About us
Sally Soars
Margaret and Herman Schult didn’t know anything was wrong with their daughter Sally until she was two years old. The year was 1950 and after seeing a parade of doctors and specialists the diagnosis was made: Sally was born with a birth defect that had caused brain damage and mild retardation. She went to special education schools until she was 17, but it wasn’t until Sally exhibited behavior problems when she was 27 that her parents were told she needed to learn socialization skills and have some distance put between herself and her parents, her lone caretakers.
The Schult family found a place called Aspire. “We really didn’t want to put Sally in a home, but knew it was the best thing for all of us,” says Margaret, who along with her husband, is in her 80s. Sally was enrolled at Aspire on Eastern, our residential setting which provides 24-hour a day care for adults with moderate to profound disabilities.
Sally, now 59, did very well at the Eastern facility and lived there for 32 years. In 2002, she was able to move into an Aspire community home in Franklin Park. Aspire has several such homes sprinkled throughout the suburbs, which allow the residents to live in a house with other participants and learn living skills with the help of direct care staff who oversee the residents and their homes.
During the week, Sally works at Aspire Industries, our workshop which provides employment for individuals with disabilities that helps them acquire useful job skills, develop good work habits and complete work assignments. The jobs range from assembly work to packaging goods. And Sally is still able to visit her parents’ home on the weekend, something she and her parents look forward to.
“When Sally comes home she loves to go out to breakfast at our neighborhood restaurant,” says Margaret. “She’s made friends with all the waitresses and they like to give her special treats. She loves working on puzzles, writing letters, cutting out clothes from catalogs, and listening to records…and I do mean records. We have a record player and 33 1/3 records from the ‘50s and ‘60s, everything from classical to swing, and Sally loves to listen to that music.”
The Schult family says they have tremendous peace of mind knowing Sally will be taken care of when they are no longer around. “We feel secure knowing Aspire will take care of her and she won’t have to tolerate a life without proper care,” says Margaret. “It really has been a blessing for us. Sally loves her friends at Aspire.”