Aspire’s October Highlights!

We hope you’re enjoying this beautiful fall season as much as we are here at Aspire! The past months have been filled with lots of fun festivities and we are fully embracing the autumn weather. Now, as November unfolds, there’s still so much to appreciate and reflect upon.

To celebrate the wonderful and busy October we had, we’re excited to share some special updates and highlights from the past month here at Aspire:

Academy North Highlights:

The 1st POWER of Self-Advocates Meeting was held on October 4 at Academy North! Advocates from both Academy North and Academy South discussed the structure of the meetings going forward, elected officers and discussed Speak Up Speak Out 2024.

Aspire Self-Advocates participated in the virtual Speak Up Speak Out Summit on October 9-11; this year’s theme was Advocate’s Unite. Advocates expressed interest in learning about ABLE Accounts, and enjoyed the open mic opportunities and the dance party breaks.

Happy Halloween from everyone at Academy North! To celebrate the holiday, everyone dressed up in their favorite costumes and spent the day doing fun fall arts and crafts. A big thank you to everyone who helped to decorate the academy and get everyone into the holiday festivities!

Along with our friends from Academy South, small groups continue to visit The Ranch several times per month! While here, we are learning about coping and problem-solving skills which helps with everyone’s communication skills.

Academy South Highlights:

Trick or Treat! At Academy South, we hosted a fun and festive Halloween celebration! Everyone came dressed in their favorite costumes and enjoyed the festivities of the day.

We were so happy to return to Touch My Heart farm in Naperville to spend time with the therapy chickens! This is something that everyone always looks forward to and although it was a cold day, everyone’s spirits were warmed by engaging with the chickens.

To continue the Halloween celebrations, the Academy South dance team visited the Cosley Zoo for a Halloween themed dance performance! Everyone had such an amazing time and after the performance, we spent the afternoon walking around the zoo and visiting the different animals. And the best part? We were able to play with the pumpkins!