Free Santa Experiences welcome children of all ages and abilities!

Autism Speaks is once again partnering with Cherry Hill Programs this holiday season to provide free, sensory-friendly Santa Experiences for families across the country.

All families of children with autism and other special needs can enjoy a visit with Santa in a more subdued and calm environment.

Santa stops in Illinois begin Nov. 24 and are scheduled for communities including:

• Aurora
• Champaign
• Chicago
• Chicago Ridge
• Fairview Heights
• Gurnee
• Joliet
• Lombard
• Moline
• Northbrook
• Oak Brook
• Orland Park
• Schaumburg
• South Barrington
• Springfield
• Rosemont
• Vernon Hills
• West Dundee

You can visit the Autism Speaks website to search for Santa Photo Experiences in your area and reserve your spot.

Sensory-friendly Santa events are free and keepsake photo packages will be available for purchase.

If you have questions or problems registering, email autismspeaksu@autismspeaks.org.

For more Santa visits and other holiday events for children with special healthcare needs in Illinois, be sure to check our Events page.

“Let’s include the kids who often feel as if they are forgotten.”

Andrea Stambaugh’s son, Axel, is 3 years old. He loves to keep up with other kids his age, and trick-or-treating on Halloween is no exception.

This fun tradition, however, leads to disappointment for the young participant in the University of Illinois at Chicago’s Division of Specialized Care for Children (DSCC) program.

Axel is unable to eat candy and other food items typically passed out at Halloween due to his medical needs. The lack of safe treats for Axel and children with food allergies or special needs is what makes the Teal Pumpkin Project so important, Andrea said.

The Teal Pumpkin Project aims to make Halloween safer and more inclusive for all youth by promoting non-food alternatives to the traditional Halloween candy. It encourages households to put a teal pumpkin on their doorstep to show that non-food treats are available, such as small toys or glow sticks.

Over the weekend, Andrea wrote a moving post on Axel’s Facebook page, “Axel’s Journey with CMV”, to explain what the Teal Pumpkin Project means to children like Axel.

We wanted to share her words to highlight the project’s impact on families in our program:

“Why is the #TealPumpkinProject so important?

Let me explain with the one photo below (shown above).

Every year our hometown has a day dedicated to trick or treating around the businesses.

We trick-or-treated today for four hours.

As Halloween tradition goes; once it was over, all the kids go home and beg their parents to sort through their candy bags so they can trade with their friends and eat candy until their stomach hurts.

Well, I shouldn’t say all kids, I should say that’s what MOST kids do.

In some houses when the child gets home from a fun day trick or treating, all they ended up with was a basket full of treats they can’t enjoy and disappointment.

This picture was taken when we got home today. As you can see, the majority of Axel’s teal bucket was full of candy he can not eat and only a few trinkets that he can enjoy.

The owners of the two businesses who participated in the Teal Pumpkin Project this year actually are followers of our blog.

For kids with allergies or g-tubes (gastrostomy tubes) or medical conditions that limit the things they can or cannot eat, this is what a typical Halloween night looks like.

My son so desperately wants to do the things the other kids are doing. So we take him trick-or-treating. As a parent, it breaks my heart knowing that at the end of the night there is nothing in his bucket really for him.

If you don’t know Axel, he can eat nothing by mouth and is completely dependent on his g-tube for nutrition.

Today, as people would place their Halloween bucket in front of him he would look down to see the candy and a disappointed look would come over him. In the beginning, he would pick a piece to satisfy the person with the dish, but toward the end it wasn’t even worth it. He knew none of the candy going into his bucket were really for hIm.

When I picked through his bucket and gave him the seven things he could enjoy, he was happy with that. He is easy to please. But, I just wish I had a whole bucket of things to give him.

I’m not writing this for sympathy.

I’m writing this as a mom. A mom whose only goal in life is to make sure her son is always included.

I’m writing as a plea to those who are reading.

I’m begging you to participate in the Teal Pumpkin Project this year and offer non-food items to those who need them.

Let’s include the kids who often feel as if they are forgotten.

If you need to know what the Teal Pumpkin Project is or would like to register your house on the map of those participating, you can find additional information here ——> https://www.foodallergy.org/education-awareness/teal-pumpkin-project.”

Day and overnight summer camp opportunities for all ages and abilities throughout Illinois.

Summer is fast-approaching, along with a long break from school. We’re here to help you find the right activities and programs to keep children and young adults engaged and learning.

Our Care Coordinators and support staff have compiled a list of day and overnight summer camp opportunities across the state. These camps are designed for a variety of special needs and abilities, including many of our program’s eligible medical conditions.

Whether your child wants to make new friends, develop new skills, meet others with their condition or foster their independence, our 2019 summer camp list provides a variety of options.

Our events calendar shows the summer camps listed by date. You may also search for events in your area by clicking on a regional office near you.

Free Easter Bunny visits for people of all ages and abilities.

Individuals with special needs and their families are invited to sensory-friendly Easter Bunny photo sessions scheduled throughout Illinois.

Autism Speaks is partnering with Cherry Hill Programs this spring to provide the special events.

The Bunny will welcome people of all ages and abilities at several locations across Illinois. The visits will take place in a more subdued and calm environment with extra effort to support visitors’ sensory, physical and developmental needs.

The Bunny Experiences are free, and photos will be available for purchase at each event.

The Illinois Bunny visits are scheduled for the following cities and dates:

• Aurora, April 7
• Bourbonnais, April 7
• Calumet City, April 14
• Chicago Ridge, April 7
• Fairview Heights, April 7
• Gurnee, April 7
• Joliet, April 7
• Lincolnwood, April 7
• Lombard, April 7
• Orland Park, April 7
• Peoria, April 7
• Schaumburg, March 31 and April 7
• Springfield, April 7
• West Dundee, April 7

Reservations are limited. Visit the Autism Speaks website for the full list and to reserve your spot.

For more family-friendly spring activities for children with special healthcare needs, be sure to check out our Events page.

Marcus Theatres’ offers sensory-friendly showings for families with special needs.

Marcus Theatres Reel Movies for Real Needs is a specially designed program to serve families with special needs who seldom attend movies. It provides a welcoming and comfortable environment with lower sound and lights up so special needs families can share the experience of seeing family-friendly films at a theater.

Upcoming Reel Movies for Real Needs include:

• Spider-Man: into the Spiderverse – Dec. 15
• Aquaman – Dec. 22
• Mary Poppins Returns – Dec. 29
• Bumblebee – Jan. 5
• A Dog’s Way Home – Jan. 12
• The Kid Who Would be King – Jan. 26

A select first run movie is featured one Saturday each month at 10:30 a.m. Visit the Reel Movies for Real Needs website for location and ticket information.

Reel Movies for Real Needs is available at the following Illinois theaters:

• Addison Cinema
  1555 West Lake Street
  Addison, IL 60101
• Bloomington Cinema + IMAX
  1111 Wylie Drive
  Bloomington, IL 61705
• Orland Park Cinema
  16350 South LaGrange Road
  Orland Park, IL 60467

For questions, please call (800) 274-0099, ext. 1.

A variety of overnight and day camps are available throughout Illinois.

Are you looking for fun and engaging activities to help your child make new friends, develop new skills and foster their independence?

Our Care Coordinators and support staff have helped compile a list of day and overnight summer camp opportunities across the state that are designed for a variety of special needs and abilities, including many of our program’s eligible medical conditions.

The list of 2018 summer camp activities is available on our events calendar, where you can see opportunities listed for each month.

You may also search for events in your area by clicking on a regional office near you.

500-plus families and professionals attended the 13th annual Stepping Stones of Transition Conference in Springfield

More than 500 families and professionals learned valuable information about helping adolescents with special needs/disabilities prepare for adulthood during the 13th annual Illinois Statewide Transition Conference on Oct. 23-24 in Springfield.

The conference, titled “Stepping Stones of Transition,” is aimed at youth, parents, caretakers, vocational professionals, healthcare professionals, educators and other key stakeholders  Participants were invited to discuss the possibilities for students with disabilities in the areas of independent living, education and training, employment, community integration, health care and self-advocacy. Youth and young adults with special healthcare needs learned how to plan for their future and life after high school, how to sort through the maze of resources and what skills are important to develop to prepare for adulthood and meet their goals.

The University of Illinois at Chicago’s Division of Specialized Care for Children (DSCC) served on the steering committee for this year’s conference and covered the conference-related expenses for 20 of our participant families across the state. Part of DSCC’s mission is to connect adolescents with special healthcare needs and their families to resources that prepare them for the transition to adulthood and the delivery of adult services.

Former DSCC participant Ashley Santiago-Sanchez, 21, attended the conference with her parents and younger brother. Her father, Ivan, said his family wanted to gain as much information and resources as possible to help foster her independence and prepare for adult life in the community.

Saurabh and Mukta Agarwal attended with their teenaged daughter, Radhika, who currently is enrolled with DSCC and requires skilled in-home nursing. Their Care Coordinator made sure that DSCC paid for the family’s registration, hotel, transportation and cost for a daytime nurse for Radhika.

“A lot of times families (like ours) don’t know the options,” Saurabh said of planning for the future with a medically complex child.

Saurabh said he was especially touched by keynote speaker Matt Cohen, who spoke about his experiences with his son and how he learned to determine transition priorities for students and ensure their real-life needs are met. He and Mukta also appreciated the opportunity to make connections with other families and professionals.

“All of the information was very helpful, and now we have to do our homework,” Saurabh said.

Click here to view photos and more information about this year’s conference.

The 2018 Illinois Statewide Transition Conference is scheduled for Oct. 25-26 at the Westin Chicago Northwest Hotel in Itasca.

A variety of camping experiences are available across the state for children of all needs and abilities.

Summer is just around the corner and the search begins for fun and educational activities to keep children’s minds and bodies engaged during the break from school.

Our Care Coordinators and support staff have helped compile a list of day and overnight summer camp opportunities across the state that are designed for a variety of special needs and abilities, including many of our program’s eligible medical conditions.

The list of 2017 summer camp activities is available here.

You may also search for events in your area by clicking on a regional office near you.