The joy and happiness of inclusiveness and acceptance were all around us, fanned by the heavy beat of 70’s rock music being played by the volunteer DJ. It was our agency’s Valentine’s dance, hosted by the varsity baseball team over at St. Laurence High School, and both the individuals we support, and the student-athletes were having a blast. One of the major changes I have personally experienced over the last 50 plus years around services to persons with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities has been the movement to see all of us as people first, realizing that it is all the marvelous differences that brings life its’ juiciness! I was very impressed with the welcoming spirit of the baseball team and their strong determination to ensure that our folks would have a terrific time. The entire coaching staff, led by head coach Pete Lotus, demonstrated true leadership as they jumped in and enjoyed the party as well. Whatever the baseball teams’ record is at the end of the season, the Valentine party was a huge W! Sadly, it only took a few days for the elation we had experienced from the dance to change into stress and anxiety due to statements and actions taken by President Trump and those that seem to be blindly following his agenda. Initially, it was the attempt to stop Federal funding that was a threat to the continuation of our services which caused intense fear and worry with many of our parents, guardians, and families. There was a short reprieve as that executive order was rescinded, only to be followed by the next gut punch in the form of a bill that would cut $880 billion in Medicaid funding, which is the main source of financial backing for disability services in Illinois and throughout the country. It has become the highest priority for all of us to communicate to state and U.S. legislators the unfathomable negative ramifications of this bill becoming law! Some of my colleagues and I are traveling to Washington D.C. next week to share our collective stories with as many congresspeople as possible. Inside the March/April special issue of The Leaflet are some heartfelt reflections by persons whose lives are uplifted daily by the services we provide. I hope you will take a few minutes to reflect on the stories they share. May you be safe, and LOUD!

Across the many neighborhoods that make up the metropolitan Chicago area, people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) rely on an array of support services to live, work and thrive. Nationally, 69% of the community providers that deliver these services are turning away new referrals while 39% are discontinuing existing services because they lack the funding needed to recruit and retain qualified workers. This puts access to services in jeopardy at a time when nearly 512,000 disabled Americans are languishing on their states’ waiting lists. Now, another crisis looms. Community-based services are almost exclusively funded by Medicaid, and in Congress, the House recently approved a budget resolution directing the committee that oversees Medicaid to slash $880 billion in spending. Such a drastic cut will all but dismantle the federal Medicaid program, leaving hundreds of thousands more Americans without the services they need. As a provider of these services, I know firsthand that every community, including this wonderful city of Chicago, is better when it includes everyone— regardless of their disability. If Senators Durbin and Duckworth and Representative Casten agree that our community is stronger when it includes people with disabilities, then they must reject any proposals to cut funding from the federal Medicaid program. Sincerely, Gerry