Community-based recreation and volunteer activities beyond high school help involve your student in community life and bring a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment. Volunteering can be added to a resume, help your student gain experience and skills for careers he or she is interested in and can even lead to paying jobs. What clubs, groups, teams, volunteer opportunities & classes are young adults joining in your neighborhood?
Things to be done now:
- Take into account the kind of activities your student likes and their interests when looking for opportunities
- Look for community recreation and volunteer opportunities with your student
- Encourage your student to try new things and move on to something else if one activity wasn’t such a good fit
Resources:
Easy Access Chicago is a website run by Open Doors that has information for residents and visitors to the Chicago area. It includes a wide range of activities that are accessible for people with disabilities: www.Easyaccesschicago.org; Open Doors Organization 2551 N. Clark Street, Suite 301, Chicago, Il 60614, 773.388.8839; www.opendoorsnfp.org
Access Living is a nonresidential Center for Independent Living for people with all types of disabilities. Their programs and services promote the empowerment, independence and inclusion of people with all types of disabilities in every aspect of community life. Contact Access Living, 115 West Chicago Avenue, Chicago, IL 60654; www.accessliving.org; (800) 613-8549 toll free; (888) 253-7003 toll free tty; (312) 640-2101 fax
Chicago Cares provides opportunities for individuals and businesses to improve the Chicago community through participation in creative, structured group volunteer programs that address Chicago’s most pressing needs: www.chicagocares.org; 300 West Adams, Suite 300, Chicago, IL 60606 Phone: 312-780-0800; Fax: 312-780-0801
The Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities (MOPD) MOPD seeks to give students with disabilities the tools they need to gain future employment through a three-prong approach to career exploration, career development and paid summer internships: Contact MOPD at 311 (voice/TTY) or email carolyn.jones@cityofchicago.org.
VolunteerMatch.org is a website where you can enter the city you’d like to volunteer in and the type of volunteering you’d like to do, for example: ‘animals’; ‘mentor’; ‘environment’ and a list of volunteer opportunities and contact information is provided.
Commission on Volunteerism and Community Service in the State of Illinois (Americorps) National service program includes opportunities for people with disabilities to work in volunteer positions that have a stipend- (great for resumes and may lead to paid employment); Contact for Illinois: 535 W. Jefferson, 3rd Flr; Springfield, IL 62702; phone 800.592.9896; TTY: 217.557.4640; www.Serve.Illinois.gov