Top Stories of 2015 — No. 2: Ambitious Partnership Brings Adult Autism Living Center to Kane County
- Editor’s Note: This is the ninth in a series counting down the top 10 most-read Kane County Connects stories of 2015.
No. 2: Giant Steps in Helping Adults With Autism
It is gratifying to know — and a credit to you, dear reader — that the second-most-read story on Kane County Connects this year didn’t have to do with a fiery explosion, devastating natural disaster, celebrity gossip or political controversy.
Instead, it was a story about an innovative, philanthropic effort to build a state-of-the-art independent living center for adults with autism — right here in Kane County, IL.
It’s called “Canopy,” and it’s not hyperbole to suggest that there might be nothing else exactly like it in the world.
Created by an ambitious partnership between Lisle-based Giant Steps and Sugar Grove philanthropist Jerry Rich, plans call for independent and supported-living arrangements to be built on the campus of Rich Harvest Farms, the ultra-exclusive golf course rated as one of the top 100 in the nation. The vision includes autism-specific living in two-, three- and four-bedroom cottages to support the residential needs of adults with autism.
Plans also include work settings that will allow adults with autism to gain lifelong work experience in a wide variety of environments — tending the horses at the stables, harvesting vegetables in the on-site garden, food service and hospitality opportunities, housekeeping, administrative office experience — all based on the adult’s individual strengths and interests.
The Kane County Connects story, posted in September and tallying 7,033 page views to date, contains details of the plan, startling statistics about the scope and challenges of adult autism nationwide and a sidebar about Rich’s friendship with Zach, a young adult with autism, and how that friendship led to the Canopy concept and the unique partnership with Giant Steps.
CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL GIANT STEPS STORY
About Giant Steps
Since 1996, Giant Steps has been committed to providing individuals with autism spectrum disorders, and their families, superior educational and therapeutic services focused on improving the quality of daily life from early childhood through adulthood. Giant Steps is a designated therapeutic day school in the State of Illinois – licensed and certified to exclusively serve students with a primary diagnosis of autism. The organization seeks to improve a child’s ability to interact, communicate, and develop academic and daily living skills through one-on-one integrated approaches. To learn more, visit www.mygiantsteps.org.
About Canopy at Rich Harvest Farms
Giant Steps, in partnership with Rich Harvest Farms, is pleased to introduce Canopy; an integrated community model offering unique work, social, recreational and living opportunities to engage adults with autism throughout their lifetime. Canopy was created to meet the enormous needs of adults living with autism who were no longer able to receive the services of the school system. This day program offers therapeutic supports in addition to life skills activities, vocational readiness programs, leisure or recreational skill development, music therapy, media integration and movement based sessions for adults over the age of 22.
About Rich Harvest Farms
Consistently ranked in Golf Digest’s America’s 100 Greatest Golf Courses, Rich Harvest Farms is an ultra-private, members-only club located in Sugar Grove, Illinois. Owned and built by Jerry Rich, the course consists of 18 holes and is a 1,820-acre showcase of nature and agriculture. The course is proud to host the 2016 LPGA UL International Crown (July 19-24) and 2017 NCAA Division I Golf Championships (May 18-31). In the past, the property has played host to the 2009 LPGA Solheim Cup and 2015 Palmer Cup & Western Amateur as well as many other youth an amateur golf events. For more information visit www.richharvestfarms.com and follow Rich Harvest Farms on Twitter – @RHFTournaments.
Top Stories of 2015 Countdown
- No. 10: Carpentersville ‘Building a Better Tomorrow … Today’
- No. 9: Missing Elgin Township Man Is Found, ‘Expected to Survive’
- No. 8: Nine Kane Private Schools Make Chicago Area’s Top 10
- No. 7: Trick or Treat!
- No. 6: Little Burlington’s Big Progress
- No. 5: Sheriff’s Office Seizes 157 Pounds of Marijuana
- No. 4: IDOT’s Diverging Diamond Interchange
- No. 3: Kane County Mourns Loss of Board Member Jesse Vazquez, 51
- Today: Giant Steps for Adult Autism and Rich Harvest Farms
