Recently, Pulford made a significant purchase with the help of a generous grant from The United Way that put a brand-new iPad into every residentially supported home. This purchase has created some great new ways for people we support to connect with their friends and family through COVID restrictions. We’ve partnered with people to bring them fitness classes, art classes and music therapy.

One of our Program Coordinators, Pascale Clare Dubois got creative and used the iPad in one of the home’s she manages to connect with a potential new roommate.

“It went really well,” she said.

“The women got to meet each other and chat and share about their common interests. Like things they liked to do before COVID and things they like to do now during COVID. One of the things they talked about was their crafting area because that’s a common interest.”

Pascale said that she took this prospective roommate on a virtual tour of the home, showing them things like the bathroom and it’s double doors, where their bedroom would be. The ability to still show people where they would be living if they choose to move in while also being able to meet the people they’d be living with is a big component about how Pulford introduces new people into our support.

“She lit right up and was so excited to see her room and the house where she could live. It’s much different than just showing someone photos. The people who live here really liked being able to meet virtually and chat,” Pascale said.

Pascale said that these meetings provide an excellent opportunity for report building and that they hope to do these visits weekly and give everyone more time to get to know each other.

While this wasn’t the original purpose for the iPads it’s great to see our team utilizing them in creative ways to connect people we support to the community. These devices have helped curb the feelings of isolation through the winter and we can’t wait to see how they’re used in the future.  

*Disclaimer, the iPad in this photo is turned off to protect the privacy of the person and family on the other end.*