093_HR0108

 
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 1                          HOUSE RESOLUTION

 2        WHEREAS,   West   Side   Mentally   Retarded   Children's
 3    Aid/Austin  Special  (WSMRCA)  is  a  grassroots,  nationally
 4    accredited 501(c)(3) non-profit social service  agency  which
 5    was  established  in  1953  by  a  small group of parents who
 6    sought to educate and train their  young,  mentally  retarded
 7    children  rather  than  institutionalize  them;  in 1953, the
 8    organization established one of  the  first  private  special
 9    education  schools,  the  Austin  Special  School, where over
10    1,000  mentally  retarded  children  and   adolescents   were
11    educated and trained; and

12        WHEREAS, In 1967, the Board of Directors expanded to open
13    their Work Center Developmental Training Program and in 1982,
14    when  the  wave of deinstitutionalization swept Illinois, the
15    Board of Directors pioneered and led the way to establish one
16    of  the  first  residential  facilities  in  the  Chicagoland
17    community, the  Supported  Living  Arrangement  (SLA),  which
18    serves nine developmentally disabled adults; and

19        WHEREAS,   In  1996,  the  organization  established  its
20    Supported  Employment  Services;  the  Supported   Employment
21    Program  continues  to  provide  employment  and  specialized
22    activities  in community-based and integrated settings within
23    the community; in addition, in 1997 the  agency  successfully
24    undertook,  for  the  first time, national accreditation with
25    the Council on Accreditation of  Services  for  Families  and
26    Children,  having  achieved  the maximum number of years as a
27    nationally accredited agency; in  each  accreditation  cycle,
28    WSMRCA/Austin  Special  received  the highest award possible,
29    and in the annual Department of Human Services review has had
30    no deficiencies and has received a 100% rating for  the  past
31    five years; the organization has also been honored twice with
32    a  Proclamation  from  the  City  of  Chicago  for  providing
33    exceptional services for developmentally disabled individuals
 
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 1    and their families; and

 2        WHEREAS,  WSMRCA/Austin  Special has grown systematically
 3    and progressively meeting its goals so that today they  offer
 4    vocational,  educational,  speech,  counseling, adaptive swim
 5    and   gym,    residential,    supported    employment,    and
 6    transportation   services  to  140  developmentally  disabled
 7    adults ages 21-75 who currently  attend  the  Austin  Special
 8    Work  Center, Supported Employment, and Residential Programs;
 9    ninety percent are former  long-term  residents  of  Illinois
10    institutions; these programs offer services to people who are
11    blind,  have  hearing  loss,  seizures,  behavior  disorders,
12    cerebral  palsy  and  autism,  and who may be non-ambulatory;
13    some  are  dually  diagnosed,  both  mentally  retarded   and
14    mentally ill; and

15        WHEREAS,  The  Austin  Special  Work  Center,  a  current
16    program   of  the  WSMRCA/Austin  Special,  and  an  Illinois
17    Department of Labor Certified Program, provides a wide  range
18    of services to over 100 developmentally disabled clients, the
19    majority  of whom reside with their parents in the community;
20    the services  which  are  provided  focus  on  improving  the
21    clients'  work  skills  and  behavior while completing actual
22    work which is subcontracted from Chicago area businesses; and

23        WHEREAS,  In  the  efforts  to  engage   in   broad-based
24    professional   advocacy   activities   on   behalf   of   its
25    developmentally  disabled clients, their guardians, families,
26    and the communities they serve, the WSMRCA/Austin established
27    the  Human  Rights  Consortium  15  years  ago;  today,   the
28    Consortium  is  composed of WSMRCA, CAU (Chicago Alternatives
29    Unlimited), New Horizons for  the  Developmentally  Disabled,
30    H.O.M.E., and North Center for Handicapped; and

31        WHEREAS, WSMRCA/Austin Special will host a celebration on
32    Sunday,  March  9,  2003 in honor of its 50th Anniversary and
 
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 1    the outstanding contributions this organization has  provided
 2    for  the community, and also, to honor all the volunteers who
 3    helped make its success possible; therefore, be it

 4        RESOLVED,  BY  THE  HOUSE  OF  REPRESENTATIVES   OF   THE
 5    NINETY-THIRD  GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
 6    we congratulate all  those  associated  with  the  West  Side
 7    Mentally Retarded Children's Aid/Austin Special on their 50th
 8    Anniversary  and applaud their efforts to better the lives of
 9    citizens of this State; and be it further

10        RESOLVED, That a suitable  copy  of  this  resolution  be
11    presented  to  the members of the WSMRCA/Austin Special as an
12    expression of our respect and esteem.