by Brian C Kelly, Individualized Community Services Manager at Hammer Back in the summer of 2013 Karen Trygstad from the Hammer training department, saw me in my St. Louis Park baseball gear on the way to practice and it lead to us meeting and connecting over our love of the game. Karen’s two sons...
By: Kevan Nitzberg Parent Member on the Hammer Board Public Advocacy Committee Member As a teacher at the high school level I know how sports can help to build community, self-worth, and leadership for the participants as well as the fans. My wife and I have seen how important sports have been to...
People with disabilities have a great deal of talent that can sometimes go unrecognized. Sometimes, all it takes is a keen eye and thinking outside the box to make something that seems ordinary, into something extraordinary. The Ask Jan Hopper, manager at one of the Hammer homes, recently asked...
Back in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the Woody and the Nitzberg families got together to fill a need that was not being met in the Wayzata area. That need was to provide kids with special needs the opportunity to get involved in sports. After meeting...
Read the Winter 2015 Discoveries in our new format!
Read more“Hammer Declares 2016 the Year of the Smile!”
“Hammer Declares 2016 the Year of the Smile!” Hammer has been awarded a $25,000 grant from the Delta Dental of Minnesota Foundation. The grant funds will be used to purchase electric toothbrushes, power flossers, and anti-cavity rinses to fight germs that cause gum disease help the...
Sometimes, a simple act of kindness is all it takes to brighten someone’s day! The sheer goodwill of people can be both comforting and humbling. Last Saturday at Black Oaks, one of the individuals living there suggested going to lunch at Lion’s Tap Family Restaurant in Eden Prairie....
Written by Adley Lemke, Hammer volunteer and 3rd year pharmacy student at the University of Minnesota & Melissa Hutchins, Program Manager, Zealand apartments. To learn more about Hammer’s people-centered approach visit www.hammer.org. Introducing Patient Centered Care Adley: Needle...
By Tim Eshelman, Director of Environmental Services You know how it is, when you are busy with your life, rushing to get everything you need to do done, and then suddenly something happens to you that makes you stop in your tracks and think: wait a minute, did that really happen? I want to share...
By Self-Advocate, Amber My name is Amber. I am 29 years old, and I have an intellectual disability. Because of this, I live in an apartment in Plymouth where I receive support from Hammer Residences. I am very independent and like to be active. I am a Special Olympics athlete, and I work as a...
By Terriann Matejcek, Director of Advocacy & Volunteer Resources I first met Alden when he was a member of Hammer’s self-advocacy group “Power People.” Each meeting, he brought with him many local papers and spent time coming up with great ideas for how the group could promote better living...
By John Estrem, CEO For more than 25 years, I have worked in social services as a volunteer, advocate and leader. I have served the homeless, the young, the old and people with disabilities. During this time I have seen a subtle but disturbing shift in the relationship between government and the...
By Sean Henderson, Person Centered Technology Manager According to The Arc of the United States, a national organization advocating for and serving people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, two-and-a-half percent of the U.S. population lives with a developmental disability; that’s...
By Regan McGowan, Program Manager A few months ago, I had the opportunity to attend ARRM’s Annual Conference. In one of the sessions, I listened to a speaker talk about the idea of person-centered thinking. This is a well-known concept at Hammer, but it really hit home with me this particular day....
By Joe Reis, Hammer Board of Directors and CEO of Coldwell Banker Burnet 4:45 am and Karen was ready to go! Matter of fact, I think she had been preparing to go for years. The February cold did not deter her spirit at all. Her dream of going to New York City, seeing a Broadway show and auditioning...
By Angela Hickman, Zumba® Instructor and Hammer Volunteer In the spring of 2011, I was the Assistant Program Manager at Zealand, one of Hammer’s apartment programs. A main goal of mine was incorporating health and fitness into the lives of those we were supporting. Many individuals were making...
By Devin Harrington, Communication Specialist Last month, I had the opportunity to attend the International Association of Business Communicator’s (IABC) World Conference in San Francisco. As a member of the Minnesota chapter, I had attended a few local seminars and luncheons that I thought...
By Angela Bernhardt, Director of Major Gifts The Boy Scouts and Hammer Residences have been partners for many years. In 1970, under the leadership of two Hammer dads, Alden Keiski and Jim Solinger, a Boy Scout troop was formed at Hammer. “In the early 80’s I was a direct care staff in the boy’s...
By Brad Fenske, Day Supports Coordinator In the fall of 1989, I was given the unique opportunity to be a part of Hammer’s new Day Support Services. This program was one of the first in the area to look provide care for both retired individuals and those without day placement services. The...
By Karen Lafferty, Graphic Designer My connection with Hammer Residences began in the 1990s, before Hammer moved to their current office building. I met with Ellen Timmerman-Borer in hopes of doing graphic design work as an independent contractor. We met a number of times over the next year or two...
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