Haley's Playground
Donation protected
Haley’s Playground
Haley’s Playground provides a fun, gym- like atmosphere for children and young adults with special needs, providing a safe environment specially tailored to their needs and one-to-one interaction with our volunteer mentors.
We also provide education and support for parents and families to help them address the challenges individuals with disabilities and their loved ones face every day.
Our organization is named for Haley, the nine year old daughter of our founder Jackie Olson, who was diagnosed with Autism as well as Sensory and Seizure disorders. Haley’s Playground is dedicated to helping those with a variety of issues such as Autism, Down’s Syndrome, ADHD, Cerebral Palsy, Anxiety disorder, Developmental delays and Speech disorders just to name a few.
We provide a safe and healthy sensory recreational play service that lets individuals with special needs explore their bodies and stimulate their sensory systems through movement, touch, smell, vision and hearing, adapting each to individual need. We provide swings, tunnels, floor spinners, bounce houses, dress up costumes, balance beams, a climbing wall, musical instruments and microphones, and so much more to promote active play skills and social interaction. We also provide a quiet zone for those who become over stimulated and need a break.
We believe inclusion is fundamental in our program. Pairing typical kids and young adults with children and teens that have special needs promotes acceptance and understanding. We have found that learning through inclusion is reciprocal, bringing benefits and important lessons to both the typically and differently abled. We also maintain a safe place for all with the help of our teen and young adult mentors (volunteers) who are paired with our participants. These mentors make a difference in these children’s lives while earning community service hours. Our facilities equipment and training is used to get these kids socializing and create relationships. For our teen group we have a variety of fun age appropriate games like fuge ball, air hockey, pool table, ping-pong table and full size video arcades.
In addition to our open play and teen program we also provide a resource center for families, support groups and internships for those studying to be special educators. We offer vocational opportunities for teens and young adults, custom birthday parties for kids and their families with special needs, family soccer, summer camp, and dance classes just to name a few of our many programs. Our volunteer program provides a benefit to the entire community by introducing people to both the joys and challenges of special needs individuals as well as teaching tolerance and compassion for those who behave differently or have unique needs.
Donations for Haley’s Playground will go to support our on-going mission of providing a fun, safe place to play, our work with families of special needs children and young adults, and to help us complete renovations of our new facility that will allow us to increase both the frequency and depth of our programs. In the near future we would like to expand and provide life skills classes, gymnastics, cooking, arts and crafts, cheerleading tutoring and an after school program including a handicap accessible bus to transport our kids to our facility or out into the community. We are a registered Illinois 501c3 non-profit charitable organization meaning all donations are tax deductible.
As the state of Illinois cuts more and more programs, our role to support those in our community with special needs and their families will increase. With your donation, you can help us serve the kids and families who need the support and the fun they deserve as well as provide necessary services for their families. Please help us continue to make Haley’s Playground a valuable resource in our community.
http://www.haleysplayground.com/
Haley’s Playground provides a fun, gym- like atmosphere for children and young adults with special needs, providing a safe environment specially tailored to their needs and one-to-one interaction with our volunteer mentors.
We also provide education and support for parents and families to help them address the challenges individuals with disabilities and their loved ones face every day.
Our organization is named for Haley, the nine year old daughter of our founder Jackie Olson, who was diagnosed with Autism as well as Sensory and Seizure disorders. Haley’s Playground is dedicated to helping those with a variety of issues such as Autism, Down’s Syndrome, ADHD, Cerebral Palsy, Anxiety disorder, Developmental delays and Speech disorders just to name a few.
We provide a safe and healthy sensory recreational play service that lets individuals with special needs explore their bodies and stimulate their sensory systems through movement, touch, smell, vision and hearing, adapting each to individual need. We provide swings, tunnels, floor spinners, bounce houses, dress up costumes, balance beams, a climbing wall, musical instruments and microphones, and so much more to promote active play skills and social interaction. We also provide a quiet zone for those who become over stimulated and need a break.
We believe inclusion is fundamental in our program. Pairing typical kids and young adults with children and teens that have special needs promotes acceptance and understanding. We have found that learning through inclusion is reciprocal, bringing benefits and important lessons to both the typically and differently abled. We also maintain a safe place for all with the help of our teen and young adult mentors (volunteers) who are paired with our participants. These mentors make a difference in these children’s lives while earning community service hours. Our facilities equipment and training is used to get these kids socializing and create relationships. For our teen group we have a variety of fun age appropriate games like fuge ball, air hockey, pool table, ping-pong table and full size video arcades.
In addition to our open play and teen program we also provide a resource center for families, support groups and internships for those studying to be special educators. We offer vocational opportunities for teens and young adults, custom birthday parties for kids and their families with special needs, family soccer, summer camp, and dance classes just to name a few of our many programs. Our volunteer program provides a benefit to the entire community by introducing people to both the joys and challenges of special needs individuals as well as teaching tolerance and compassion for those who behave differently or have unique needs.
Donations for Haley’s Playground will go to support our on-going mission of providing a fun, safe place to play, our work with families of special needs children and young adults, and to help us complete renovations of our new facility that will allow us to increase both the frequency and depth of our programs. In the near future we would like to expand and provide life skills classes, gymnastics, cooking, arts and crafts, cheerleading tutoring and an after school program including a handicap accessible bus to transport our kids to our facility or out into the community. We are a registered Illinois 501c3 non-profit charitable organization meaning all donations are tax deductible.
As the state of Illinois cuts more and more programs, our role to support those in our community with special needs and their families will increase. With your donation, you can help us serve the kids and families who need the support and the fun they deserve as well as provide necessary services for their families. Please help us continue to make Haley’s Playground a valuable resource in our community.
http://www.haleysplayground.com/
Organizer and beneficiary
Aneta Cop
Organizer
Aurora, IL
Jackie Olson
Beneficiary
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