Easterseals serving Chicagoland and Rockford

11/09/2026

At The Happy Apple Pie Shop, people of all abilities work side by side, gaining meaningful, hands-on experience in culinary arts, customer service, and business operations while contributing their talents to the bakery and community our customers know and love.

From preparing and baking pies to serving customers and supporting day-to-day operations, team members have opportunities to build workplace skills, grow in confidence, and become more independent.

And every customer becomes part of that impact. When you stop in for a slice, bring home a handcrafted pie, or order something special for a celebration, you’re supporting an inclusive workplace where people of all abilities have opportunities to learn, work, and grow.

This Thanksgiving, celebrate inclusion with something delicious. 🥧✨

Stop by the Happy Apple Pie Shop in Oak Park or place an order and help create meaningful opportunities—one pie at a time.

🔗 Learn more & shop: https://happyapplepie.com/

11/08/2026

Parents are a child’s first and most important teachers. 🧡

On Parents as Teachers Day, we celebrate the home visitors, parent educators, doulas, and early childhood champions who help families feel seen, supported, and strengthened from the very beginning.

Our Teen Family Support program uses the evidence-based Parents as Teachers model to walk alongside young families from pregnancy through the early years. Through relationship-based home visiting, parent education, developmental screenings, family-led goal setting, and connections to resources, our team helps parents build confidence while supporting their child’s healthy development.

It’s a model grounded in evidence, but powered by relationships. And it reflects something we believe deeply at Easterseals: when we strengthen families, we help give every child the strongest possible start.

Today, we celebrate everyone doing this important work, and every parent growing and learning alongside their child.

11/07/2026

180 shirts, one big team, and a whole lot of impact behind the scenes. 👕🧡

HB Threads Associates Carter Sanders and Rachel Gibson have been hard at work producing 180 long-sleeve T-shirts for today’s Easterseals Chicago & Rockford Regions employee outing at Kings Dining & Entertainment. The shirts will help our team show their Easterseals spirit as employees come together for an afternoon of bowling, games, food, and connection.

This is what HB Threads is all about: producing high-quality custom apparel while creating meaningful employment opportunities for people with disabilities.

Planning your own employee outing, team-building event, or company celebration? Let HB Threads outfit your team! Reach out to us for custom T-shirts, apparel, and more.

11/07/2026

Please join us next Friday, November 13th, as we come together on World Kindness Day to promote inclusion and bullying prevention.

Stop by Hyundai on Perryville from 2:00–5:00 p.m. to connect with local community partners, discover helpful resources, and receive an Autism Bullying Prevention Toolkit.

A special thank you to our mission partner Hyundai on Perryville for hosting and helping us spread kindness throughout our communities!

📍 343 N. Perryville Road, Rockford, IL
📧 To learn more and register, email: [email protected]

11/07/2026

Thanksgiving is just around the corner, and The Happy Apple Pie Shop is now taking orders!

This year’s Thanksgiving menu includes Signature Apple, Pumpkin, Pecan, Chocolate Chess, and Sweet Potato pies, all handcrafted with care.

And when you order from The Happy Apple, you’re serving up more than a delicious dessert. As a social enterprise of Easterseals Chicago & Rockford Regions, The Happy Apple creates meaningful employment opportunities for adults with disabilities, making every pie a way to create more opportunity in our community.

Ready to reserve your pies? Place your Thanksgiving pie order now!https://ow.ly/cPUb5104Ks5

An Easterseals affiliate transforming lives since 1936 through educational, developmental, family & community support. Serving 20,000 families each year with early learning & disability services in the Chicago and Rockford regions.

11/06/2026

Today marks 90 years of Easterseals Chicago & Rockford Regions! 🧡🎉

We’re still smiling from the wonderful evening we shared with so many members of our Easterseals community as we gathered to celebrate this incredible milestone.

A heartfelt thank you to our Board members, Associate Board members, Easterseals Chicago & Rockford Regions families, friends, and supporters who joined us. Having so many people who believe in our mission together in one room made the evening especially meaningful.

This milestone anniversary is more than a look back. It is a celebration of every child who found their voice, every family who received support when they needed it most, every adult who gained new opportunities, and every donor who helped make that possible.

For 90 years, Easterseals Chicago & Rockford Regions has been embracing abilities and expanding possibilities, and we are so grateful to everyone who has been part of our story.

Here’s to 90 years of impact, community, and possibility—and to all that lies ahead. 🧡

11/06/2026

Today marks our 90th anniversary. Since 1936, Easterseals Chicago & Rockford Regions has expanded possibilities for children and families of all abilities.

As we celebrate this milestone, we are honoring the children who found their voice, the families who received support when they needed it most, the adults with disabilities who gained meaningful employment opportunities, and the supporters who made it all possible.

A gift of $90 in honor of 90 years will help us continue expanding access to critical services for children and families across our communities while investing in what comes next.

Celebrate with us by watching our 90th anniversary video and making a donation today.

🎥 Watch the Video: https://ow.ly/30v75102JYB

💙 Invest in the Next 90 Years: https://ow.ly/1g9E5102JYF

An Easterseals affiliate transforming lives since 1936 through educational, developmental, family & community support. Serving 20,000 families each year with early learning & disability services in the Chicago and Rockford regions.

11/05/2026

🎙️ Want to learn more about the work Easterseals Chicago & Rockford Regions is doing in our community and how you can be part of it?

Tune in to The Incrowd815 Podcast to hear from Lori Davie, Program Manager of The Autism Program at Easterseals, as she shares more about her work, the impact of Easterseals across our region, and ways our community can get involved.

It’s a great opportunity to get to know the people behind our mission and learn more about how we're working to embrace abilities and expand possibilities for people with disabilities and their families.

💙 Give it a listen, share it with a friend, and discover more ways to get involved with Easterseals Chicago & Rockford Regions!

🎧 Listen to the podcast episode on Spotify: https://ow.ly/rwNM5102JWn

"You change the world when you help 1 person! Be a blessing to someONE today." +GES GUESTS: UNITED WAY OF ROCK RIVER VALLEY - Dan Berman - Youth Literacy Manager Chair of the Northern Illinois Chapter of ILAEYC (Illinois Association for the Education of Young Children) https://www.unitedwayrrv.org/....

11/04/2026

💙 Keep dreaming big, Rockford!

We loved seeing this story about Tyler White’s visit to Rockford and the “Dream Big” message that caught his attention while in town for this year’s Flannel Jam, benefiting The Autism Program at Easterseals Chicago & Rockford Regions and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

Tyler White from Netflix's Love on the Spectrum shared words of encouragement about dreaming big, persevering, and surrounding yourself with good people. It’s a message that resonates deeply with us and our belief in creating a community where people of all abilities can pursue their goals and possibilities.

A special thank you to our Mission Partners Townsquare Media and LawnCare by Walter, Inc. for helping make Flannel Jam possible and for their continued support of Easterseals Chicago & Rockford Regions. And thank you again, Tyler, for being part of such a special night in Rockford and reminding all of us to dream big! 💙

👉 Read the Q98.5 story: https://ow.ly/aIfU5102JRH

11/03/2026

Everyone deserves the opportunity to build a career, contribute their talents, and find meaningful work.

For people with disabilities, the right resources and accommodations can help turn opportunity into reality. Employment is about more than earning a paycheck: it can bring independence, confidence, and a sense of purpose.

Our HB Threads team provides employment and job-training opportunities that help people with disabilities build skills and achieve their goals, because opportunity is for everyone.

Learn the facts and check out our "opportunity is for everyone" design: https://hq.easterseals.com/KnowTheFactsCampaign