Our staff provide support to maintain existing relationships in people’s lives and to build new ones. Experiences lead to opportunities for friendship, personal growth and possible future vocational opportunities.

Areas of Community Access

• Paid Work: work with a community employer and
  contract work at Nova
  
  
• Unpaid Work: volunteering and work simulation
  tasks at Nova
  
  
• Work Exploration: visiting businesses, job shadowing, bus training, small group training in social skills / communication, and training in vocational skills.
  
  
• Community Inclusion: participating in clubs or organizations, visiting regular establishments or participating in activities leading to possible friendships.

Typical Community Access Activities:

• Swimming
• Volunteering
• Shopping
• Going out for meals or coffee
• Running personal errands for Participants
• Basketball
• Bowling
• Walking
• Bingo
• Playing pool

Special activities attended over the last year:

• Horse-drawn carriage rides
• Going to movie theaters
• Cutting Christmas trees for Nova Services
• Bluegrass concert
• Valley Fest
• Singing and dancing performances at the STA Plaza
• A play at Spokane Civic Theater
• Hockey game
• Spokane Indians baseball games

Community Access Volunteer
sites include:

• St. Vincent’s Food Bank, where Participants package and label food items that are given out at the food bank.
  
  
• Second Harvest Food Bank; Participants label canned foods.
  
  
• Union Gospel Mission: Participant enters kitchen inventory into their computer system.
  
  
• YMCA: Help with office tasks such as making photo-copies, stamping envelopes.
  
  
• Habitat for Humanity Builders Surplus Store: Participants straighten and stock shelves with building materials, sweep floors.
  
  
• Friend to Friend Program: Two participants volunteer at nursing homes:
  
  
• Alderwood Manor: Participant visits with Nina, a 100+ year-old woman.
  
  
• Riverview Lutheran Care Facility: Participant visits with residents; helps set up for parties, cleans birdcages and helps to feed animals that also live there.

Targeted Service Coordination

Service Coordination provides case management services to eligible individuals living in north Idaho, Nova Service Coordinators work with both children and adults with disabilities. Adult consumers are assisted to access needed vocational, residential, health and social services through the advocacy of our staff. Support is provided to families of children with disabilities to work with schools to plan the best programs and to communicate with educators. Regardless of the age of the clients, Service Coordinators are skilled in connecting individuals with available resources.