Congratulations to Hammer’s Volunteer of the Month, Jim Clesas! Jim Clesas joined Hammer’s volunteer corps after he heard about opportunities through State Farm’s “Neighborhood of Good” campaign. Jim wanted to find a volunteer opportunity that gave him the chance to directly impact someone’s...
By Toni Knorr, Development Committee Volunteer If you’re reading this blog, I’m pretty sure you are a supporter of Hammer. Maybe you see the work that Hammer does supporting individuals with developmental disabilities, first-hand. Perhaps caregivers at Hammer serve your loved one. Or maybe, like...
By Hannah Barnes, Communication Specialist The sense of community is one of the most important things to Frankie’s Chicago Style restaurant. Located in New Hope, they aim to be involved in the community, whether that’s by attending charity events, or just getting to know all of their regular...
Blog by Hannah Barnes, Communication Specialist, Poem by Matteo Musso Hammer had the privilege of welcoming Matteo Musso and his mother, Annette Musso, to our most recent all-staff meeting. Matteo presented his journey to communication after 12 years of silence. Matteo is a 14-year-old with...
By Hannah Barnes, Communication Specialist Sports are what make Leah tick. From the time she was a young child to now, they have always been her passion. Her first love was dance, which she got involved in through her foster sister. Leah immediately loved dance because of the creativity it brought...
By Hannah Barnes, Communication Specialist Sarah moved to a Hammer-supported apartment at the end of summer in 2017. Even though she has only been there a short amount of time, she is already thriving in her community. Recently, she won the “Above & Beyond Award” at her apartment building. The...
By Hannah Barnes, Communication Specialist Deb is a diehard Minnesota Vikings fan. Every Sunday that the Vikings play, she specifically plans her day around game time. She has been a huge fan since she was a small child. Deb is the first person to support them – win or lose. Deb is such a big fan...
By Hannah Barnes, Communication Specialist Everyone has goals. Sometimes they are easily attainable and other times they are lofty. Ally Lawrence, Program Manager at Welcome Place, decided she wanted to participate in the Walt Disney Marathon Weekend. The Walt Disney Marathon Weekend is a four-day...
By Hannah Barnes, Communication Specialist Safety and comfort are top priorities at Hammer Residences. Because of generous donors, we are able to ensure each of those standards are met in our everyday care. Recently, the 25-year-old furnace at our Queensland home was showing signs of aging. With...
By Angela Bernhardt, Director of Major Gifts The deck before renovation. In August of 2016, we received an email from Spencer Agnew who had recently took on a new position managing the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program at Hennepin County. Beginning in 1974, the CDBG program is one...
By Cathy Thoma, Director of Volunteer Resources Bob and his late wife, Judith. There are many paths and reasons that bring volunteers to Hammer. There are some who stay for a short while, others who stay for many years, and yet others who need to leave and then return. Bob Ziegeweid starting...
Hammer’s Volunteer of the Month is Terry Martin! Terry Martin began as a pet therapy volunteer with Hammer starting in January 2017. Since then he and his dog Sunny have volunteered each week with Stacy at Welcome Place. Terry was recently trained on how to use a lift van, which opened up the many...
by Pam Borum, Individualized Community Services DSP When I started at Hammer seven years ago, I already knew that I enjoyed working with people. What I did not realize is that I would experience so many pure souls. I have seen many stages of life, from the excitement when an individual comes...
By Jan Hopper, First Ave Program Manager Tristan lives at Hammer First Ave, but his family lives in Lynden, Washington. He misses his family very much and would like to see them more often. A trip home to see his grandmother’s new home was made possible by YOU our generous donors who gave to...
by Ashley Emerson, Program Manager at Hammer’s Emery Home At Hammer, each individual has the support of an entire village. It starts with the staff team, supporting the individual on a day-to-day basis and making the house a home. Some of the support includes positive behavior modification,...
By: Samantha Wolf – Hammer Communications Specialist As families around the country are getting back into the swing of the school year, I found myself contemplating the history of school at Hammer. As many of our readers may know, Hammer Residences began as Hammer School, giving Hammer a...
By Barbara Brandt, Director of Communication Who knew that when she left Montana headed for Las Vegas, Lesa Fenwick would end up owning Candlelight Floral and Gifts in Wayzata, Minnesota. Well, fate and a lot of hard work had a great deal to do with it! Lesa was born and raised in Bozeman,...
By Karen Trygstad, Training and Education Coordinator Shortly after I began working at Hammer, I stumbled across a YouTube video of Jon Leverentz, that was filmed in his basement art studio in his Hammer home, talking about his love of art. Something about that video resonated with me. I shared it...
By Jessica Hammer, Instructional Designer and Tech Specialist I have a confession to make. I’m a millennial. There, I said it. Whew. Now that that’s over with I have another confession. I love reading real books. Listen, I know eBooks are so convenient and instant and you can take a whole library...
By Lindsay Carlson, Communication Intern Hammer supports two couples who are celebrating their first and second wedding anniversaries this week. Congrats to Adam & Susan (left) married 2 years and to Andy & Molly (right) married 1 year! Adam and Susan celebrated their second...
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