This program serves children from birth until the age of three who are experiencing developmental delays. After an initial screening is completed, developmental therapy is provided in the child’s home or in the most convenient location for the family. Developmental Therapists work with parents and other caregivers to create a positive learning environment through play and to promote the family’s understanding of their child’s development.
24 Hour Residential
24 Hour Community Integrated Living Arrangement (CILA) services provides 24-hour care to adults who live in eight agency-owned homes in Charleston. These are truly homes, not nursing facilities. Two to six residents live at each location while our staff provide support to facilitate their daily living choices and preferences. Our nursing staff are on-call 24 hours per day to consult with staff about medical needs, including medication and devices. Residents are actively involved in the daily household activities and are encouraged to become involved in the local community. Their families and friends are always welcome to visit.
Community Day Services
The Community Day Services Programs assist adults who live and work in their communities. Services are provided at three locations.
The Lincoln Avenue Center and Manufacturing Plant provide work skill training in a structured atmosphere. Workplace safety, work quality, and community-integrated activities are emphasized. Work training at the Lincoln Avenue Center primarily takes place in their recycling program. Training at the Manufacturing Plant occurs (as the name implies) at their manufacturing plant through contractual work with area businesses. Those who attend our day programs aren’t limited to work. Many opt to participate in recreational activities in the local community or enjoy leisure activities at the programs.
The Locust Street Center is geared toward building upon individual adult daily living skills and enhancing communication. Like our other two day programs, individuals are able to enjoy activities of their choosing in the community and at the program.
Client & Family Support
Intermittent or Family Community Integrated Living Arrangement Program provides daily living support on a less than 24-hour basis. The program offers a wide range of options to help individuals live as independently as possible in the community. Supports can include, but aren’t limited to assistance with money management, help with grocery shopping, advocacy, transportation to doctor’s appointments and understanding medical concerns, help with paperwork associated with benefits, planning vacations, and fun recreational activities of the person’s choosing. Services are provided at times and in environments that are most convenient for individuals and their families.
Home Based Support Program provides service facilitation to adults and children. It offers families the options of hiring their own personal support workers with assistance from their service facilitator and chosen fiscal agent, using personal support workers employed by CCAR Industries, or any combination thereof. The type and frequency of services delivered are determined by the individual and family and are written into the individualized service plan.
Recycling
The Lincoln Avenue Recycling Program has provided work training opportunities to program participants since 1998. Initially, Eastern Illinois University was the program’s primary source of recycling materials. However, over the years, the program has had an increasing number of area businesses and private residents contribute materials.
Examples of items that we recycle include newspaper, office paper, magazines, books, calendars, brochures and more. We accept cardboard, but please note that cardboard is only accepted with a monetary donation due to the current cost of processing cardboard and the need to cover the cost of program participant wages. At this time, the program accepts aluminum cans (which are processed at a different location.) We have a large paper shredder on-site that is used to shred confidential documents from businesses or private individuals.
Please note that we do not accept glass, plastic, electronics or non-aluminum metal items.
Individuals who are enrolled in the Lincoln Avenue program earn wages while they develop work skills. Staff work closely with individuals and provide supervision and training throughout the day. Program participants perform tasks according to their particular abilities and workplace modifications are made when needed. Some common tasks performed are sorting paper (there are three categories), sorting cardboard from paper, tearing pages from bound items, picking-up materials from area businesses and cleaning-up the work area.
Community members and businesses are welcome to bring items to our Recycling Centerat 1600 Lincoln Avenue. We accept materials on Monday through Friday from 9:00 am until 2:00 pm. We are closed on most major holidays. If you have questions, please email or call us at 217-348-0127 ext. 703.
Funding Your Services
The individuals who participate in our programs are primarily funded through the Illinois Department of Human Services (Medicaid Waiver) and miscellaneous private and/or community-based grants. The State of Illinois assigns waiver funding to the person, not the agency, and many applicants wait an average of four to five years to receive funding and the funding provided frequently does not cover the actual cost of providing services.
As a nonprofit organization, we often rely on charitable donations from families, businesses and our community to cover our numerous unfunded service costs to continue our mission. We are endlessly grateful for the generosity and kindness from our local community. Thank you.
