Like so many community agencies in Illinois, Seguin Services, a nonprofit agency providing services to people with disabilities, faces severe challenges as a result of the State’s budget crisis. Despite these challenges, with the help of generous donors Seguin has been able to offer essential supports to hundreds of individuals in pursuit of their life’s dreams.
Seguin’s Building Bridges to the Future Program has been especially helpful to Georgia Hunter—an extraordinary young woman. While born with Down syndrome, Georgia also is very much typical of her generation. She sends texts, emails and posts on Facebook. She listens to music, and is an active and enthusiastic athlete. She loves to bowl as well as play basketball and golf. Most recently she won the State of Illinois Special Olympics State Championship in golf in downstate Bloomington. Georgia holds two jobs working 20 to 25 hours per week while she lives at home in Oak Park with her parents Karen and Glenn. She strives to excel in all areas of her life. She is a real joy and inspiration to those who know her.
In the past year Georgia took the major life’s step of transitioning from Oak Park and River Forest High School. As she made this crucial move, she and her family secured assistance from Seguin’s Building Bridges to the Future project. This innovative initiative offers hands-on support to students with developmental disabilities who are about to leave high school. Like so many others, Georgia’s family wondered how to navigate the many complex steps to secure adult services in Illinois, from obtaining funding to cover adult services costs to applying for and receiving basic public benefits.
As children grow, public education is mandated to provide services to individuals like Georgia, but no such mandate exists for adult services. As a result many individuals with developmental disabilities languish without services and supports once they cross the threshold to adulthood. This puts additional stresses on them and their families. Georgia and her family, however, were able to avoid these pitfalls through Seguin’s Building Bridges to the Future project. Today, she enjoys the assistance of Seguin’s community employment services. She is a proud, productive worker with an infectiously positive spirit. In fact, Georgia has taken on ever-increasing responsibilities and now is in charge of the non-alcoholic beverage department at Trader Joe’s with limited guidance, aided by Seguin’s support and commitment. Simply put, Georgia is amazing—a real “peach”! Georgia is just one person of many whose needs have been met through this vital initiative.
Seguin is a charitable not-for-profit agency serving the greater metropolitan Chicago area, striving to integrate, enrich, and empower people with disabilities serving nearly 600 people with developmental disabilities and other special needs. While much Seguin’s funding comes from the State of Illinois, no state funds have been allocated to the Building Bridges project. Instead this project is underwritten by private funding and local government support, such as the Community Mental Health Board of Oak Park Township, River Forest Township, and the Oak Park-River Forest Community Foundation.
For this year’s Holiday Appeal Seguin is fortunate to have a Matching Grant from an anonymous foundation that will match all new and increased donations up to $10,000. Seguin’s President and CEO John Voit foresees a “difficult year”, but knows with “the assistance of the local community, foundations, businesses, and local government, Seguin will be able to meet the needs of people like Georgia Hunter, with excellent programs like the Building Bridges initiative.” All donations to Seguin are tax deductible. Donations can be made at www.seguin.org.
For more information, please call Dawneen Suriano at 708.222.4251 or visit www.seguin.org.
Seguin Services is a charitable not-for-profit agency serving metropolitan Chicago, always striving to integrate, enrich, and empower people with disabilities. Seguin lives its mission of “supporting adults and children with disabilities and other special needs, enabling them to be productive, valued members of society.” Seguin creates job opportunities and housing options that lead to greater independence, so that men and women with developmental disabilities can live, work, and socialize as their neighbors do. In addition, Seguin provides safe and loving homes for children who have disabilities and serious medical or emotional conditions.
