Marcus Theatres offers special moving showings catered to individuals with special needs and their families on select dates.

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 children who need accommodations and their families can share the experience of seeing family-friendly films at a theater.

Upcoming Reel Movies for Real Needs include:

• Jumanji: The Next Level – Dec. 14
• Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker – Dec. 21
• Spies in Disguise – Dec. 28
• My Spy – Jan. 11
• Dolittle – Jan. 18
• Sonic the Hedgehog – Feb. 15

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.

The Secret Sleigh Project is now accepting applications for Santa home visits during the 2019 holiday season.

Illinois children with an illness and/or disability that makes traveling difficult could receive a free home visit from Santa this holiday season.

The Secret Sleigh Project is an organization that coordinates volunteers to provide Santa home visits to children who are medically fragile nationwide.

A Colorado mother created the project in 2015 after her own daughter was diagnosed with a respiratory complication.

“It was overwhelming to consider seeing Santa. And then I had a vision of Santa walking into Lily’s room and her lighting up at the sight of him,” Secret Sleigh Project Director Sarah Kordis said.

“I posted the idea on Facebook, and shared how I would like to help other families receive a home visit as well. Within two hours, thanks to a remarkable friend, we had Santa. Two weeks after, Santa visited 16 children all over northern Colorado, including Lily and her brothers.”

That next year, the project enlisted more than five Santas to visit more than 50 children in three different states. Today, the project is able to provide Santa home visits in every state.

“It is not always possible to provide a visit to every child, but we do our absolute best to make it happen,” Kordis said.

To apply for a Santa home visit from the Secret Sleigh Project, interested families must complete the following forms and email them to secretsleigh@gmail.com:

• Complete the 2019 Family Application
• Complete the 2019 Family Liability Release
• Complete the Photo Release Form

Applications are due Dec. 1. After this deadline, the project puts families on a waiting list.

For more information, email secretsleigh@gmail.com or visit the Secret Sleigh Project Facebook page.

Please note, the Secret Sleigh Project is a separate organization that is not affiliated with the University of Illinois at Chicago’s Division of Specialized Care for Children (DSCC). DSCC is not involved in the organizing or scheduling of these Santa home visits.

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.

The Summer Food Service Program is open to Illinois children ages 18 and under to fill the nutritional gap during summer.

School may be out for summer, but hunger knows no break.

Many Illinois families depend on their children’s schools to provide regular, nutritious meals throughout the school year.

The Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) provides healthy meals and snacks to children and teens age 18 and younger at hundreds of sites across the state. The Illinois State Board of Education runs the program, which is funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

To find a meal site near you, call (800) 359-2163, text “FoodIL” to 877-877, or visit SummerMealsIllinois.org.

“A healthy return to school starts with a healthy summer,” said State Superintendent of Education Dr. Carmen I. Ayala. “Equity means ensuring students get what they need year-round. ISBE is grateful to all those who have stepped up to sponsor the Summer Food Service Program, making it possible for free and healthy meals and snacks to reach the families who need them.”

To learn more about this year’s program, visit the Illinois State Board of Education website.

Learn from experts in the field about assistive technology, post-transition, behavior planning and early detection and intervention.

The University of Illinois at Chicago’s Institute on Disability and Human Development and The Autism Program of Illinois (TAP) are kicking off a series of webinars in honor of Autism Awareness Month.

The webinars will discuss many aspects of autism, including interventions and strategies to improve quality of life and important information on the systems that affect individuals with autism spectrum disorder.

The webinars will feature experts from across the field. Continuing education units will also be available for all webinars.

To register, visit www.accessibilityonline.org/IDHD.

Schedule details are available below by topic:

Assistive Technology Series

• April 10, 1-2 p.m.
  “AT Tools for Independence – Electronic Aids to Daily Living”
• April 29,  1-2 p.m.
  “AT Communication Tools and Strategies”
• May 9,  1-2 p.m.
  “AT Tools and Resources for Latinx Families”
• May 16, 1-1:30 p.m.
  “AT Creating Individualized Communication Profiles”
  (.5 continuing education units available only in conjunction with one other ATU webinar)

Post-Transition

• April 11,  1-2 p.m.
  “Accessing Adult Services in Illinois”
• May 23, 1-2 p.m.
  “What Happens after High School? Transition to College for Autistic and Disabled Youth”
• May 30, 1-2 p.m.
  “ABLE Accounts”

Behavior Planning

• April 18,  2-3 p.m.
  “Understanding and Improving Behavior: A Sensible Approach”
• June 20, 1-2 p.m.
  “ABA Basics: Recognizing Good and Bad Behavior Plans”

Early Detection and Intervention

• June 13,  1-2 p.m.
  “Early Detection of Autism”
• June 27,  1-2 p.m.
  “A Look at Alternative Interventions”

Questions? Please contact Susan Kahan at skahan@uic.edu.

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.

Families of young children with disabilities are invited to participate.

The Early Intervention Clearinghouse (EIC) at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is conducting focus groups with families of young children with disabilities. The purpose is to learn their perspectives about needed supports, information  and services.

Participants must be the parent or family member of a young (age birth to 8 years old) child who received Early Intervention services.

The focus groups will be held at four different locations:

• Chicago – Family Resource Center on Disabilities, 11 E. Adams St. Suite 1002,  on March 22 at 10:30 a.m.
• Normal – Eastview Christian Church, 1500 N. Airport Road, on March 29 at 5:30 p.m.
• Grayslake – Therapeutic Links, 998 Progress Drive, on April 6 at 10 a.m.
• Villa Park – Easterseals DuPage & Fox Valley, 830 S. Addison Ave., on April 10 at 7 p.m.

For more information and to participate, please contact Meghan Burke at (217) 300-1226 or meghanbm@illinois.edu.

Illinois DCFS and Goodwill Great Lakes are connecting current and former DCFS youth with full- and part-time jobs.

The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) is partnering with Goodwill Great Lakes Food Services to provide job opportunities to current and former disabled youth in care.

Teenagers and adults will have the opportunity to learn new skills and earn a good wage while making a difference.

To be eligible for an interview, you must be:

• 17 years old or older
• A current or former youth in care with DCFS
• Currently disabled
• A resident of the Chicago metropolitan area

Low-cost shuttle service is available from designated locations in Chicago and Skokie.  Free shuttle service is available from the Great Lakes Metra Station.

Please contact Corey Shannon at (312) 405-0491 or corey.shannon@illinois.gov for more information and next steps for setting up an interview.

Also note that The AbilityOne Program requires disability verification from the youth’s caseworker to determine an individual’s eligibility.

A case worker will need to accompany applicants to the interview.

Below are tips to prepare for the interview:

• Dress appropriately
• Be on time
• Show willingness to learn a new skill

Adults and youth ages 14 and older can learn from area banking professionals.

Managing money is an important skill to help us reach our goals and dreams.

The Sangamon County Department of Community Resources is hosting free financial literacy workshops every Wednesday of the month.

The workshops are for adults and youth ages 14 and older. They will be held from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the Public Health Community Services Building at 2833 South Grand Ave. East in Springfield.

Participants will learn ways to live within their means and manage debt so it doesn’t manage you.

You will also learn how to develop a spending plan that will help you reach your goals. Area banking professionals will also show you how to manage expenses if you have children and other tips on deductions you may be able to take on your taxes.

Registration is required. Call (217) 535-3120.

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.