EBL QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER • WINTER EDITION • JULY 2020
In this edition
From the Chair....................................................... 1-2
A Word from Wendy..............................................3
Carer Advisory Committee................................. 4
Happenings at Harrow House............................5
Update on Stage Two Covid Safe
Response.......................................................................6
The Story of Ann Marie Smith.......................7-9
Easter at EBL / Highlights from Wendy.....10
Mother’s Day / Anzac Day /
Tauri’s Birthday......................................................... 11
Low Cost Assistive Technology / NDIS
Updates........................................................................ 12
From the Chair
2020 will surely be remembered by us all for a very long time. As I write this
it is nearly the end of June. Half-way through the year, yet it feels like we’ve
dealt with enough worry, stress, heartache and unknowns to fill several years.
COVID-19 has changed our lives, probably forever. What the eventual
effects on the economy will be are also going to change our lives. Some of
these issues seem so big, it’s hard to even grapple with them. I think we’ve all
been in our bunkers, trying to stay healthy, and trying not to over-think all the
other stuff.
But EBL, through Wendy’s strong leadership, targeted planning and effective
implementation, has not only met this crisis, but adapted to and overcome
many challenges. This has kept all of our staff and our clients safe, and enabled
the organisation to continue to operate. I could not be more proud of all of our
staff, especially those at the frontline through this pandemic. Their commitment
to our clients, and to keeping them well and as stress-free as possible has been
simply awe-inspiring.
No doubt you have all read with horror and dismay about the death of Ann
Marie Smith, and the discovery of how she lived her last few years while
ostensibly being cared for by an NDIS registered carer, under an NDIS
plan. This situation would be the worst fear of every parent of a profoundly
intellectually disabled child. – Who will oversee our child’s well-being when
we are gone? And it is a
situation which EBL has
taken steps to address in
relation to some of our
clients and their families,
where appropriate. I
can assure you all, that
what happened to Ann
Marie Smith has not
ever happened, and
could not ever happen
to a client in the care
of EBL. Indeed, I hope
that our organisation
can be involved in
providing information
to the various
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EBL QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER 1