Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)

Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Links

Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Information from the
Center for Disease Control and Prevention
Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Information from the
Minnesota Department of Health
COVID-19 Response and Preparation from
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan

LIFE Mower County will not require face masks due to the CDC Community Level being low for Mower County. Although not required, we ask for continued understanding and kindness to those who will continue to wear a mask. Please continue to bring a mask with you to all activities.

We will communicate with local businesses that we will visit that may have masking requirements. We will need to abide by these rules and we will communicate masking requirements to those registered for these activities.

We will continue to monitor federal, state and local health guidance to adjust guidelines as necessary.

Remember if anyone isnt feeling well, we ask that you please stay home.

Participant Eligibility Requirements

All in-person programs have enhanced essential eligibility requirements in order to comply with state and federal COVID-19 regulations and best practices. These measures are necessary to keep all participants and staff members safe. We understand these measures may be difficult for some of our participants and may exclude them from returning to in-person programming. We intend to ease restrictions as governmental regulations change based on state progress through the Governor’s plan.

If a participant is unable to meet the following expectations, they may be unable to participate at this time in accordance with current federal, state, and local mandates and guidelines.

Independently attend to personal self-care such as bathroom needs, hand washing, eating, dressing, and personal hygiene.
Maintain physical distance of 6 feet or greater from other participants, staff, and community members with minimal verbal reminders.
Independently put on, wear, and take off a face covering, when necessary and for the duration of the program.
Participate in the activity without the need for physical assistance (i.e. hand over hand, lifting/transferring).
Follow policies and participate without emotional outbursts that require direct or close proximity or, which expose others to respiratory droplets (i.e. yelling, spitting or biting).
Conduct a personal health screening prior to each program. Must be able to honestly answer “No” to all questions.

All participants are required to complete their own personal health assessment. LIFE will not record or request proofs of this, but by attending a program, participants are confirming they can answer “no” to the following questions. If you answer “yes” to any of these questions, you are not allowed to attend until cleared by a medical professional.

In the last 24 hours, has the participant experienced:

A fever of 100.4 or greater in the last 24 hours with or without fever reducing medication?
Cough, congestion, runny nose, sore throat, shortness of breath, or difficulty breathing?
Fatigue, muscle or body aches, headache or chills?
Nausea, vomiting or diarrhea?
New loss of sense of smell or taste?
Any additional symptom as updated by the CDC associated with COVID-19?
Tested positive or been exposed to someone who tested positive for COVID-19 within the past 14 days?

If the participant displays any of the above symptoms, LIFE Mower County must take precautions as if participant has
COVID-19. If the participant has illness such as allergies or other non-contagious conditions that may appear similar to a contagious illness, a note from a medical professional is required prior to participation. LIFE Mower County has the right to refuse any participant who appears to have any of the above symptoms.

If a participant becomes ill during a program, a guardian or emergency contact will be notified and asked to pick up the participant. Staff will escort the participant to an isolated area and remain with them at a safe distance until they are picked up.

If a participant is unable to meet the following expectations, they may be unable to participate at this time in accordance with current federal, state, and local mandates and guidelines.

Stay at Home Activities

Some are fun and others are educational. Some are new and others will be familiar. Some you can do by yourself and some you may need help with. Some may be fun with a group. If you don’t live with other people, you can use your phone or the internet to do the activity together. ENJOY!

Activities of Daily Living

Caregivers: Whether you’re a paid or family caregiver, think about the things you do for your loved one/the person you support and ask, isn’t now the perfect time for me to teach this person how to help me or do this on their own? It doesn’t matter if it’s cleaning, cooking, laundry, or making the bed – this is the perfect time to teach a new skill.
If you live with other people who need some help, what can you do for them? Can you wash their dinner dishes? Can you help fold their laundry? Now’s the perfect time to pitch in.
To what degree are you involved with menu planning, purchasing groceries, and cooking and cleaning up after mealtimes. Now is the perfect time to be more involved with these activities.
Today may be the day to sew that missing button from your clothing.

Art

How are you feeling today? Create a piece of art that reflects your mood today. Use whatever materials you have (paper, pen pencil, markers, crayons, glitter, rubber stamps, twigs, acorns, glue, etc.). Show your art to someone (in your home, call or video). Explain why you created the art, ask if they are feeling the same or different than you.
Make thank you cards for family, staff, nurses, doctors, firefighters, police, letter carriers, restaurant workers. Mail the cards and thank them for working so hard and keeping us safe and healthy.
Take a virtual art tour of a famous museum. https://www.harpersbazaar.com/…/best-cultural-museum-world…/
Put on a fashion show! Pick a theme (Sunday Best, 1960’s Hippies, etc.) create an outfit (complete with hair and makeup), find a space for a runway, select music and strut your stuff. If you don’t live with other people (who will also model and be in the audience), connect with friends and share photos or videos.

Civic Engagement

Is your community looking for volunteers? Do you and the people you live with have something to offer? Go online, watch the TV news or call volunteer organizations to learn about their needs. For example, you may not be able to sew a mask but you may have material you can donate to sewers who are making masks for first responders.
Do you have neighbors that could use a helping hand? Taking their trash cans to the curb? Walking their dog? Pulling weeds from their garden? Helping others makes us feel good. Just be sure to follow CDC guidelines if you leave your home.
Are you registered to vote? Now’s the perfect time to register https://vote.gov/
April is Autism Awareness Month. What are you doing to celebrate? If you are on the spectrum and want to share your story write a poem or create a collage and share it with friends and family.

Cleaning

Wash and vacuum out the vehicle you use (your own vehicle, your family vehicle, the agency vehicle, your staff’s vehicle).
When you’re done, offer to wash and vacuum a neighbor’s vehicle.
Go through your closet, put everything that doesn’t fit, or you don’t like in a bag and donate them when we’re allowed to leave our homes.
Now arrange your closet so it’s easier to find things.
And do the same with your dresser drawers.
Walk/roll around your home, pick up branches and trash and throw them out.

Cooking

Bake something yummy for family, staff, nurses, doctors, firefighters, police, letter carriers, restaurant workers. Mail the package and thank them for working so hard and keeping us safe and healthy.
Pick a theme and plan one meal (or breakfast, lunch, and dinner) around that theme. Whether it’s a cuisine or a country it’s sure to be tasty and fun.
Go through your dishes and glasses, find any that are chipped and throw them away.
Look at your pots and pans and take a few minutes to scrub off the burned-on food.

Games

Do you have any board games at your house? It’s time to find them, open the box and have some fun!
Do you like to play cards? This website has lots of card games and instructions https://vipspades.com/blog/2-players-card-games/
Are you one of those people that love to play games on the computer? If you are, have fun – and why don’t you try a new game today.
Road trips in the car can become boring so lots of people play games. This website has a list of fun games you can play at home – no car needed! https://thoughtcatalog.com/christine-sto…/…/road-trip-games/

Meditation & Relaxation

People that meditate say it helps them reduce stress. This website has meditation activities that may interest you. https://www.heromovement.net/…/free-guided-meditation-reso…/
Do you, family, friends or your caregivers have a photo album or scrapbook? Are there photos on their phones? Take a look and learn about the important things in their life.
Do you like poetry? Write your own poem, listen to a poem written by someone you know and find poems on the internet that you enjoy. And don’t forget that hip hop is probably the most popular type of poetry.
Have you tried audiobooks? These are recordings of books that you can listen to. These website lists websites with audiobooks. Your local public library may have them too. https://bookriot.com/…/11-websites-find-free-audiobooks-on…/

Movement

Set up a scavenger in your backyard or neighborhood. Create a list of items to find. Either purposely place items (think Easter egg hunt) or include natural items (a fire hydrant, a cherry tree, etc.).
Create a workout. Be creative with equipment (use a soup can as a weight). Take turns serving as the exercise leader.
Find a YouTube video that works for you such as https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zTBBVJsksaI Exercise Video for People with Intellectual and Physical Disabilities (PART 1).
Dance, dance, dance! Whether you create a dance party (at night, low lights and candles, refreshments, and a DJ) or use headphones and move to your favorite music you can have fun! Here’s some old school inspiration. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lODBVM802H8 and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cL2h59y6dlE
Pick your favorite yoga or Zumba video from the internet and get moving.
Learn a Tik Tok dance.
Set up an obstacle course. The first one that makes it through without knocking things over wins!

Music

Every day pick one type of music you’ve never heard before. Listen to a few songs or artists. Find something new that you like. Here’s a list of different music categories. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_popular_music_genres
Find a song, listen to the lyrics and talk about what the words mean to you. A lot of internet sites have song lyrics. So do many old albums!
How are you feeling today? Write down some words that reflect your mood and sing them to a favorite tune or make up a new one. Share your song with someone nearby or call/video chat. Explain why you wrote those words, ask if they are feeling the same or different than you.
Memorize the lyrics to your favorite song. Sing it loud and proud!
Hold a music festival. Select your favorite artist or type of music and enjoy it.
The Stay at Home festival brings you live streaming events https://www.stayathomefestival.com/

Safety

Go through your kitchen cabinets and throw away everything with expiration dated that has passed.
Now go through your refrigerator and throw away everything with an expiration date that has passed.
Finally, go through your bathroom cabinets and throw away everything with an expiration date that has passed.
Connect with friends to see who had the oldest items that had to be thrown away.
If you have a fire extinguisher in your home inspect it https://www.allstate.com/…/how-to-maintain-your-home-fire-…/
If you have a fire extinguisher in your home watch this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YmKgfkxGVwI (or another one you find on the internet) and learn how to use it.
Practice an emergency drill (fire, earthquake, etc.). There’s a lot of information on the internet about emergency drills. Here’s one that you may like https://www.redcross.org/…/disaster-safety-for-people-with-…
Make Go Bag https://keepingsafe.westchestergov.com/having-a-go-bag

Sensory Stimulation

Create a playlist of your favorite music. You can do this for your device (phone, iPad, computer) or gather up your favorite albums or CDs or find your favorite music station. Then turn off the TV, find a relaxing chair and enjoy it.
Brush your teeth and floss after breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Use soothing lotion on your hands, arms, legs, and feet.
Place a wet washcloth in the refrigerator and once it’s cold lay down, close your eyes, place the cloth over your eyes and relax. You can also place sliced cucumbers on your eyes too.
Look at a book, magazine or watch a video that makes you smile.
Hold something that makes you feel good (squeeze toy, fidget spinner, bean bag, etc.)
Find a favorite soap, perfume, lotion, scented oil, flowers, etc. and enjoy their smell throughout the day.
Do a puzzle.
Plant a garden or clean up and weed around your house.

Social Media

If you have a social media account find long lost friends and colleagues.
If you don’t have a social media account find one that you like such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, or Snap Chat.
Love to look at pictures. Pinterest is a great way to find things you like and save them using this internet scrapbook.
When using social media be sure to follow these safety rules http://archive.ncpc.org/…/int…/social-networking-safety.html

Pets

Do you have a dog? How about an extra walk or two today? Don’t forget to wear a face mask and keep 6 feet apart from people.
Do you have a cat? Now is a great time to do a really good job cleaning out their litter box.
Dog and cat owners: It’s the perfect time to give your pet a really good hair brushing.
Pets don’t like to get their teeth brushed. People don’t like to brush their pet’s teeth. Now maybe the perfect time for toothbrushing.
Does your pet have a cage? It’s time for a good spring cleaning!
And how about cleaning your pets’ toys, food bowls, and blankets?
Don’t have a pet but love animals? Search YouTube puppies, kittens, bunnies, hamsters and enjoy the cuteness.

Websites
A lot of websites have stay-at-home ideas, here are a few: