What is Possible.
At Innovative Services NW, our mission is to deliver innovative programs that give opportunity for children and adults in our community to become more self-reliant through therapeutic, educational, and employment services. During the 2018-2019 Fiscal Year we embraced possibilities as we welcomed a new executive team, engaged supporters in new ways, started a new program, and directed more funds than ever to our programs.
Our Team
This was the first full fiscal year of leadership by our new Executive Team: Dena Strong as President & CEO, Melissa Ruth as Vice President of Operations, and Susan Veneruso as Vice President of Internal Operations. Learn more about their professional and personal histories here.
Dena Strong
President & CEO
Melissa Ruth
VP of Operations
Susan Veneruso
VP of Internal Operations
We also welcomed a very special addition to our office: Raven, the German Shepard-Great Dane mix. She is a therapy dog in training. Therapy dogs have been proven to have physical, cognitive, social, emotional, and mental health benefits for the people around them. This trial program is allowing Raven to build the skills she needs to provide therapy services out in the community when she passes all of her certifications. In the meantime, our staff are reaping the therapeutic benefits too!
Our Supporters
Donations
September 20, 2018 was Give More 24, an annual day of giving sponsored by the Community Foundation for Southwest Washington. This year, we received a match of $12,500 from the Corwin Family Fund, resulting in a total donation amount of $25,731.85. This was our most successful Give More 24 yet, and we owe many thanks to the Corwin Family Fund for their matching donation!
The manufacturing classes from Heritage and Mountain View High Schools donated 26 handmade wooden trucks to our Early Learning program.
Umpqua Bank continues to provide translation services so we can offer program information and forms in our clients’ preferred languages. Additionally, MacDonald-Miller donated $2,500 for much needed HVAC repairs in our building.
Grants
We are so thankful for the numerous grants we received from our community partners. Hover over each logo to see the details.
Walmart Giving
$700 towards technology for our Employment Services program.
Autism Speaks Norma & Malcolm Baker Recreation Grant fund
$2017 towards workshop for Employment Services staff, participant families, and employers.
Windermere Foundation
$2250 for Listening Therapy equipment.
OnPoint Community Credit Union
$1500 towards the Calming Room for the Early Learning program.
Re/Max Equity Group Foundation
$1000 for specialty therapy equipment.
Kaiser Permanente
$15,000 funding the renovation of the Pediatric Therapy clinic including a classroom for the ABA program, and software licensing and computer equipment for staff.
Volunteers
Volunteers from Kaiser Permanente spent Martin Luther King, Jr. Day with us. We are so appreciative of their help with the art project in Early Learning and the hard work spiffing up our therapy rooms and landscaping.
Business Partners
Thank you to the following business partners who help to create an inclusive community through our Janitorial and Employment Services programs.
Our Board of Directors
We are so thankful for our Board of Directors which is comprised of committed community members who volunteer an average of four to six hours of their time each month to provide program oversight and policy making for the organization. The full Board of Directors meets quarterly, and is actively engaged in the organization by participating in corporate and program development, event planning and fundraising acitivites. All board members volunteer monthly through serving on at least one of five Functional Boards: Nominating & Board Education, Marketing, Development, Program Development, and Building & Finance.
Lindsey Salvestrin
Chair
Dick James
Vice Chair
Megan Shank
Past Chair
Rob Woodard
Past Chair
Ryan Hart
Treasurer
Darcey Reed
Secretary
Lisa Abrahamsson
Debra Arbuckle
John Caton
Mary Dunford
Karalee Ehline
Gregory J. Hall
Bobbi Heitschmidt
Christine Lipinski
Amy Shannon
Taylor Vilhauer
Becky Weis
Our Work
Our programs provide person-centered care across the entire lifespan from early learning for children, to therapy through adolescence, to employment for adults, and community engagement during retirement. Overall, we served 1,500 individuals and families in our community last fiscal year.
Employment Services
Our Employment Services program is proud to be one of the leading employment agencies in Clark County for adults with disabilities or other employment barriers. For more than 40 years, our Employment Services team has been placing adults with developmental disabilities in a variety of jobs, suited to their skill levels, in businesses and organizations throughout Clark County. A combination of proper job placement and on-going job coaching have contributed to a high number of these adults remaining in their job for 10 years or more.
Lori and Lisa have been employed through the support of Employment Services for 18 and 16 years, respectively.
Janitorial Services
Our Janitorial Services program provides a high-quality commercial janitorial service and provides opportunities to individuals with employment barriers. We provide services to other nonprofits, private businesses, and city, state, and county facilities.
The Janitorial program has some of the longest tenures in the organization:
Early Learning
Our Early Learning program provides quality preschool and childcare for children ages one to five years old of all ability and income levels. Innovative offers the Early Childhood Education & Assistance Program (ECEAP) in four of our seven classroom. ECEAP supports eligible families through free preschool and other support services. We are the only ECEAP provider in Clark County that is open year-round, making it possible for families to maintain their regular work schedules when schools are closed. Our Family Advocates help families get connected with other much-needed resources in the community such as housing, food assistance, and financial services.
Pediatric Therapy
Our therapy clinic offers a wide array of pediatric therapy services including physical, speech, occupational, and specialty therapies. Innovative also offers Early Intervention Services provided in the natural environment, and Applied Behavior Analysis for children on the autism spectrum or with other challenging behaviors. Our clinic is one of 20 Neurodevelopmental Centers in Washington State. We uniquely offer two programs under one roof and are able to continue care with our Early Intervention clients as they age-out of that program and transition in to care through our outpatient clinic.
Read stories of some incredible kids in Pediatric Therapy
Climbing her way to greatness
Charlotte is a tenacious 10-year-old girl with the desire to scale any mountain in her path. She has been participating in therapy with Innovative Services NW since 2015, starting in the Pelvic Floor Therapy program.
“It takes two flints to make a fire.” – Louisa May Alcott
Therapy is a family affair for bright two-and-a-half-year-old twin boys Elijah and Sebastian. These two spitfires have been receiving therapy at Innovative Services NW for over a year.
An indomitable strength of will
Mahatma Ghandi once said, “strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will.” This could not be truer of four-and-a-half-year-old Marley and his mother Tafadzwa.
Corporate
The small but mighty corporate team makes sure the infrastructure of the organization runs smoothly so the programs can focus on meeting client needs. Through a highly-coordinated effort, we implemented a new accounting system for financial and HR records management for the entire organization, as well as a new electronic medical records system for our Pediatric Therapy program.
Our Financials
The investments made in technology and people this fiscal year resulted in a financial position that sets us up well for the future.
Expenses
Net Assets
Revenue
