At Sunrise Community Center of Tennessee, Program Coordinator Michael Davidson and his team members are helping redefine what independence looks like for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
One of those individuals is Stacy – a young woman with an intellectual disability who had the ability to complete daily tasks, but struggled with executive functioning challenges. She often needed reminders and a higher level of supervision when it came to daily responsibilities, which wasn’t her preference – and triggered frustration.
Stacy desired more independence. She was at an age where autonomy mattered, and someone giving her a list of chores caused stress that led to “decision paralysis.”
Applying for Enabling Technology Funding
Through Sunrise’s tech program and the Tennessee’s 1915(c) waiver, Michael and his team applied for coverage for Stacy to receive a tablet and the MeMinder task-prompting app from CreateAbility. His goal was to support her person-centered plan at home and “relieve her of the stress she experienced… and she could become more independent in her own decision-making and less stressed about having to be supervised.”
Rather than using pre-created tasks from the app’s library, Michael built a fully customized daily to-do list for Stacy, recording instructions based on her actual routines and environment. He also used MeMinder’s QR code functionality, placing codes around the home to support less frequent tasks like appliance usage.
Progress with Task-Prompting
Stacy began using her tablet on January 1, 2025. By her first check-in on April 11th, she had completed over 600 tasks. Michael reviewed her dashboard and noticed patterns – some tasks she breezed through, while others took more time. He adjusted her schedule accordingly, evolving her daily routine and fading out tasks she no longer needed.
“The first time we looked at our care provider dashboard, we really were in awe of how much had been accomplished,” Michael said. “It led us to get more involved, more feedback from Stacy, who let us know that she was feeling more confident and was enjoying less supervision.”
Stacy herself shared, “When I struggle, it helps me to pick up my tablet and get busy to get my mind off of what’s bothering me.”
Her progress continued. As of late August, Stacy had completed over 1,500 tasks for the year. Michael continued to use MeMinder as a dynamic foundation for her evolving care plan, adjusting goals and tasks as needed.
“We’ve even begun to integrate her social life into her MeMinder dailies as one of Stacy’s new goals is to be more social within her community,” Michael explained. “MeMinder’s easy customization features really allow us to integrate whatever we want or need to in order to help her achieve her own personal goals, whatever those may be.”
Time Saved With MeMinder Task-prompting
The impact extended beyond Stacy. The Sunrise support staff reported significant time savings. By not having to walk Stacy through each task daily, Michael and the team calculated that they saved between 300–350 manpower hours from January through August. These hours were reallocated to other responsibilities, improving care for others in the home while Stacy gained greater independence.
Stacy’s story is a powerful example of how enabling technology like MeMinder can transform lives—not just by supporting daily routines, but by fostering confidence, autonomy, and personal growth. With the right tools and a person-centered approach, individuals like Stacy can thrive, and care teams can reimagine what meaningful support truly looks like.
