Helping kids bloom: Liberty Point para-professional honored for work with special needs students

Aug. 12--A beloved Pueblo West educator with a knack for communicating with students with autism, even if they are non-verbal, is being recognized for his efforts.

Jeff Bloomer, a para-professional at Liberty Point International in Pueblo West is being honored as a support staffer of the year by Pueblo School District 70. Bloomer is entering his sixth year at the middle school where he works in the autism program.

Bloomer attributes his career to Miss Patrick, his first grade teacher at Haaff Elementary School in Pueblo.

"She told me I was a leader and put me in a situation to help special needs kids. She asked me to help them, make sure they are included and keep them safe," Bloomer explained.

"She instilled this in me and sent me on this path. It was like that through elementary school, middle school and high school -- I would go play, talk and invite them to play," Bloomer said.

Although Miss Patrick died when Bloomer was in middle school, he said, "I bet you she knows," about the impact she had on his life.

"Bloomer is the most valuable asset to my team. The students we work with can be very challenging in a variety of ways, but there is no challenge that he can't handle," wrote Jennifer Grutt, the extended school services teacher who nominated Bloomer.

"He is exceptionally good at working with students with behavioral needs. He goes out of his way to build relationships with students who need it most and as a result gets the best work possible from them," Grutt wrote.

Bloomer said it is Liberty Point coworkers who taught him and led him.

"It is always nice to be recognized but they are just as much, if not more deserving. It is a good atmosphere and people there genuinely love what they do. Plus, the kids are awesome," Bloomer said.

Bloomer finds ways to communicate with non-verbal students through their favorite songs, shows, games and foods.

"He always has new ideas on how to reach the especially tough students. He recently came to the center with new sensory items that he thought would motivate a particular student.

He has also learned some sign language and learned to implement it into several students' everyday routines," Grutt wrote.

In a recommendation letter, Assistant Principal Kelly Jackson said, "In a typical day I see him working with our neediest kids, making sure that they have all the support they need but also making sure that they are building appropriate skills and social behaviors."

Jackson said his patience extends to his work as a football and baseball coach where he not only teaches the sports but also sportsmanship "and what it takes to mature into admirable adults."

Bloomer said it was his love of baseball that helped him get a college degree. He was a student athlete in college and has coached baseball ever since.

One parent said her eighth-grade son refers to his favorite teacher as "Boomer."

"Over the years I have had the honor of watching their relationship grow as my son grows. Jeff (Bloomer) is not only caring and compassionate with these special children, but he engages them with mutual respect and understanding that most of these kids long for," the parent wrote in her recommendation.

"It is so much fun seeing them grow and mature from sixth grade to eighth grade," Bloomer said. "I joke with them that they start as stinky sixth graders and when they leave they are smelling good and ready for high school."

Bloomer and other top district staff will be recognized in person at a ceremony later this fall.

Chieftain and Pueblo West View reporter Tracy Harmon can be reached by email at tharmon@chieftain.com or at https://twitter.com/tracywumps. Help support local journalism by subscribing to the Chieftain at https://chieftain.com/subscribenow.

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