New Central Office below). Marty Summerfield, President of Wayne Industries, informed the Board that the City of Wayne and Wayne Industries have covered the cost of water and sewer hook-ups, and the City Administrator has offered Wayne State College’s wireless communication hook – up free of charge through Dennis Linster at WSC. The Wayne community values the partnership they have had with NorthStar Services over the last 30 years and they are excited about the new building construction. An agreement with Zodiac Properties in Norfolk to provide water and sewer hook – ups and sidewalk to the site of the future Norfolk Area Office was approved, pending approval of the archtect and attorney. The Board approved the purchase of the Keya Paha Cherry County Developmental Services building in Valentine. Roofing repair bids for the Norfolk Day Services Center, which were opened at the April 3rd Executive Committee meeting, were reviewed and discussed in conjunction with an offer from Dudley’s Dry Cleaners in Norfolk to purchase the building. The Board authorized negotiations of a purchase price between $115,000 - $125,00 with an option to rent the building from Mr. Dudley for $1,000 a month until a new building can be completed.

In addition to these projects the Board authorized the search for land in Norfolk with the intention of building residential settings in the future. The purchase or lease purchase of a duplex in Valentine was also discussed and is being further investigated. Houses currently owned by Region IV, Inc. in Bloomfield and O’Neill are listed for sale. At the last meeting the Board approved a resolution to pay 40% of the cost of van with ADA conversions. At that time it was unclear where the van would best be utilized. Mary Claire Mohrfeld, Director of Administration, informed the Board that the van will be located in West Point a satellite of the Oakland Area Program and useage will be shared with the community.

The next meeting of the NorthStar Services and Region IV, Inc. Governing Boards will be May 15, 2003 at Prenger’s Restaurnt in Norfolk.

Groundbreaking for New Central Office

On Monday, April 21,2003 Alan Zavodny, CEO NorthStar Services, joined community leaders and NorthStar Services staff at a 10:00 A.M. groundbreaking ceremony to launch the construction of the new NorthStar Services Central Office. The building, designed by Jon Carlson of Omaha, will be located on 1.8 acres of land at 1202 E. 14th Street in Wayne. The main level features 7400 square feet which includes offices, conference rooms and work rooms. There is also 2200 square footage of basement.

Kelvin Wurdeman, Wayne County Commissioner, Marty Summerfield, President of Wayne Industries, Lowell Johnson, Wayne City Administrator, Jack Hausmann, Chairman of the Wayne Chamber of Commerce, Bill Triick, Executive Director of Wayne Chamber of Commerce, Jane Rademacher, Connie Stuthmann, Lila Loewe, and Terri Buck NorthStar Services Central Office Staff attended the ceremony to mark the occasion which has been in the planning stages for several years.

The land was purchased in January 2002 and discussions began on when and how to complete the project. Bids were opened at the Executive Committee meeting on April 3, 2003, and at the full meeting on April 10, 2003 (See April 10, 2003 Governing Board Meeting) B – D Construction of Columbus was awarded the bid. Site work began following the groundbreaking ceremony. The $758,000 project is expected to be completed by February 14, 2004.

Central Office Floor Plan

April 23 is Administrative Professionals Day!

NorthStar Services would like to recognize the following
people for their continuing service to our organization :

Deb Cayler, Office Manager, Bloomfield Area Program
Mary Lou Stamm, Office Manager, Columbus Area Program
Sharon Evans, Receptionist, Columbus Area Program
Jennifer Wesely, Office Manager, Fremont Area Program
Darla Jennings, Office Assistant, Fremont Area Program
Robin Adams, Office Assistant, Fremont Area Program
Tracey Niemann, Office Manager, Norfolk Area Program
Kim Schaffer, Receptionist, Norfolk Area Program
David Thompson, Receptionist, Norfolk Area Program
Cyndi Johnson, Office Manager, Oakland Area Program
Mary Crawford, Office Manager, O’Neill Area Program
Barbara Durham, Office Manager, South Sioux City Area Program
Jennifer Greiner, Secretary, South Sioux City Area Program
Win Mills, Office Manager, Valentine Area Program
Kaye Young, Office Manager, Wayne Area Program
Jane Rademacher, Regional Secretary, Central Office
Connie Stuthmann, Payroll Accountant, Central Office
Lila Loewe, Accounts Payable Accountant, Central Office
Terri Buck, Services Accountant, Central Office
Kirby Roberts, Fiscal Clerk, Central Office
Brenda Lubberstedt, Fiscal Clerk, Central Office

Barb Cheshier, Support Supervisor, Fremont Area

Fremont is Barb’s home town. She, along with her five brothers and two sisters, grew up here. At the age of 18 Barb left Fremont behind when she joined first the Navy and then the Peace Corps, literally seeing the world in the process. Her travels have taken her to Australia, Japan, Turkey, Solomon Islands, Israel and Spain. For Barb the Peace Corps motto of “the hardest job you’ll ever love” proved to be true. She says she learned a lot about herself, how to teach others to be self sufficient (even when it means working yourself out of a job), and what is really important in life during her time in the Peace Corps. “I think I learned more from the people there than they did from me.” Her first hand experience with so many cultures has convinced her that Americans have as much to learn from their world neighbors as they have to teach.

Somewhere along the way Barb received Bachelor degrees in Psychology and Russian and a Master’s Degree in English – Creative Writing. She is a published author, with numerous stories in print.

Last fall her journeys brought her here, to NorthStar Services. She joined the Fremont area staff, beginning her role as Support Supervisor in December. Since then she has been busy with the required training, staffing and developing those important relationships with people supported by NorthStar Services, and the people who provide that support. Barb has a special interest in supported employment and has taken advantage of several related training opportunities. She would like to see the role of Employment Specialist become a vital resource to NorthStar Services.

Barb lives in Fremont with her dog Pongo.

Brenda Johnson Assumes Area Director Position in Norfolk

Brenda grew up in Wausa, Nebraska, where she continues to live (and from where she commutes daily to Norfolk). It is a small town rich in Swedish heritage, as is Brenda’s background. Brenda is single and enjoys spending time with her family, which includes Dad Ronnie in Wausa, sister Jolene Pike (a Nurse Practitioner at the Beatrice State Development Center), and Sarah Johnson, who is the Volunteer Services Coordinator at Byran LGH in Lincoln.

Brenda graduated from Wausa High School and attended Wayne State College for 4 1/2 years with a Bachelor’s degree in Home Economics and Business. She really thought she wanted to teach, but mid-term graduation left very few teaching positions open at the time. This gave her time to discover that perhaps teaching was not really what she wanted to do for her career. Prior to coming to NorthStar Services Norfolk as the Area Director on March 17, 2003 Brenda was the Recreation Director at the Wausa Health Care Center. She spent a total of 29 1/2 years at the facility in a variety of capacities. Brenda has also worked as a Medication Aide at the Countryside Villa (assisted living center) in Wausa, and at NorthStar Services in Bloomfield as Direct Support Staff. The part time position in Bloomfield came at the suggestion of a coworker at the nursing home who also worked for NorthStar. The co-worker told Brenda she might enjoy NorthStar as well. Brenda gave it a try and was hooked. When she saw the Area Director position advertised in the Norfolk paper she was attracted to the idea of continuing on with NorthStar Services full time, especially in a management position.

Since joining the team in Norfolk everyday has been a learning experience. Everyone has been so helpful and open to accepting new ideas and ways of doing things. Brenda’s philosophy is that it takes a team to create a great program. As Area Director she hopes to set the example for everyone to be excited about their jobs and to take ownership in the accomplishments. It is a true opportunity to grow people. Brenda looks forward to moving closer to the immediate Norfolk area so she can be closer to work and to become a part of the community.

Activity Provides Opportunity for Relationship Building

Senatorial Appreciation Day was January 15, 2003 and this year as an added feature the Arc of Nebraska, with funding from the Nebraska Planning Council on Developmental Disabilities, sponsored a self advocacy conference titled “Opening Doors”. The event was held at the State Capitol Building in Lincoln. Liz Samelson and Laurel Johnson both from Bloomfield were among the approximately 200 people who attended the event.

The focus of the day’s activities was providing information and tools for people to affect policy change in the state for people with developmental disabilities. Liz said Senator Byars, who spoke on “The Top Ten Informal Rules of Lobbying”, stressed that the importance of relationships when communicating with Senators. Other speakers included Linda Gardels, Chair of the Nebraska Planning Council on Developmental Disabilities, who served as moderator and Mitch McCartney, Director of the Unicameral Information Office who provided information about how to access legislative process information. Andrew Imparato, President and CEO of the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) was the keynote speaker.

For Liz the experience gave her a better understanding of “Lincoln” and the legislative process. She saw people she had met at People First activities in Kearney. The highlight of the event was being able to practice some of her newly learned strategies when she and Laurel met their Senator, Doug Cunningham at the Senatorial Appreciation Dinner that evening. Senator Cunningham is just beginning to learn about NorthStar Services. Liz found him to be a good listener, who was interested in what they had to say. Liz says she believes she would be comfortable talking to him again.

Liz says she would recommend that people take advantage of the opportunity to go to Lincoln, learn about the process and meet the Senators if it arises again. Even though the drive home was a little scary due to the blowing and drifting snow, the women believe it was worth the trip. Liz has shared what she learned at Regional Advisory Committee, a group of which she is a member. She was also recently featured on the front page of her local newspaper.

2002 Quality Assurance Results Available

The 2002 Quality Assurance Reviews consisted of four distinct segments. The first – Outcome Measures reflect the level of satisfaction the person interviewed has with his/her own personal living situation and the services provided. The second – Process Measures reflect the organization’s response to the person’s satisfaction or dissatisfaction with his/her own situation and services. If the organization is responsive to the wishes of the person receiving services or is proactive in providing opportunities and experiences to attain the Outcome it is possible to have a higher Process score than Outcome score. The Program score reflects the responsiveness of the IPP process and skill programs to assist the person in achieving or accessing the life they desire. Finally the Regulation score measures adherence to other regulatory conditions. Individual area results have been shared with the local management team for specific response and area planning. If you have questions about these results please contact the Area Director.

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