ANNUAL REPORT / FISCAL YEAR 2023
COMMUNITY CHOICES
TRANSPORTATION
"Their Transportation Program is so cool and exciting and I will definitely take advantage of it!"
Transportation is consistently reported as a major barrier for people with I/DD. Jobs, friendships, community events, even simple trips to the store can be limited because of the lack of sufficient transportation options. While we do have a robust public transit and ride-sharing system, these options frequently do not meet the needs of people with I/DD. We set about to solve this problem by designing and securing funding for a new personalized and community-focused transportation department that will allow our participants increased ability to be part of the community. This marked the first new program for Community Choices since 2015. It is a new and exciting moment of growth and innovation for the organization.
celebrating growth-2023
“I like the drivers. They are kind and courteous. They drive safely and I feel safe.”
Contents 2 - Transportation 3 - Community support 4 - Employment 5 - Connect 6 - Finances 7 - Our Generous Donors
"Amazing Service! Love it, Love it, Love it!"
Being part of the community means being able to get there - we're making that happen.
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WHAT OUR MEMBERS ARE SAYING:
LETTER EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
from the
Growing up, my elementary school framed their community guidelines around a set of rights and responsibilities. It was not a list of rules or things that were forbidden, but a statement of how interconnected we all were, as children and students and as leaders and teachers. It emphasized how we all had inherent rights and dignity as people and a responsibility to each other to uphold that dignity. Community Choices was built on the idea that we are all interconnected, that we need each other, and that ultimately we are responsible for each other as much as we are responsible for ourselves. I have seen how being part of our community builds people up, makes new ideas seem possible, and how it can ease the pain of life’s challenges. I have also seen the power that our voices have when we speak together in the ways that organizations, policies, and systems are slowly opening up and acknowledging the rights and experiences of people with disabilities. This is why we are a cooperative - we have a commitment to each other to create room for opportunities and growth. But our community is bigger than our cooperative. We can’t do our work alone, and in the past years we’ve learned this more than ever. Our partners are important to us, not because we have a right to be there, or because they have a responsibility to us. Our partnerships are critical because we have a responsibility to our community and our community has the right to have people with disabilities as active, welcomed participants. Each of our members, our partners, and our supporters are part of this interconnected community - responsible to each other and making sure that we all have the right to live our best lives, together. Sincerely, Becca Obuchowski Executive Director
“This gives my son another opportunity for independence as well as participation in community events!”
Services began in August of 2023. In the first three months of support: We provided 205 Rides. 21 adults with disabilities used the service, 25% of our membership. Members have been able to go community jobs, run errands, attend medical appointments, participate in community events, and access additional Community Choices services. Initial impact evaluations showed that 100% of participants felt that transporation access improved their overall quality of life, confidence in being in the community, and their ability to do what's important to them.
WORKING GROWING THRIVING IN OUR COMMUNITY together
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SUCCESS STORY: Lydia Brighton
COMMUNITY SUPPORT
Day to Day Impact: We supported 60 adults with I/DD to live in the community and spent 3820 hours providing support in skill buidling, intensive case management, and family support. Nearly 90% of participants' families reported that the program had helped them improve their own quality of life. 95% of our participants made progress on their personalized community living goals. 17 people with I/DD participated in our 6 personal development classes which covered topics such as Cooking, Communication, Healthy Sexuality, and a Practical Guide to Friendships. Community Action: We successfully led a significant advocacy effort locally to pressure the state to give families living and supporting someone with a disability an exemption from new burdensome reporting requirements. We collaborated with CU Public Health and the Parkland Occupational Therapy Life Clinic to provide class instruction on critical personal development skills. In collaboration with our community partners, we worked to find creative solutions to address area homelessness, domestic violence, transportation, and accessibility.
Day to day Impact: 60 people with I/DD received 1:1 support to find, keep and expand their community-based jobs and volunteer positions. 25 people with I/DD found work in the community this year. All of the jobs that people found were directly linked to their personalized employment goals, interests, and talents. Over 70% of participants who we supported to find jobs since 2017 are still employed today, many with more hours and responsibilities. Our Workforce Empowerment Program turned two years old and 100% of the participants who found employment as a result are still at their positions. Community Action: We provided LEAP Trainings to 62 local businesses - a new record. Our Registry of Inclusive Employers (www.leapregistry-cu.org) offered businesses and community members resources to be more inclusive to all disabilities, in collaboration with DSC. We partnered with the Urbana Park District, the YMCA, and Curtis Orchard to give our Workforce Empowerment Program participants real-world experiences at a variety of jobs. An impressive 10 employers worked with Community Choices to hire employees with I/DD for the first time.
COMMUNITY SUPPORT - Our Impact
Lydia has been working actively with Community Choices since September of 2021, when she came to us looking for employment support after a challenging high school experience. Like many others who we work with, she was in a period of transition and unsure of herself and what her future path looked like. Lydia’s Employment Specialist knew that in addition to our standard Job Development supports, she needed opportunities to build her self-determination and confidence. She encouraged her to participate in our Workforce Empowerment Program, attend our Leadership Classes, and begin volunteering to offer a holistic approach to her job-search. With this approach, Lydia has been able to gain experience and knowledge while also developing job skills that would help her with future employment. In May, Lydia had the opportunity to interview with Big Grove Tavern in Champaign and she was offered the position on the spot! She accepted and has been working at Big Grove since the beginning of June. So far, Lydia is loving her job and her coworkers. Everyone is so kind and helpful and Lydia makes a great addition to the team! We look forward to seeing all of the things you accomplish at Big Grove!
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Where people with i/dd build the skills and get the support to make community-based living sustainable
SUCCESS STORY: Josh Peter
CUSTOMIZED EMPLOYMENT- Our Impact
Cooking and managing your household are some of life’s most important tasks. These skills can also be a pathway to satisfaction, connections, and confidence. With the expansion of our Inclusive Community Support program, we’ve had more capacity to work with people individually on these types of important skills. Josh Peter has been working with us over the past year on developing his confidence while cooking and with organizing. At the beginning, Josh was nervous and unsure in the kitchen. Managing hot pans, proper food storage, and many other kitchen necessities were new to him. Now Josh can flip a burger with little to no encouragement and has prepared multiple dishes. Josh has also been working on learning organizing skills. Josh committed himself to developing a cleaning routine that would help him gain and maintain his independence. He’s gotten to the stage where he can step back, look at his work and to be proud of what he has accomplished. Josh wants to continue the journey to complete independence by developing a budget and shopping for things that he needs and wants. It has been a pleasure to see Josh continue to push himself and develop his abilities and confidence. We’re sure there’s lots more to come for him in the future.
"Community Choices has helped me so much with life skills and job involvement." -Josh Peter
CUSTOMIZED EMPLOYMENT
where people with I/DD find community jobs based on their skills and talents
"I am deeply appreciative and grateful for everything Community Choices has done and is doing for Lydia. You have presented her with opportunities that have helped her grow as a person. She has come a long way." - Lydia's Mom
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Where families support each other and community partnerships find a home
* CCDDB - Champaign County Developmental Disabilities Board ** Funded through the CCDDB in collaboration with DSC
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"As a founding member and longtime board member of Community Choices, I am so proud of all we have accomplished as an organization. We have turned the concept of full inclusion for people with Intellectual and developmental disabilities, into a daily reality. While we might not have changed the world, we have definitely changed our corner of it." - Linda Tortorelli, Parent, Founding Member
Where people with i/dd build relationships and learn to be leaders
Financial Statement
Day to day Impact We reached 183 adults with I/DD and their families and provided over 2000 hours of direct personalized support to build connections, friendships, and leadership skills. We supported 4 Co-Op Clubs made up of members who shared similar interests such as crafting, sports, gaming, and coffee and offered over 50 social opportunities and family events. 75% of active members reported better connections to friends and the community with our support. Over 85% reported a better understanding of disability services and local resources. 95% of members reported that being part of the Community Choices Co-Op provides them with a supportive community. Community Action We designed and secured funding for a new Transportation program, eliminating a major barrier to community life for people with I/DD. We collaborated with area schools and organizations to help host “Preparing for Life After Graduation” for over 100 area families and youth. We launched Accessible CU in partnership with UIUC’s College of Education and Experience Champaign-Urbana which is now able to offer broad-scope accessibility information for area businesses at: experiencecu.org/accessible-cu. We worked to end institutional care by supporting the voices of self-advocates at a summit, state-wide rally, and through the work of our Human Rights and Advocacy group.
"It was such a powerful opportunity to learn about the barriers that exist, collaboratively design a project and use this tool to help community members and busines owners learn about access." -Dr. Emily Tarconsih
The Connect Department is the home to our Cooperative, our work to build connections for our members, and place where we grow community partnerships. These partnerships not only give our members the opportunity to be advocates and leaders, they help to shape our broader community into a more welcoming and inclusive place. This summer, in partnership with UIUC College of Education faculty, student volunteers, our members and their families, as well as Experience Champaign Urbana, we were able to launch our collaborative project to include accessibility information about local businesses on the Experience CU website. Our partnership started two years ago and grew from a mutual desire to look at accessibility in a broad way - more than just physical access, but sensory environment, cognitive access, and the ability of the location to make accommodations. It was also vital to us that this evaluation be driven by people with lived experience. Making our community an accessible and welcoming place for people with disabilities is a critical part of our work, and we’re so thrilled that this collaborative group could take steps to make that happen. Check it out at experiencecu.org/accessible-cu.
SUCCESS STORY: Accessible CU Partnership
CONNECT
CONNECT - Our Impact
INCOME
Fundraising
Individual Contributions
-
Fundraising Events
4,857
Grants
CCDDB*
193,874
171,000
217,500
582,374
Employment 1st Initiative**
20,882
Fee for Service
Illinois - Home-Based Services
70,120
Illinois - Employment Services
41,576
Private Pay
179
Training & Consulting
5,397
TOTAL INCOME
263,994
279,958
766,273
EXPENSES
Personnel
Employee Salaries/Wages
189,492
131,982
204,631
526,105
Employee Taxes/Benefits
37,995
30,932
38,117
107,044
Professional Fees
7,983
5,423
7,905
21,311
Supplies and Resources
Staff Development
1,055
536
935
2,526
Supplies/Consumables
4,358
3,765
3,275
11,398
Investing in Independence & Participant Support
505
Fundraising Expenses
1,560
Operating Expenses
Occupancy
11,892
7,272
12,657
31,821
General Operating
4,233
2,726
4,486
11,445
Transportation
4,855
1,245
3,156
9,256
TOTAL EXPENSES
261,863
183,881
275,162
722,971
TOTAL
40,888
July 2022 - June 2023
THANK YOU! DONORS!
COMMUNITY CHOICES, 44 E MAIN SUITE 210, CHAMPAIGN, IL 61820 www.communitychoicesinc.org
Busey Bank Community Shares of Illinois Marc Knowles Philip & Sheila Krein Barbara Pritchard Linda & Dan Tortorelli*
ADVOCATES ($300-$999) Evan Alvarez Holly Clemons Daphne Cline John & Tina Colombo Marcia Crisp Rich & Karen Eisenmenger Fidelity Charitable Susan Fowler Keith & Dana Good Laurie Howard Mike Ingram Jeff & Barb Jewett Larry & Therese Kessler Ronald & Susan Kiddoo Jim & Jessica Lopez Jeanne & Tim Murray* Andy & Kelly Nelson Mark Obuchowski Donald & Barbara Perrero Ruth Rhodes Mildred & Richard Riggs Timothy & Tami Smith Thomas & Linda Steele Thrivent Financial Lee Whitacre SUSTAINING DONORS Barbara Buoy Charlie & Mary Butzow David & Jamie Cox John & Melinda Dabrowski Rich & Karen Eisenmenger Mary Pat Elmlinger Susan Fowler Laurie Howard Teresa Juehring Emily McKowen Barbara Mies* Jeanne & Tim Murray* Vicki & Marc Niswander Duyen Thi Nguyen Cora Obuchowski & Ben Burns Jen Knapp & Kyle Raymond Ruth Rhodes Georgiana Schuster Linda & Dan Tortorelli* Lee Whitacre Tim & Deb Wood* FRIENDS John Abelson Riley Abrahamson Patty Altstetter Carl & Nadja Altstetter Greg & Patricia Altstetter Amazon Smile Wendy Barker Rose Barnes Rashid & Masooda Bashir Danielle Bates Louis Bergonzi Diane Berry Norman Blobaum Paul Blobaum* Jill Brink-Rutter* Margaret Briskin Lynnsey Brownfield Douglas & Katherine Bull Meghan Burke Elizabeth Chippewa* Jeremy & Leanna Cossman Robert & Celeste Coverdill Theresa Cox Dan Crede & Gay King-Crede Laura Cuppernell Miranda Delanty Aynalem Demissie Paul Diehl Barbara Doyle Carole Durst Cyndi Emmons Diane & Keith Eveland Amy Faber Megan Finnegan Bill & Phyllis Gingold Neil & Joan Gorsuch* Jasmine Hague Gail Wallace Hague Abbey Hall Robin Hamilton Michael & Liz Haney Susan Haney Renee Hart Jessica Henrichs Todd & Melissa Hoerner Marcia Horton Jon Horton Doris Howard Isaac Inskeep Artice James Alexandria James Jason Jewett Deanne Johnson Jan Kalmar & Ben Galewesky John & Gail Kennedy William & Larissa Kramer Max LaFoon Miriam Larson Christine Lee Jamie Lourash Schnucks Markets Jane McClintock Maria McDevitt Paul & Margaret McNamara John Mies Meg Miller Jen Mozina Kelsey Murrah Ryan Murray Tim & Sally Mustered Michael Nagele Dylan Nelshoppen Paul & Dayle Obuchowski Robert O'Daniell Lauren Parsons Josh Peter Kendall Rafter Nathan & Kristina Rath Anne Robin A.M. Roeder Laurie Rund Andrew Schuh Mark Shelden Carolyn Shlens Robert Shlens Taryn Smith Margaret Stanton Gabe Stanton Randall & Chiyuki Stearns Travis Stearns Anita Stein & Harvey Welch* Barbara Terry Patrick Tessene Jennifer Tomaso James & Julie Tortorelli Lois Tortorelli Matthew Turino Kathryn Voss Margaret Waltershausen & Paul Tessene Charles Walworth Weekend House Gallery Abby Wetzel Christine Wetzel Amy Woods Daniel Zolfo * - Community Choices Board Member
YOU MAKE THIS POSSIBLE
Join Us Today!
CHAMPIONS ($1500 +)
BENEFACTORS ($1000-$1499)
Community Foundation of East Central Illinois David & Jamie Cox John & Melinda Dabrowski Eric & Tamara Helfer Daniel & Elizabeth Maloney Mike & Alicia Mangham Barbara Mies* Ken & Beth Niebuhr Jen Knapp & Kyle Raymond Joyce Wakeland Tim & Deb Wood*
Community Choices makes every effort to ensure that this list is accurate. We deeply regret any errors, omissions, misspellings, or other mistakes and welcome your feedback.
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