Full Text of HR0318 101st General Assembly
HR0318 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | 3 | | Representatives wish to congratulate Debra Nauman, the founder | 4 | | of Giant Steps, on her years of tenacious work for the autism | 5 | | community; and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, Debra Nauman, a single mother with two children on | 7 | | the autism spectrum, began her journey 23 years ago; motivated | 8 | | by her son, Riley, who was not receiving the services he needed | 9 | | at school to effectively learn, she realized he needed a | 10 | | program that understood him and autism; her dynamic personality | 11 | | led her to start Giant Steps, the first school in Illinois for | 12 | | students with autism, in 1996; and
| 13 | | WHEREAS, Without alternatives for programming, Debra | 14 | | Nauman turned to her local legislator, former U.S. | 15 | | Representative Judy Biggert, for assistance; subsequently, | 16 | | former State Representative Patti Bellock continued to support | 17 | | Giant Steps; with their help, the initial funding to start | 18 | | Giant Steps was secured through the Illinois General Assembly, | 19 | | making Riley the first student at Giant Steps Day School; and
| 20 | | WHEREAS, Today, Giant Steps serves over 200 students and | 21 | | adults from across northern Illinois; and
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, Giant Steps autism services now include the | 2 | | Transition Day School program in Lisle, where there are 165 | 3 | | students attending from over 60 public school districts in | 4 | | northern Illinois; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, The Canopy Adult Day Program located in Sugar | 6 | | Grove provides vital continuing education for adults with | 7 | | autism who have aged out of the public school system; and
| 8 | | WHEREAS, Christine's Dream Equestrian Center at Rich | 9 | | Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove offers therapeutic riding lessons | 10 | | and vocational opportunities focused on experiential education | 11 | | and recreational skill development for students and adults from | 12 | | across northern Illinois; and
| 13 | | WHEREAS, The Recreation After School Center in Lisle is a | 14 | | program that addresses two needs for families; first, it | 15 | | provides engaging and educational and community opportunities | 16 | | for students and adults after school; second, it provides camps | 17 | | for students during holidays that offer exciting and engaging | 18 | | activities designed to support learning; and
| 19 | | WHEREAS, These programs have helped countless individuals | 20 | | living with autism by offering new educational and therapeutic | 21 | | programs and enriching their daily lives, and Giant Steps has | 22 | | grown into a national leader in the world of autism; therefore, |
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| 1 | | be it
| 2 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | 3 | | HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | 4 | | we congratulate Debra Nauman on her years of untiring work as | 5 | | the founder of Giant Steps and commend all she has done to help | 6 | | families across the State who are living with autism; and be it | 7 | | further
| 8 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 9 | | presented to Debra Nauman as an expression of our esteem and | 10 | | respect.
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