me magazine - spring 2012

Celebrating the lives of children with developmental disabilities

One child’s journey to a life well lived has become the hope of thousands more with developmental disabilities.

Judith Ann was born in 1946 with multiple disabilities. Her parents believed their daughter, like any child, deserved an education. They searched the world for a school that could manage her disabilities and help her learn. They found none.

So Judy’s parents started a school in a small house on a tree-lined street. They called it “Hope.” Their goal – to help Judy live a quality life – remains Hope’s goal today.

That small house has evolved into a 25-acre campus. And the school has evolved into a statewide Institute that offers not only educational but also residential, health care and therapeutic services – all designed especially for children who, like Judy, have multiple and complex developmental disabilities.

Children come to Hope to learn how to live to the very best of their abilities.

Some of Hope’s young ladies soon will transition to our first on-campus, single-family home. The “Nyre Home,” named in honor of Dr. Joseph E. Nyre, former Hope president/CEO, replaces an outdated, dormitory-style residence. These young women now have a street address and a kitchen, family room and backyard to call their own.

Providing loving homes for children on Hope’s campus and throughout the community is just one part of the journey we share with them.

Our connection starts before they arrive at Hope and does not end when they leave. Parents like Jennifer – called to duty in Iraq with no one to care for her son – rely on us in crises. Alesha has moved to an adult home but Hope staff stay connected to ensure all is well. Their heartfelt stories are in this issue.

A big world awaits the children of Hope. They are taking careful steps toward independence.

With your support, more children will have new homes to call their own and friends with whom to share their inspiring journeys toward adulthood.

Interim President/CEO Clint Paul, right, reviews the design of Hope’s first on-campus, single-family home with Board Director John Jordan, whose parents started Hope in 1957 for his sister Judy.

Spring 2012

ContentsAngels of Hope .............................. 2Will You Be an Angel?

Learning ........................................ 3Zoo Animals Open Jacqari’s World

Living ............................................ 4Andy’s Mom Goes to War

Taking Care ................................... 5Alesha Ventures Into Adulthood

Discovering Hope .......................... 6Wilma is a Familiar Face at HILA

Hope’s Children Depend on You .... 7Become an Angel of Hope

Giving the Gift of Hope ................. 7Leave a Legacy of Hope

Gifts at Work ................................. 8Community Gets Healthy for Hope

A publication of The Hope Institute for Children and FamiliesA publication of The Hope Institute for Children and Families

Heart of Hope

146816 Hope Newsletter r4.indd 1 3/21/12 11:57 AM

2 Spring 2012

To refer a childfor services

offered byThe Hope Institute

or to learn moreabout Hope services,

please call217-585-5437.

Angels of HopeOur Children Need So Much Love and Care

Brittany celebrates success at the bowling alley, one of Hope children’s favorite outings.

help Hope effectively budget for the care of our boys and girls for years to come. Your Angel of Hope commitment will give them the promise of joyous, independent futures.

Hope’s children need the loving support of Angels in their lives. Their challenges and struggles are truly considerable – but their determination and courage are inspiring beyond words.

Help us make hopeful futures for children with disabilities. Become an Angel of Hope today. Just fill out the reply card on page 7 and mail it with your first gift. Or, visit www.thehopeinstitute.us to donate online.

Thank you for being an Angel to Hope’s wonderful children!

Angels of Hope are dedicated friends who ensure the best possible care for Hope’s special needs children.

By making a monthly gift of $10, $5 or whatever you can afford, you can bring the finest living, learning and wellness services The Hope Institute offers to children who need and deserve them the most.

As an Angel of Hope, you will join a compassionate family of donors who

Could you be their Angel of Hope?

me is a publication of The Hope Institute for Children and Families. For inquiries or comments, please contact us at

(217) 585-5119, www.thehopeinstitute.us or PO Box 2817, Springfield, IL 62708-2817.

Writer/Editor: Courtney ReedContributor: Will Jamison

Photographers: Kimberly Smoot and Suzanne Plunkett


3me magazine

transitioning from speaking a few words at a time to conversational sentences.

“He became a sponge in his first-grade classroom at HILA,” Rashaun says. “He was exposed to so many new things and began making friends. Group outings, like to Lincoln Park Zoo, have broadened his world view.”

Learning about wild animals and visiting the zoo has given Jacqari an experience that helps him connect with others.

“Now he tells us about his day at school,” Rashaun says. “He’s a little rough on my houseplants, where he creates habitats for his animal toys … but this shows me Jacqari is learning at HILA and I couldn’t be happier.”

This changed in part through HILA’s innovative partnership with Chicago’s Lincoln Park Zoo. Zoo educators visited students to teach them about wild animals. What Jacqari absorbed in the classroom he applied when he visited the zoo. During HILA’s first Family Day at Lincoln Park Zoo, attended by 300 children, family members and friends, Jacqari demonstrated his knowledge to his mom, Rashaun.

“He clearly knew the animals and their habitats and how to navigate the zoo,” she says.

Later he told the story of his visit by drawing a large zoo map. That he did so from memory delighted Rashaun.

Like many parents of children with autism, Jacqari’s mom and dad struggled to find support after he was diagnosed at age three. He progressed academically and socially in the Head Start Program but regressed in kindergarten without access to autism-focused special needs services.

That story shifted last year when he came to HILA. Attending both special needs and general education classes, Jacqari began

Jacqari is a happy 7-year-old who loves animals. He is a lot like his friends at The Hope Institute Learning Academy (HILA) in Chicago. But Jacqari has a form of autism affecting his speech and language skills, and expressing himself can be a challenge.

LearningHILA’s Par tnership With Zoo Opens World for Jacqari

Jacqari, relaxing at HILA with his mom, loves to visit the animals at Lincoln Park Zoo.


4 Spring 2012

LivingWhen Andy’s Mom Faced Deployment, Hope Was His Last Hope

“Although it’s bittersweet for me, I know Hope is where my son is supposed to be,” says Jennifer, Andy’s mom.

Soon, Jennifer’s crisis hit. She was called to Iraq with less than a month’s notice. But by then she had won her first battle, gaining the state’s approval to place Andy at Hope if she were to deploy. She and Andy said goodbye. Three days later she was 5,000 miles away, assigned to an intensive care unit.

“I felt like I was leaving him in the care of strangers,” Jennifer says. “I cried myself to sleep for weeks.”

Andy’s Hope caregivers quickly became like family. After four months of serving her country, Jennifer is home now and at peace with her son’s new life.

“He needs to stay at Hope because I’m still deployable,” Jennifer says. “More importantly, he’s gaining independence and excelling.”

Andy keeps his mom close to his heart. Every morning, with his hand over his heart, Andy recites the Pledge of Allegiance to the best of his ability. This makes Jennifer proud.

“Andy is doing what all kids are supposed to do,” she says. “He’s growing up, going to prom, working and belonging. He’s happy.”

Panic was setting in. Jennifer, a nurse and Captain in the National Guard, knew deployment was around the corner. She knew no one who could care for 17-year-old Andy and the state would not admit him to a residential care facility.

“The state requires a family to be in ‘crisis’ to receive residential placement,” Jennifer says. “By their standards, our situation was not a crisis.”

To Jennifer, it was. If she were ordered to deploy and did not have a military-required care plan for Andy, she would be discharged and lose everything: her income, military housing and all benefits.

What would happen to Andy, who has severe developmental disabilities, if his only parent were called to war? So began his mom’s most important battle.


5me magazine

Saying goodbye to Alesha was hard. But she and her Hope team had worked toward that moment for nine years. Now she has successfully transitioned to a new home she shares with other adult women with disabilities. Alesha rides the bus daily to work in a sheltered workshop and enjoys regular outings with her peers.

Hope staff stay connected – as they do for each young adult leaving Hope – to ensure all is well.

“The way Hope children experience life changes from season to season. We will always be here for them,” Maria says.

Hope is a protected, safe environment where hugs happen daily. But Alesha was moving toward adulthood and life in the larger world. As a 20-year-old woman made vulnerable by profound cognitive disabilities and cerebral palsy, she needed to learn other ways to socialize with people.

So her Hope team began teaching Alesha that giving high fives and waving are fun, too.

“Every skill our children have when they reach adulthood increases their chances of living happily,” says Maria Millburg, Hope Case Manager. “Our focus from day one was on building Alesha’s basic life skills.”

This is true for all Hope children, who have unique education plans identifying independent living skills they must develop. Alesha learned such skills as interacting with adults and strangers in age-appropriate ways; participating in household activities, such as sorting silverware; and maneuvering her wheelchair.

“Every school day Alesha practiced pushing away from the walls when her wheelchair got stuck,” says Christen Shelton, her teacher. “When staff from her new adult home came to Hope to meet Alesha, they were very impressed that she could move around so well by herself.”

Getting around Hope’s campus took time for Alesha, not because she uses a wheelchair but because her irresistible smile and open arms invited hugs from everyone in her path.

Taking CareAlesha Ventures Into Adulthood Fully Prepared

Alesha participated in her last Prom Grand March at Hope with escort Mike Twist, a Job Coach in Hope’s Vocational Program.


6 Spring 2012

HILA relies on the good will of family and friends to assist the complex job of educating 100 children with special needs alongside 300 typically developing children in grades K-5. Unlike any other public school, HILA provides highly tailored services within a general education environment to children of all abilities.

Volunteers read to children, don gloves and help open food packages in the cafeteria, guide students during morning arrival and between classes, and maintain a quiet hallway environment.

Wilma does it all with an affectionate demeanor and quiet voice that draws in and calms HILA’s young girls and boys. She knows they are watching her show compassion to and acceptance of all people – and she feels joy watching them come into their own.

“My best memory is walking a boy with disabilities to his vision and hearing screening at the Health and Wellness Center at school,” Wilma says. “He struggled to walk but tried so hard. At the year-end assembly, I cried watching him jump and laugh with other children on stage.”

Wilma has a message for anyone wishing to help HILA children, typically developing or not: “With patience, you will see the difference you make in their lives.”

“Parents and teachers call me the volunteer lady,” says Wilma. “They ask me, ‘Can you help?’ And I help.”

Wilma’s connection to HILA is her grandson Daveion, a fourth grader who follows his grandmother’s example. Like Wilma, he serves food to the hungry at his church. He relishes helping at school, too.

“Everybody in my class has a job,” Daveion says. “I hand out books and pencils … I get to help everybody.”

Discovering Hope“Volunteer Lady” Wilma Models Compassion at HILA

Wilma’s calm and steadfast presence is a comfort to her grandson Daveion and all HILA students.

Hundreds of students, teachers and parents gather in the courtyard of The Hope Institute Learning Academy (HILA) in Chicago when the dismissal bell rings. Wilma Gibson greets them all. She is a volunteer who is a familiar and much- appreciated face at the school.


7me magazine

A bequest to The Hope Institute for Children and Families is a wonderful way to remember the special needs of Hope’s boys and girls far into the future. And it is a most meaningful way for you to be remembered.

We wish to acknowledge the generosity of the following friends who have made bequests in their estate plans to benefit the future of Hope’s children:

When you remember The Hope Institute in your will or estate plans, you create a lasting legacy of hope for children who need so much.

Hope’s Children Depend on YouSupport Our Special Boys and Girls by Making a Gift Today

Giving the Gift of HopeCreate a Legacy of Hope

Thank you for inviting me to become an Angel of Hope by offering The Hope Institute my committed financial support.� I accept your invitation and will do my best to give a gift of $_________ � Monthly � Every other month � Quarterly� I prefer to charge my gift to The Hope Institute and have filled out the credit card information below.

� I prefer not to make a commitment, but offer my support today with a gift of � $25 � $15 � $_________.� Please charge $_________________ to my credit card on a one-time basis. I have filled out the credit card information below.

Credit Card Information:� Please charge my � Visa � MasterCard � American Express

Account Number: ––– Expiration Date: ______/______

Printed name as it appears on your card: _______________________________________________________________________

Signature: ___________________________________________________Cell phone/telephone: ___________________________

Email: __________________________________________________________________________________________________

Would you like to become an Ambassador of Hope?� Please contact me about becoming an Ambassador of Hope.

Create a Legacy of Hope for the Children of The Hope Institute� I have remembered The Hope Institute in my will.

Thank you for your generous tax-deductible gift. Please make checks payable to The Hope Institute.PO Box 2817 • Springfield, IL 62708-2817

Please remove reply at perforation, fold and enclose it with your gift in the envelope provided. Thank you!

Francis E. AlbusRichard V. BernardKathleen CroweRuth M. DavisWaldo E. DavisDominick F. De NardoMarie A. Elphick

Falisevac FamilyClara A. HamiltonLillian P. HeimlerKatherine B. HunterHelen S. JarvisDon LibertAngelina Maldarelli

Hilda PadgettAlfreda J. SchuelerBernard SofferAnthony P. Sortisio, Sr.Paul UnderbergWilliam Von Dell

For more information about how to include The Hope Institute in your estate plans, please call Tom LeClair at (217) 585-5119.


The

for Children and FamiliesHOPE NSTITUTEI

15 East Hazel Dell LanePO Box 2817

Springfield, IL 62708-2817

Gifts At WorkDonors Turn Passion for Health Into Help for Hope

say. “We see firsthand how happy and healthy Hope children are.”

Each July, over 150 people heed the call to fitness and run, race-walk or simply walk. Those crossing the line first are not the only winners. The race gives away major raffle prizes donated by local businesses and then donates 100% of proceeds to The Hope Institute. Hope counts on this annual gift to fund recreational and fitness activities that support the health and wellness of Hope children.

“I am so proud of all the people who come out for this event,” the Chiapettos say. “They’re taking care of themselves and, whether they realize it or not, children in this community who need us.”

The “Rochester 5K Fun Run and Walk” is a summer highlight in the Chiapetto’s community. Mark and Cheryl Chiapetto founded this event to raise awareness of health and fitness. Enthusiastic participation turned it into an annual event and inspired the family to choose a local organization to

benefit. They chose Hope.

“Supporting Hope drives home the event’s key message … live a healthy life,” Mark and Cheryl

5K participants get ready to run and walk for Hope children. (Photo courtesy of the Chiapetto family.)

NON PROFIT

US POSTAGE

PAIDSOUTH SUBURBAN

PERMIT NO 799

The Chiapetto family considers its good health a gift. Each year the family puts this gift to work helping the children of Hope.


me magazine - spring 2012

Health & Medicine