Posted 9/29/2023
On Monday, September 25, Merakey Allegheny Valley School was featured in a Terrible Towel segment on the TODAY show on NBC! “The Terrible Towel” segment was included as part of the show’s “Inside the NFL” series.
Click here to watch the segment. Merakey AVS is featured around the 2:50 mark.
Participants James, Kenton, and Mike from Merakey AVS’s Life Sharing Program in Slippery Rock, PA traveled to Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, and Montana for a two-week vacation. They enjoyed a concert at Red Rocks Amphitheatre, visited Grand Teton National Park, Yellowstone National Park, Arches National Park, Canyonlands National Park, Bear Lake, and multiple other amazing locations in the west. The guys had an amazing journey together and are looking forward to taking another trip soon.
Yarrrr, Matey! Slippery Rock Program Center Instructor Nikita Flowers and her aide Shelly Flick transformed their area into a pirate’s cove and dressed up in pirate garb. A short lesson was presented about what pirate life was like, and participants learned some fun ‘pirate talk.’ There were many pirate-themed activities including decorating treasure chests, designing pirate flags, and a scavenger hunt that led to a huge treasure chest filled with all kinds of goodies. Fun was had by all, and luckily, no one had to walk the plank.
The ladies from Merakey Galey House are ready for Fall! They stuffed homemade scarecrows to decorate the outside of their home, and maybe even scare some crows away.
Shire Grave, Amanda Cockrell, and Nakiah Boyette from the 159 E. Countyline Medical Department have enjoyed seeing how happy the individuals are to be back at their day programs. Amanda commented that the layout of the new space keeps the staff better connected to the individuals and promotes more interaction.
Congratulations to Gina Belicic, who celebrated 31 years with Merakey this week! Gina has held many roles at Merakey during her tenure and is currently an IDD Senior Regional Director. Thank you for all your years of service, Gina – here’s to many more!
Recently Merakey participant Allen from Franklin/Fulton and his staff support, BC, enjoyed spending some time at Coyle Free Library in Chambersburg. Allen loves puzzles and BC helped him find an amazing one to work on. They both had a wonderful time together at the beautiful library.
