Southeastern Developmental Services Schedules Annual Open House

David Harbour of SDS with Prowers County Commissioners

David Harbour of SDS with Prowers County Commissioners

SDS, Southeastern Developmental Services, has set Thursday, March 31st for their annual open house at 1111 South 4th Street in Lamar.  Dave Harbour of SDS visited with the Prowers County Commissioners Monday, March 21st to invite them to the annual gathering and for the signing of a proclamation recognizing SDS Awareness Day.

Harbour’s update for the commissioner’s stated that one main purpose for the assisted living organization is to provide a quality of life for their clients, allowing them  to function as independently as possible and SDS strives to provide for housing, recreation and a general support mechanism so their clientele can function as productive members of their local society.  “Several of our clients are currently employed, with some recently hired at MacDonald’s,  Big R and Thrifty King,” Harbour stated.  He added that this type of support from the business community is appreciated.  “Our skilled clients are getting outside work, but our general work crews are reducing in numbers, as less yardwork is available for them, although we are still on call for other work areas such as cleaning parking lots,” he explained.

The house purchased across the street from SDS headquarters has been under renovations for the past several years. Harbour noted that it’s slow going as a lot of the construction work has been volunteered, but Tim Borunda is expected to complete the job in the near future.  Harbour said the house will be used to separate the case management department from the rest of the administrative staff as mandated by federal rules.

SDS Purchased House for Case Management Employees

SDS Purchased House for Case Management Employees

In other developments, the Walter’s Cans scholarship is nearing another cycle. Proceeds from the sale of collected soda cans have been used for the past several years to fund a scholarship for area students who provide an essay for the SDS board.  Students are required to submit a 1,000 word essay as to why they deserved the scholarship, set up in 2010 to honor the memory of Walter Ely, who was well known in the Lamar area for his  efforts to collect discarded beverage cans which were turned into cash for the SDS clients. “A local recycle operation is matching the prices we’d get in Pueblo for the cans.  It’s a favor to us as it saves on time and the cost of transportation.  The scholarship is for $500 and we’re already getting applicants as the deadline for entries is next month,” he stated.

By Russ Baldwin

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