Roszak/ADC
Center helps people with disabilities live as independently as possible
ABC
11/25/2007
Karen Meyer |
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Housing options for people with disabilities are available but in most cases help is needed. The Center for Independent Futures was established to help individuals with disabilities live as independently as possible.
Living independently means living in a community. Several months ago a young north suburban resident was able to move out of his family home and into a beautiful condo.
Like most 27-year-olds living on their own, David Graver likes his new environment. He lives in Evanston at the Sienna with his golden retriever, Oban.
"I like living here, you know, in a community within a community. So you know it's a lot of fun, and I'm very proud and pleased to actually be doing this, to be living on my own in a development like this," said Graver.
Finding housing that was affordable and accessible was not easy.
"David has a lot of needs. David is a little person, he is legally blind," said Jane Doyle, executive director of the Center for Independent Futures, a non-profit organization based in Evanston. "So with that come some physically disabilities as well as some cognitive disabilities."
In addition to working with families, the CIF also helps people find funding and developers who are willing to accommodate them.
"So we got to work with Tom Roszak and the general contractor to help create an accessible living space that would work with him," said Doyle.
David's condo has been customized to meet his needs.
"We did some modification in his bathroom. We did some modification kind of accessibility onto the patio, those types of things," said Roszak.
David is just one of several individuals that CIF has found housing in the Sienna.
"There's a community builder that lives in this building and he provides an emergency presence. He has condo association meetings with the Center of Independent Living on a weekly basis. They come together, they do some social activities, and this is such a great area, because it's all walking distance and public transportation," said Doyle.
David also receives on-going services from CIF.
"What they call PA that periodically comes in, and what they do, they help me with budgeting, cooking, whatever I need help with," David said.
With support from CIF and the developers of Sienna, people with disabilities have more housing options.
"I think it's great how the synergy between everybody, all the different people that live here, it just shows what a great community it is," Roszak said.
Most of the Center for Independent Futures housing options are on the North Side of Chicago.
www.independentfutures.com
www.siennaevanston.com |
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