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Support Woods Through PA’s EITC Program

Pennsylvania’s Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) program is a way for businesses to enrich educational opportunities for students and earn tax credits by donating to an Educational Improvement Organization.  Through EITC, eligible businesses can receive tax credits equal to 75% of their contribution, up to $750,000 per taxable year. Woods has recently been approved as an Educational Improvement Organization and now qualifies to receive funds from corporations in the EITC program.

 

Woods Services seeks funds through EITC to support The Boost Program, an innovative educational improvement program which will enhance learning for 300 K-12 (ages 5 through 21) residential and day students who are enrolled in Woods Services’ licensed private approved special education school, The Woods School or who attend a local school.

 

The STEAM-focused Boost Program is offered after school, in the evenings and on weekends, and continues in the summer months.  The program uses a club approach paired with pre-vocational training and exposure to a range of careers in order to enhance the education of students with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

 

The program builds on the individual education plans of each child.  Examples of the clubs which Boost offers include Science Club, Technology Club, Travel Club, and Art, Theater and Music Club.  Each of these components engages children K-12 in interdisciplinary activities which build on the school-day curriculum, and enhances skills they need to be successful in school, to be able to live as independently as possible, and to find and retain employment once they graduate.

 

We ask for your help in identifying corporations that may wish to support Woods and the important work we do in the year ahead. For more information, contact Liz Hayden at Lhayden@woods.org.

1,000 Cross the Finish Line at 4th Annual Run for Woods

A beautiful spring day set the scene as 1,000 runners, walkers, and rollers participated in the 4th annual Run for Woods on Saturday, May 5th. Eighty volunteers served as course marshals, assisted with registration, staffed the lunch lines and presented well deserved medals to all who crossed the finish line. Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick received Woods’ Humanitarian Award at the Opening Ceremony and State Representative Frank Farry served as the official starter.

 

The event attracted 77 teams, including a large team from Johnson, Kendall & Johnson. Twenty JKJ employees raised $11,000 for Woods in addition to the $10,000 Gold Sponsorship provided by the insurance and risk management company.

 

“My favorite part of the Run experience was feeling and seeing the exuberance and energy of all of the participants and the staff, as well as knowing that my participation in the race was helping to make a difference in lives of many people who truly need our help,” said Kathy Glenn, Administrative Assistant for JKJ.

 

Woodlands resident Patrick Scotto, 21, welcomed the enthusiastic crowd prior to the start of the Run and shared his story. Patrick has worked for the last year in Woods’ Café, “Common Grounds” where he takes orders, prepares food, stocks shelves and works the cash register. Patrick expressed his appreciation for the Woods staff who, “have helped me recognize right from wrong and treated me with respect. It is because of my staff that I am able to treat others the way they want to be treated.”

 

Awards were presented to the Top Individual Fundraiser: Whit Park, a Woods resident who raised $5690, the Top Fundraising Team, Ciocca Subaru, which raised $13,685, and the Largest Team, the Woodlands Warriors, with 68 participants including residents and staff.

 

Following the run/walk, Outback Steakhouse and Carrabba’s Italian Grill prepared and donated a lunch of ribs, steak, pasta and chicken for a hungry crowd of 800. Drinks were donated by Pepsi and Wawa and participants dined outside together under a huge white tent.

 

Thanks to the generosity of 10 Faulkner Ciocca Dealerships that raised a whopping $73,000 for Woods this year, and had a record-breaking turnout, more than $194,000 was raised at the Run. Funds raised at the run/walk support Woods’ Greatest Need, which this year includes the expansion of the Davenport Medical Center at Woods, which provides care for both residents and staff.

 

The newest dealership to participate was Ciocca Chevrolet of Princeton, which recruited nearly 30 team members for its Princeton Princes and Princesses team – all sporting tiaras!  Michael Minetti, Parts and Service Director for Ciocca, stated “We are blessed with employees who believe that we are a family and understood the importance of the Run. Our employees were excited to be a part of something that benefited people in need.”

 

Three Woods residents were named “Ambassadors of the Run” this year: Jason Speer, Whit Park and Adam Greene, helping to get the word out about the event.  Adam, a Beechwood NeuroRehab resident, visited Ciocca Chevrolet of Princeton and shared the story of his acquired brain injury and the improved quality of life that he enjoys now as a result of the services he receives at Beechwood NeuroRehab, a program of Woods.

 

Adam was so inspiring that the dealership registered one dozen participants and raised $500 in just one hour! He was rewarded with a spin in a brand new convertible Corvette. Additional fun elements that were significant at the award-winning Run for Woods this year included character visits with super heroes and princesses, complimentary fruit smoothies to quench your thirst, game tables and prizes from Dave & Busters, and singing and dance performances that were enjoyed by all.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sounds of Excellence: A Sensory Friendly Concert

On Saturday, March 28th Woods and the Conservatory co-sponsored “Sounds of Excellence” a sensory friendly concert at the Kimmel Center for Performing Arts. The concert was held in honor of Stephen Francisco, a longtime Woods resident with a love of music!

 

About 300 music lovers joined us for the 45 minute show featuring musicians and vocalists. Because the show was “sensory friendly” concert goers were allowed to get up and dance, shout, sing-a-long or whatever else they were moved to do! Some individuals “listened” to the music by standing in front of the stage with their hands feeling the vibrations on the stage floor, others clapped along and got the whole audience involved, and others wore ear plugs to soften the sound while they gently rocked. It was a sight to behold! Perhaps the most powerful moment of the show was when one vocalist performed “His Eye is on the Sparrow.” She introduced it as one of Stephen’s favorite songs and it really moved the audience!

 

Stephen’s family provided a gift to Woods that provides music instruction and entertainment to individuals in our adult program. In addition to the gift from the Francisco family, The Consrvatory  received a grant from Foundations Community Partnership that is used to provide music classes to Woods residents 21 and under.

 

According to the American MusicTherapy Association, Music therapy interventions focus on enhancing social, communicative, motor/sensory, emotional, and academic/cognitive functioning, or music skills in individuals with ASD. Music Therapists from the Conservatory visit Woods twice a week to provide various music instruction. Students who weren’t able to participate in regular music instruction before, are now able to participate in weekly sessions and are loving it! In addition to the therapy sessions, Woods residents travel to Doylestown once a month for a 45 minute recital.