This document summarizes Lauren Ketelsen's success story working in the laundry department at Wild Rose Casino & Resort in Emmetsburg, Iowa. Lauren works diligently and interacts positively with coworkers. She was named Employee of the Month out of 275 staff members. Her manager says Lauren is a great employee and that businesses should be open to hiring individuals with disabilities.

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Super Sunday Pancake Breakfast
Emmetsburg VFW
8 am—12:30 pm, Sunday, Feb. 7, 2016
Tablescapes theme table gala
Wild Rose Ballroom
Wild Rose Casino, Emmetsburg
5—8 pm, Thursday, Apr. 28, 2016
Wine Tasting fundraiser
Time and location to be announced
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an exceptional employee
lauren’s success story
“We were lucky enough to be placed with Lauren and she’s been
awesome. Lauren has a special place in everybody’s heart around
here,” says Julie Olson, hotel manager at the Wild Rose Casino &
Resort in Emmetsburg.
Wild Rose’s hospitality department hired Lauren Ketelsen in the
summer of 2015. She now works six-hour shifts in the laundry room,
five days a week. Lauren begins her work day by putting on her name
tag, clocking herself in on the computer, and then she heads back to
her department.
“The first thing I do is to get the cart that’s full of clean pillow
cases, sheets, and shower curtains,” says Lauren. “I fold them in neat
squares and pile them up on the table.”
One by one, Lauren works quickly and diligently through the
seemingly endless pile of unfolded laundry, transforming the heap
into tidy stacks organized according to size. As coworkers walk by her
or work alongside her, Lauren grins and chats about weekend plans
with them. She never compromises the speed or quality of her work,
which she performs effortlessly as if she’d been doing it all her life.
Lauren sees a coworker and jokes: “Where have you been lately?
Have you been skipping work?” They share a laugh.
“Lauren is like our glue back there. She insists some days on
having ‘family pictures’ when they’re having lunch. She’s just
wonderful, wonderful. She has a great attitude,” says Olson.
Lauren not only folds laundry, she also runs the washing machines
and dryers, transports the laundry, and runs any other errands
A Small Business Owner’s
Experience
page 3
A Very Good Fit
page 4
Message from the CEO
page 7
3826 460th Ave., PO Box 567
Emmetsburg, IA 50536
(712) 852-2211
www.horizons-unlimited.net
Board of Directors
Cindy Magee, President
Kevin Banwart, Vice President
Karen Brown
Cindy Chapman
Robert Cozine
Bill Frevert
Jane Hoyman
Sue Joynt
Sean Solberg
Aaron Steffen
Jeremy Ward
Wish List
15th St. & Pleasant St. Homes
 New A/C units
21st St. Home
 New windows
 New baseboards
 Front landscaping
 Kitchen utensils
 2 new computers
King St. Apartments
 New gutters & downspouts
 New paint
 New windows
 Upgraded breaker panels
 New boiler
Monroe St. Duplex
 New kitchen flooring
 Shelving in garage
 New front screen door
 Laptop computer
 Office equipment
 Copy machine
Horizons Office Building
 Van
 iPads for members
 Wooden benches, tables,
or chairs for painting art
projects with the members
If you have something you
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Horizons, please call us at
(712) 852-2211 and let us
know what you have, its age,
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2. throughout the hotel that are asked of her.
“I was excited because, honestly, finding employees these days can be very difficult, especially for certain
areas,” says Katrina Williams, Human Resources manager at Wild Rose Casino & Resort. “I was excited at
the possibility of growing our base of employees. Hiring Lauren was really not different from hiring other
employees. She came in, she got the same orientation, she did the same interview process, she got the same
training as anyone else.”
“I really like this job. It’s awesome,” says Lauren. “It feels good to do something I enjoy and to make
money doing it.”
“Employers who don’t think outside the box, I feel like they’re missing out on some really great
employees,” says Williams. “I cannot speak enough about how great Lauren has been as an addition to our
team. Each and every employee comes with some sort of disability. Everyone has their own issues. I don’t
think that anybody should be branded out of a job just because of that.”
“I would say to other businesses who might have qualms about hiring individuals with disabilities: try it,”
recommends Olson. “It’s just like hiring someone else. You just have to see what type of personality would
fit in with your group. Lauren has been a great, great fit.”
Lauren hasn’t only been a good employee, she’s been exceptional. “Lauren recently won Employee of
the Month,” says Williams. Out of a staff of 275 employees, this is no small feat. “Lauren is reliable, and
she consistently goes above and beyond. She was nominated for the award because of her exceptional
performance, along with several other employees, and she won. She earned it.”
“I got a gift certificate along with the award,” Lauren mentions, but it’s the honor of the award that
makes her face light up more than any prize. “It feels good to work, and to do a good job.”
Your tax deductible donations to Horizons Unlimited support our goal of helping individuals with
disabilities prepare for, attain, and be successful in employment in the community.
We have much to celebrate at the end of 2015. Thanks to your support, the support of the
community at large, and the hard work of our board of directors, our members enjoy better
services, more independence, and more successful lives than ever before.
The number of members served at the Horizons Work Activity Center continues to decline,
due to our close partnership with Iowa Vocational Rehabilitation Services and the relentless
work of our staff in helping members to find jobs out in the community. Sixty one percent of
our members have expressed a desire to work in the community, and 56% actually do so. Our
members work at places as diverse as the Wild Rose Resort Hotel, West Elementary School,
Hughes Pharmacy, Dyno’s Oil Company, JimGlo, Pizza Ranch, Pizza Hut, and Kirby’s Diner,
just to name a few.
Horizons also works with Emmetsburg and West Bend high school students with disabilities,
to help them acquire valuable work experience at places like the Lost Island Nature Center,
Addy Mae’s Café, Homestead Country Store, and the West Bend Public Library.
Of the parents and guardians of our community-employed members, 100% feel well
informed about what’s happening with their family member and 100% have a “very good”
impression of the job placement program.
Horizons Unlimited has a stable number of members living in our group homes, with only
one bed currently empty. Our Supported Community Living services have 100% occupancy.
The majority of our members are between 28-59 years old, and the number of our members
aged 18-27 is growing.
In surveys conducted this year, our members expressed great satisfaction with the quality of
the services they receive and with their quality of life. Between 95%-100% of members feel
happy with our staff’s help, feel financially secure, and feel they have the freedom to make their
own friends, have their own visitors, and make their own lifestyle decisions.
Our staff expresses overwhelming satisfaction with their jobs at Horizons. One hundred
percent of Horizons employees feel proud of their work here, 100% feel that their supervisor
treats them with respect and as part of the team, and 99% of employees feel satisfied with the
compensation they earn. Horizons Unlimited boasts the highest employee satisfaction rate in
many years, with consistent progress made on this front year after year.
Horizons Unlimited is well positioned to provide better services and more opportunities to
our members in a positive atmosphere. I personally thank you for your support and look
forward to a successful 2016.
Ron Askland
CEO, Horizons Unlimited
D E A R F R I E N D

3. On the warm Friday afternoon of August 14th, the
Horizons Unlimited day habilitation members
donned their sharp green uniforms to become the
“Horizons Hurricanes”.
In the first inning Jim F. (pictured, left) hit a triple,
and scored the first point of the game. Leonard S.
was a regular Babe Ruth, power-hitting every
chance he got. Ed B. managed to hit a home run,
his first time at bat. Greg J. managed to round the
bases in every single inning. Paige the pitcher (and
day hab instructor) did her best not to get hit!
On Friday, September 25th, the Horizons
Unlimited day habilitation members took
part in Safety Training Day.
Day Hab members went to a series of 5
interactive classes taught by Horizons staff
on: slips, trips and falls; the right way and the
wrong way to do things safely; ladder and
electricity safety; social skills, personal space,
and hygiene; and preparing for physical
mobility / strength capacity exams required
when getting a job in the community.
Pictured (right): Deb Davis engaging the
members on Safety Day.
Horizons Unlimited day habilitation members
regularly volunteer their time and energy for worthy
causes. This not only makes a positive impact on other
people’s lives, it also broadens members’ perspectives
and can help them eventually find paying jobs in the
community.
On Thursday, November 5th, Horizons day hab
members volunteered at the Humane Society!
Pictured (left): Orland B. and Alice D. are walking a
grateful dog on a beautiful fall day.
a small business owner’s experience
working with horizons unlimited
West Bend, Iowa may only have a population of 700-and-some, but West Bend-Mallard High School is
on the cutting edge of a program that is being pioneered here in Iowa, and that is soon to be increasingly
more common nationwide. Horizons Unlimited is partnering with WBM to help high school students who
are in their last years of schooling transition into the real world of working in the community.
At the frontier of this new approach are businesses like Addy Mae’s café in West Bend, Iowa, a trendy
new coffee shop & diner that is quickly becoming famous in the area for its hot & fresh Panini, diversely
flavored coffees, and (during the warm season) a veritable smorgasbord of ice creams. Emily Laubenthal, the
owner of Addy Mae’s, says: “We here at Addy Mae’s like to think of this as a home in environment. You will
get great home cooked food!”
When Horizons started working with WBM junior Haley Wirtz, Addy Mae’s was at the top of her wish
list for where she’d like to do a work experience (essentially a job tryout). Emily enthusiastically agreed to
take Haley on for the semester. “Haley has learned how to make scotcharoos, sugar cookies, decorate, mix
batter, take orders, clean dishes, sweep, mop, restock, make sundaes, and prepare coffee bags,” says Emily.
“She is a fantastic help. If dishes need to be done, I don’t even have to ask her. She just does them, and that
is a huge thing in itself for an employer to have an employee just do something without having to be asked.”
Horizons works with several students in the Emmetsburg and West Bend school districts, with plans to
expand the program. So far, it is a resounding success for everyone involved.
“These kids are a blessing to work with,” says Emily. “It teaches you to love your job again. I am so glad to
be a part of this program!”

4. a very good fit donald’s success story
“This is what I wanted to do for a long time,” says Donald Bordwell, kitchen staff member at West
Elementary School in Emmetsburg, as he arrives to work on his bike and parks it near the front of the
school. “I enjoy this job, and I work hard every day. I intend to keep this job for a long time.
You’re not going to catch me talking about retirement.”
“Donald’s duties at West include dish washing and mopping of floors,” says Deb Goeders, kitchen
manager for the Emmetsburg Community School System. “He handles his responsibilities very well, and this
allows my kitchen staff to focus on serving the students in a timely manner.”
“I’m in charge of washing all the dishes and trays and pans,” explains Donald with a big smile. “I also
clean and sanitize the dish washing area here, and I clean the floors in the kitchen and the storage room. I
come to work every school-day at 10:45, and we get everything ready so the kids can go through the lunch
line. When the kids finish their lunches, they come up to my window and hand me their trays, and I get them
clean as quick as I can.”
Donald works tirelessly for three to four hours, as hundreds of used trays and
many serving pans and utensils arrive at his station.
“The dish washing can be a very physical job. My staff certainly appreciates
his efforts,” says Goeders. “Donald interacts with the staff and students
extremely well and I believe he really enjoys this aspect of his job!”
Almost every student grins at Donald as they hand him their finished lunch
tray. Many of them shout, “Thank you, Donald!” Donald smiles warmly and
replies, “You’re welcome! Have a good day!”
After the kids are gone, Donald sprays down the metal surfaces with sanitiz-
ing fluid and wipes them clean. He sweeps up any crumbs or dirt he finds and
then gets the mop and mop bucket. Donald has developed his own system for
getting a perfectly clean floor. He has mapped out the kitchen area and planned
his route around all of the prep tables and appliances so that he never risks
walking through the already-mopped areas and leaving footprints.
The kitchen floor is covered in large, black, rubber mats, which can easily trap
debris underneath. Donald will fold each mat in half, taking care to scrub the
floor under the left side of the mat, and then he will fold the mat back over in the
opposite direction, so he can scrub the floor under the right side of the mat.
“The process of hiring Donald was not a difficult one,” says Goeders. “I
contacted Horizons and they put me in touch with their job development
specialist, who was extremely helpful! I relayed the type of job we were looking to
fill and they were very good at matching job requirements to a capable person.
They followed up on Donald’s progress in person and by phone communication
with me.”
“Horizons Unlimited provided Donald with job coaching services in the
beginning,” says Horizons job developer Josiah Schmidt. “Donald mastered his
job responsibilities quickly, and Donald is now working completely independently
without any job coaches needed. Our coaches only check in with Donald
occasionally so he can talk to us about how work has been going.”
“We have been very pleased with Donald’s work, and we would recommend to
any employer to give individuals with disabilities a chance,” says Goeders. “It has
been a very good fit for us!”
Having worked a full shift at West Elementary School, Donald clocks himself
out on his time sheet and rides his bike to his apartment on King Street.
“What I like to do with my free time is to watch Walker Texas Ranger or holi-
day movies,” says Donald. “My favorite thing to do is bake.
I learned it from my mom when I was growing up. Sometimes I bake every-
thing from scratch, and sometimes…” Donald pauses and smirks. “Sometimes
I just ‘cheat’ by going to the grocery store and buying a box of mix.”
Donald’s day does not end here, however. In the evening, Donald rides his
bike downtown to Main Street, where he works in the kitchen at Kirby’s
Restaurant, a popular Emmetsburg diner that attracts customers of all ages.
On weekends, Donald will work three-hour evening shifts at Kirby’s during
the supper rush. After each shift, Donald enjoys ordering supper off the menu
for himself. Lately, Donald has also been picking up double shifts on the
weekend, so he can build up his savings.
“You know what I’m going to do with all this money?” says Donald. “I’m
going to buy myself a Ford F150 pickup truck. With heated seats! I’ve been
studying the driver’s
manual every night so I
can take my test and
earn my driver’s license.
I like riding my bike, but
what I really want more
than anything is to be
able to drive myself. My
favorite part about
working and earning
money is being able to
do the things I always
wanted to do.”
“We have been very
pleased with Donald’s
work. … [He] allows
my kitchen staff to
focus on serving the
students in a timely
manner.”
Deb Goeders
Kitchen Manager
West Elementary
“My favorite part about
working and earning
money is being able to
do the things I always
wanted to do.”
Donald Bordwell
Employee
West Elementary &
Kirby’s Diner