HR0054 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0054 LRB098 08906 MST 39038 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives are pleased to recognize Austin Special Chicago as the agency celebrates its 60th anniversary in 2013; and

WHEREAS, Austin Special Chicago was founded in 1953 by a small group of parents whose hope for their children with developmental disabilities was not to be institutionalized but rather be integrated into the community through special education; and

WHEREAS, 60 years later, Austin Special Chicago has evolved into a nonprofit social service agency whose mission is to meet the needs of adults with developmental and intellectual disabilities, especially those with severe and profound mental retardation, to provide training and education so that they may have more fulfilled and enriched lives, and to assist their families to keep them integrated in the community; and

WHEREAS, Austin Special Chicago pursues this mission through the operation of its Developmental Training Center, where it offers vocational, social, and educational services including general counseling, speech therapy, basic academics, daily living skills, recreational activities, art therapy, transportation, and participation in Special Olympics and community-based mainstream activities; and

WHEREAS, Austin Special Chicago also operates 3 Community Integrated Living Arrangement (CILA) homes; they offer developmental training and residential services to adults 18 years and older living in the Chicago community regardless of age, race, color, sex, disability, financial standing, religion, national origin, or ancestry; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we thank Austin Special's founders, board members, and staff for 60 years of serving some of Chicago's most vulnerable residents and we wish them well in all their future endeavours; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to Austin Special Chicago as an expression of our esteem and respect.