The Amazing E-Race 3-> Victory Party!

For the last 10 weeks 12 of us have been completing different types of challenges. Participants were, unknowingly, creating a book about themselves. Each challenge consisted of surveys, questionnaires, personality websites, and name and birth date translation all of which generated information to be used in their personalized books.

At our Victory Party participants were presented with their 'All About Me' book, after a delicious lunch of baked ziti and garlic sticks. Many thanks to my husband for making lunch and to Sue for warming it up! As an added bonus I invited my parents to join us at our Victory Party so they could get to know some of the residents here at Shirley Futch.


Pictured Below:
Standing(left to right): Sharlotte Giberson, Judy Griswinski, Verna Overpeck, Helen Detrick, Marie Counterman, Janice Jenkins, Sue Gehris.
Seated: Carol Romansky, Ginny Quinn, Pat Fogarty


Thank you for playing along. We had a fantastic time. See you at the Amazing E-Race 4! ;)

International Travel Day!

Today is International Travel Day!

Click here to visit Ireland!

Visit Australia
Click here for landscape pictures
click here for wildlife pictures
Click here to visit the Outback
Click here to visit Autralia's coastlines

Click here to visit Italy!

Click here to visit New Zealand

Have fun on your 'virtual' vacation. Safe travels!

ETA: How cute are these ladies?! They're in Ireland! ;)
Left to right: Norma Dutter, Eileen Honsberger, Patricia Fogarty


Eileen Honsberger and Patricia Fogarty are visiting Ireland while Helen Detrick is in Italy!

Celebrating our fathers

Today Shirley Futch Plaza celebrated Fathers Day! Sue planned a brunch including sausage, blueberry pancakes, danish and refreshments -all of which she prepared herself!


The guys were given rose boutonnieres (great idea Sue!):


Enjoying their yummy breakfast:

Although the food was good I think they liked being served best! ;)

After breakfast, a couple of games were played and prizes were given out:



What a great way to celebrate our father's! Thank you Sue!

We're on HUD's website!

Article as posted on HUD's website:

Pennsylvania Center’s Reopening Celebration Highlights Increase in Resident Participation


06/09/2009
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East Stroudsburg, PA—Disappointed and sad. That is how senior residents of the Shirley Futch Plaza apartment complex felt when the Shirley Futch Plaza Neighborhood Networks Center closed in 2006 due to staffing issues. With the closing, residents who frequented the center lost a familiar place for recreation and activities, as well as free access to technology and other programs.

All this changed with the arrival of Sharlotte Giberson, the property’s new computer facilitator. One of Giberson’s immediate goals was to reopen the computer center. However, Giberson first had to figure out a way to draw residents back to the center and reassure them that it would not close again. Giberson believed that if she reached out to the residents and established a relationship with them, she could earn their trust and confidence. This is precisely the plan Giberson set in motion, and just four months after it had closed its doors, the Shirley Futch Plaza Neighborhood Networks Center was back in business.

Celebrating Two Years of Success
On March 11, 2009, the Shirley Futch Plaza Neighborhood Networks Center celebrated two years of operation under Giberson’s direction. To mark this milestone, Giberson planned and advertised a back-in-business anniversary party that focused on thanking the residents for making the learning center so successful.

“I was really excited about hosting this event for the residents,” stated Giberson. “I advertised it in our monthly newsletter and placed flyers on each floor of our building. I also promoted the party on the blog that I created when I became the computer facilitator. The blog lists upcoming programs and events. I invited both residents and nonresidents. I also extended a special invitation to residents who frequently visited the center within the last two years and promised to honor them at the party.”

Thirty-three residents and three nonresidents attended the anniversary party. Before Giberson could follow through with her promise and recognize those individuals who often visited the center during the past two years, she first engaged attendees in an icebreaker activity and presented a progress update.

Let’s Relax and Celebrate
To ensure an enjoyable time for attendees, Giberson started the party with a game “Sticky Hands.” For the game, the attendees sat in groups at tables and threw sticky plastic hands with gooey handles at objects, such as wrapped candies, on the table. Whatever object their hand grabbed was theirs to keep.



Shirley Futch Plaza Social Services Coordinator Sue Gehris (right) watches Carol Gueiss play a game of "sticky hands."

“It was so much fun to watch attendees laughing and talking, and trying to grab hold of the wrapped candies,” Giberson added. “They really got into it.”

Once the icebreaker segment ended, Giberson thanked all of the attendees for coming, reminded them of their importance to the center, and assured them that they are the reason the center thrives. Then, using a laptop and liquid crystal display (LCD) video projector, Giberson presented a comprehensive progress report that highlighted the increase in center participation and usage between 2007 and 2008.

“In 2007, users logged a total of 1,029 hours at the center,” reported Giberson. “In 2008, that number jumped to 2,031 hours. I used a line chart to show the monthly increase in resident participation, and a bar chart to compare the numbers of total hours for February 2007 through February 2009. Statistics also showed that the total number of resident visits in 2007 was 674, while in 2008 that number more than doubled to 1,382.”



Shirley Futch Plaza Neighborhood Networks Center Computer Facilitator Sharlotte Giberson compares 2007 and 2008 center computer usage statistics. In 2008, center users logged 1,002 more hours on the computers than in 2007.

Promise Keeper
After the presentation, Giberson again thanked the residents for supporting the center’s programs and activities. She also presented certificates of appreciation to the top 13 most frequent computer center users, including Petra Berrios, Jean Bruck, Marie Counterman, Helen Detrick, Norma Dutter, Patricia Fogarty, Judy Griswinski, Eileen Honsberger, Monika London, Nettie Martling, Verna Overpeck, Carol Romansky, and Lucille Schmidt.

“Our presentation and awards ceremony concluded with hot pretzels and citrus water,” said Giberson. “The party was a huge success, and since the party, the center has seen an increase in participation.”

Never to Old to Learn
While Giberson’s charts and statistics clearly demonstrate the success and value of the Shirley Futch Plaza Neighborhood Networks Center, perhaps nothing is more powerful than hearing what an impact the center and Giberson have had on actual users:

“I didn’t have to stop learning because of my age,” said Mary Ann Armillei. “The center has opened a whole new vocabulary to me, as well as a way to communicate with the outside world, especially with fellow cooks. I am very pleased with the opportunity. Thanks to our very capable facilitator, Sharlotte Giberson, there is nothing she can't teach you to do with this fantastic computer. What a joy and a boost to my ego.”

“I love the computer. I make cards to send to my family, create labels, e-mail my children and friends, conduct research, and play games. I think Sharlotte is the greatest teacher I ever had,” said Helen Detrick.

“Sharlotte and the computer room have changed my life and way of thinking about computers in so many ways. What a blessing she is. I now know how to do things I never dreamed I could. For example, I send e-mails, make cards, and send and receive pictures of my family in California. I now have my own computer, printer, and digital camera. I guess you could call me a computer geek now. I’m proud of what I can do and it’s all because of Sharlotte and the center,” explained Carol Romansky.

“I always said I did not want to learn how to use the computer, but now I am so glad I did,” said Verna Overpeck. “Sharlotte is such a great teacher. I learned how to make cards and sign-up sheets for all of our events. I keep in touch with friends and family through e-mail. I can’t wait to visit the computer center.”

For more information about Neighborhood Networks centers in Pennsylvania, contact:

David R. Kolar
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
Pittsburgh Multifamily Program Center
339 Sixth Avenue, Sixth Floor
Pittsburgh, PA 15222-2515
(412) 644–6866

Susan J. Noce
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
Philadelphia Multifamily Hub
The Wanamaker Building
100 Penn Square East
Philadelphia, PA 19107-3380
(215) 861–7583

For more information about the Shirley Futch Plaza Neighborhood Networks Center, contact:

Sharlotte Giberson
Computer Facilitator
Shirley Futch Plaza Neighborhood Networks Center
4 South Kistler Street
East Stroudsburg, PA 18301
(570) 421-1517


CLICK HERE TO SEE THE ORIGINAL ARTICLE WITH PICTURES

The Computer Learning Center is in the Pocono Record!!

By CAROL O'NEILL
Sage Editor
June 03, 2009
Enthusiasm can be contagious.

The Computer Learning Center at Shirley Futch Plaza is proof of that.

In September 2002, the center opened to give low-income seniors living at the East Stroudsburg apartment building the opportunity to learn something new.

Apartment manager Gail Weierbach said that Housing and Urban Development's Neighborhood Network Project selected Shirley Futch Plaza to be a computer learning site.



"HUD tries to help establish programs for residents of government subsidized housing," Weierbach said.

Interstate Realty Management Inc., the company that manages Shirley Futch Plaza, was able to provide start up money to purchase equipment, and it also pays the computer facilitator hired to teach classes there.

While some residents showed interest in the program, things took off when Sharlotte Giberson began teaching the classes in February 2007. In fact, the class became so popular with residents that Interstate Realty Management decided to open the center an extra day.

"It was open two days a week. Now it's open three because of demand," Weierbach said.

After five months on the job Giberson was featured on the HUD Web site as a success story for initiating "Wheel of Futch" to get residents interested in the computer center.

Giberson, 32, teaches group classes and one-on-one. Some are beginners and others are savvier.



When Pat Fogarty, 70, started the class two years ago, she had almost no knowledge of computers. "After three classes, I got promoted," said Fogarty.

"I'm the card lady," added Fogarty, who enjoys making greeting cards on the computer when she's not doing puzzles, e-mailing, downloading coupons, getting free samples or researching information from her health insurance provider.

Beverly Barth, 74, has her own computer and knew how to use it when she started the class two years ago. For her, the class provided answers to specific questions, like how to get on Facebook. And thanks to Barth's online search skills, she found jigzone.com, and now all the jigsaw puzzle enthusiasts in the building are working puzzles online.

"I'm big on pushing puzzles and word games," Giberson said. "They are an excellent way to learn to use the mouse."

One of those puzzle enthusiasts, Jean Bruck, 70, said she visits three different crossword sites every day.

Bruck, who has owned a computer for at least 10 years, said, "I knew certain things, but I learned everything I use it for in this class. All my photography I learned here. I learned about puzzles here."

Having computer skills has enabled Bruck to create a personalized greeting card for her favorite priest who will be leaving the area soon. She scanned in a photograph for the cover, and designed the card to be a keepsake for the priest.



Not everyone in the building was excited about computer class. Verna Overpeck, 64, has no computer, knew nothing about computers and vowed she did not want to learn.

"I was afraid I would break something," Overpeck said. "Now I love it. I'm always here."

Once she got over her fear of the computer, Overpeck has learned to make greeting cards with personalized messages and creates signs to post on the bulletin board. She plays bingo and solitaire, and solves jigsaw puzzles.

Five computers are available in the computer learning center during class and practice time. With an average of 22 students a month, the center gets a lot of use.

Giberson said students range in age from 55 to 97. So far, only one man has taken the class.

Whatever the lesson, Giberson makes it challenging and fun. For example, to teach students to become more proficient with e-mail, Giberson got them to play the "Amazing e-race." The 10-week game will end with a party, and each student will receive a book, the product of their work.



"The more the challenges I present, the more they want," Giberson said.

In addition to scheduled classes, residents who have computers of their own can attend a monthly home-users club where they can discuss problems with their computers and get additional help.

During a recent home-users club, Giberson fielded questions about digital cameras in preparation for an upcoming photo contest. At their next class, the students were going to practice taking pictures in the backyard, using either their own digital camera or a borrowed one. Then they were going to learn how to edit and crop photos using Picasa, a free Google program.

"They love contests. They love technology," Giberson said of her students.

Photos have since been posted on the Shirley Futch blog site — sfpnn.blogspot.com — so that people can vote for their favorite.

"This is the most rewarding work I've ever done," said Giberson, who is working on having the Shirley Futch Plaza computer center designated a model site. "I teach them something and they run with it."

CLICK HERE FOR THE ORIGINAL ARTICLE AND PICTURES

June Schedule

Tues. June 2: E-Race Lap 8
9:15-12:00 CLOSED

1:15-4:45 Open Lab

Wed. June 3:
9:15-12:00 Open Lab

1:15-2:15 Making the most out of your Yahoo email Learn how to insert links, add emoticons and stationary to email.

2:15-4:45 Open Lab

Thurs. June 4:
9:15-12:00 Open Lab

1:15-2:15 English as a Second Language

2:15-4:45 Open Lab

Tues. June 9: E-Race Lap 9
9:15-12:00 By Appointment Only

1:15-4:45 Open Lab

Wed. June 10:
9:15-12:00 Open Lab

1:15-2:15 Typing Class

2:15-4:45 Open Lab

Thurs. June 11:
9:15-12:00 Open Lab

1:15-4:45 Medical ID cards We’re making wallet-sized medical ID cards that you can carry around with you. Very helpful in the event of an emergency!

Tues. June 16: E-Race Lap 10
9:15-12:00 By Appointment Only

1:15-4:45 Open Lab

Wed. June 17:
9:15-12:00 Open Lab

1:15-4:45 Open Lab

Thurs. June 18:
9:15-12:00 Open Lab

1:15-2:15 International Travel Day Never visited Australia, Tibet or Ireland? Come to this class and travel to far-away lands – virtually!

2:15-4:45 Open Lab

Tues. June 23:
9:15-12:00 By Appointment Only

1:15-4:45 Open Lab

Weds. June 24:
9:15-12:00 Open Lab

1:15-3:00 E-Race Victory Party! By Invitation only! All participants will receive an invitation.

3:30-4:45 Open Lab

Thurs. June 25:
9:15-12:00 Open Lab

1:15-2:15 English as a Second Language

2:15-4:45 Open Lab

Mon. June 29:
9:15-12:00 Open Lab

1:15-2:15 Home Users Club – Meeting the Community Room or at the Gazebo if weather permits

2:15-4:45 Open Lab

Tues. June 30:
9:15-12:00 By Appointment Only

1:15-4:45 Open Lab