Re-cap of December, 2020  BY COMPASS INCLUSION SOLUTIONS

The year of quarantine has been tough on all of us but the holiday season seemed to have an extra dark cloud for some. Our Spokane Compass Community Inclusion (CI) Team found a way to overcome the loneliness and help the people they support volunteer with a couple local charities; The Ronald McDonald House, Spokane Veterans Home, Shriners, and Catholic Charities.

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Cathryn, the Spokane Compass Director shared, “We wanted to make sure every individual in our services knows that even being isolated at home, each one of them still have purpose and can bring value and joy to people within our community.”

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As the people we support at Compass have all different types of abilities, the CI Team put together 500 cards of all levels for them to decorate. Some were a folded piece of cardstock with space to color, write a cheery note, or paint in, a coloring page, or seasonal stickers.

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The CI Team then delivered a box of cards to be decorated to each CI participant’s front step. The team had scheduled to go back and pick them up in a couple of days. To everyone’s surprise the day after they dropped them off a majority of them were calling and requesting more! They loved making them! So the CI Team hustled and prepared even more for everyone to decorate.

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Bill a CI Participant called his Specialist and shared, “I liked doing them, it was fun. I showed my family what I did in my coloring cards. I also got more cards to color and finished them all by myself!”

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Shortly after the second delivery, the CI Team went out and collected the festive cards. They were beautiful and full of merriment! Before delivering the heartfelt gifts, the CI team placed all of them in a 72-hour quarantine to minimize any risk of spreading illness, and then delivered them to the various places.

Compass CI received many thank you letters from the programs they delivered to.

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“The number of items you gave to our facility, the Spokane Veterans Home was outstanding. We love it when our neighbors show how much they care for their veterans. Each time people like you donate to us demonstrate the continuing love for us and our country. So, for these things we thank you from the bottom of our hearts.”

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A parent of one of the CI Participants said, “Jamie talked about it over Christmas. She was really happy that she was doing them and loved doing it. When she found out where they were going, she wished she could have gone along to deliver them.”

 

We are hoping everyone can go deliver them next year!