Updates and a Request for Your Legislative Advocacy

Gerry Beagles • May 17, 2021

As executive director of Garden Center Services, I can say that this challenging past year of the pandemic has been especially stressful for community-based agencies like ours that provide residential support to adults with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities.

GCS currently serves 140 individuals who are either living in one of our 12 community living arrangements or at home with their families.


Our group homes are located in several southwest Cook County communities, with one home located in DuPage County. I am so proud of our staff who have continued to provide a supportive, stimulating environment within our homes while having to focus so diligently on keeping persons safe from the COVID- 19 virus. The time, energy and resources that we have expended to accomplish this have been exhaustive but worth every effort if it means keeping our wonderful participants safe and healthy.


One component of our overall protection strategy was to get as many of our staff vaccinated as possible. As healthcare workers providing attention to the population we serve, our staff was designated 1A as it relates to receiving the shots. Initially, many of our staff, just like the general public, had concerns and questions about the real benefits and effectiveness of the vaccines, especially because they were developed in an expedited timeframe.


The staff willing to commit initially to receive the vaccine was somewhere in the low to mid 30s percentile range. Through many one-on-one conversations, the accessibility of informative educational material and videos, an interval of time during which the vaccine has been proven safe, and the effect of peer expectations, I am pleased to share that currently over 85 percent of Garden Center Services’ staff have been vaccinated! This is a real achievement, and I’m hopeful more staff will come forward.


The staff has been able to take advantage of vaccinations provided by the Stickney Public Health Department and also at clinics that have been held right at the agency’s State Road day program location. A big thank you goes out to Associate Executive Director Cindy Haworth, who worked tirelessly to establish relationships with the Walgreens and CIMPAR pharmacies, and to her team that helped coordinate and staff the five clinics we’ve had thus far. We are so incredibly grateful for the large number of our employees and the individuals we support, both in our living arrangements and the community, who were able to get their shots. This is such a demonstration of #GardenCenterStrong.


In addition to being safe, we also want our staff to be adequately paid. For years, our agency has been part of the They Deserve More coalition, which has been working to increase the hourly wages of our staff. This year, we are asking our legislators to follow through on the state’s obligation and to fully fund an in-depth survey-supported rate structure that would finally allow Illinois to demonstrate its investment in individuals with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities, their families and their direct-care staff.


A study commissioned and funded by the state, and carried out over the last two years by an independent, professional organization, has clearly identified the disparity between our current level of state funding and what it actually costs to provide the services we offer. There are currently resolutions in both the Senate (SB169) and the House (HB194) that, if passed, would be a real game changer for agencies such as ours.


Please take the time to voice your support of these bills to your state legislator. As always, thank you for your incredible support of our agency and the incredible persons we are honored to serve.

Gerry

Other Articles

By Gerry Beagles July 11, 2025
Dear Garden Center Services Family & Friends, I want to start off by wishing each of you a happy and safe summer! Even though we’ve had times where the temperature has been a little toasty, I so appreciate the sun-drenched days with all the opportunities for fun and frolic. It does my heart good to view the posted pictures of the individuals we support enjoying all kinds of activities and experiences out and about in the community. I want to give a big shoutout to the staff at our homes and day services that use a lot of energy and creativity to make these outings possible! I must admit that the recognition and celebration of Independence Day last week had lost some of its childlike excitement and meaning for me due to the passage of the Big ##### Bill in Washington. Though the supporters of this bill claim that it only focuses on “waste, fraud, and abuse,” the projected cuts that it contains could devastate millions of people with disabilities who receive life sustaining and enhancing services through Medicaid and other safety net programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. For some time one of my favorite quotes has been from former Vice President Hubert Humphrey. When dedicating a building in D.C. on Nov. 1, 1977, he spoke to the treatment of the weakest members of society as a reflection of a government: “The moral test of government is how that government treats those who are in the dawn of life, the children; those who are in the twilight of life, the elderly; those who are in the shadows of life, the sick, the needy, and the disabled.” I was personally drawn towards working in this field in the mid-1970s because I could sense that there was a sincere and genuine movement underway that would alter the approach to serving people with developmental disabilities. The 1980’s was a time when many states started to close their large institutions and through Medicaid Home and Community-Based Services allow individuals with disabilities to receive services and supports in their family homes, in their own homes, acknowledging and honoring the contributions they make as members of our neighborhoods and communities. To toil and struggle and rejoice in the accomplishments this movement has made in the last 5 decades has been incredible, and to see the changes we’ve made at Garden Center during the last 22 years as my time as the Executive Director, fills me with gratitude. And, we’ve still have a lot more that we’re planning on accomplishing on behalf of the awesome individuals that we’re honored to spend time with! So, what is our response going to be to the recently passed Reconciliation bill? We’re going to keep holding our heads high as we fight the good fight at the state level and keep focused on the multiple essential projects that are underway. What I am keenly aware of is my need to bring more discretionary, non-State funds, into our agency. Most of you reading this newsletter are already generous supporters of our agency, and so I’m not necessarily asking you to open your pocketbook. What I am asking, is that you would please share any contact information with me of people, or businesses, that you think might be interested in supporting a worthy cause like Garden Center Services! I just want the opportunity to share our story, the stories of the brave people we support, with a larger audience. Don’t hesitate to reach out to me by email, or you can call me at 708-560-4400. Thank you for everything! Peace, Gerry
By Gerry Beagles May 14, 2025
Little did I know, on May 2nd, 2003, that I would be undertaking the role as Director of Garden Center Services that I am blessed enough to still be fulfilling today! Some of you probably remember that at the time I came on board, the name of our agency was Garden Center for the Handicapped. Changing the wording was easy; changing the approach to how the individuals we support are emboldened to make their own choices and create their own lives has been exhilarating and extremely hard work. There are many reasons that my passion for this work hasn’t waned but let me just share a few with you. First and foremost, it is the people we serve. I have spoken frequently, especially when spending time with new employees, about the tangible benefit that comes with working in this field; interacting with caring, curious, resilient adults with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities, who are the most unpretentious people you could ever spend time with. Next, if you are lucky, you end up working side-by-side with so many compassionate, committed employees that are like-minded and spirited in their desire to raise up the individuals we support and help them to have the lives they deserve. At Garden Center Services I have often felt the line between fellow staff members and chosen family gets quite blurry. Lastly, it is an incredible opportunity to be working in the disability services area during a time of change, when individuals are being empowered to learn and use their own voices, to advocate for themselves, and to make choices such as where do they want to live, who do they want to live with, how do they want to spend their days, …etc. I want to express a deep appreciation for the families, parents & guardians, friends, and the local business community that have been exceptionally supportive of the direction that we have taken the agency. Change can be difficult, and that’s why I am so thankful for the open-mindedness, trust, and respect that I have experienced as the Executive Director. We have a very committed, involved group of individuals that serve on the agency’s Board of Directors. They give up their time, energy, and often their resources to ensure that Garden Center is following through on our commitment to the people we serve. I want to express my gratitude to three members of the board that stepped down after serving 2 three-year terms. Ms. Donna Blair, Mr. Tony DiMiele, and Ms. Ava Rhodes-Smith. Their guidance has been invaluable over the last six years! Let me also introduce the four new people that have just joined the board. Ms. Kate Akin, Mr. John Considine, Ms. Kari Riordan, and Ms. Jenny Wojcik. You will learn more about them in the coming newsletters. A Happy Spring to All, Gerry
By Gerry Beagles April 17, 2025
Any of you that listened to Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s remarks yesterday about the “autism epidemic” would have spent your time more intelligently if you had watched an episode of the Three Stooges. Kennedy referred to autism as a ‘disease’, versus a developmental disability, and stressed how it destroys families and greatly limits the contributions that persons with this neurological condition can make to society. What a bunch of hogwash! There are many individuals dealing with autism that are living contented, productive lives filled with connection, contribution, and meaning. There are people in the arts, playing sports, employed, paying taxes, enjoying loving relationships, and certainly sitting on the damn toilet! The Secretary’s message is just more misinformation and simply reinforces the stigmatization that holds individuals with an autism diagnosis down and keeps so many in our country from experiencing the gifts and positive impacts that they share.  Please join us and the many advocates supporting persons with neurological differences in seeking a future for these incredible, courageous individuals, where they are suitably championed to create and enjoy the lives they deserve!
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