I am ecstatic to have the opportunity to not only run the New York City Marathon (a long-time dream of mine), but to use my love of running to raise awareness and funds for families served by Easter Seals. Easter Seals is a pediatric outpatient rehabilitation clinic that provides therapy services for children with disabilities. I'm running this race as a member of Team Believe, a running team that was created to raise money for Easter Seals as well as to increase awareness about the services we provide for individuals with disabilities.
I have had the honor and privilege of working as a Speech-Language Pathologist for Easter Seals of Central Illinois since 2007. Working as an SLP at Easter Seals was my first job after I completed my master's degree. While I interviewed with and was offered positions with a number of different organizations in my area, Easter Seals' mission drew me in: "Easter Seals provides exceptional services to ensure that people with disabilities and their families have equal opportunity to live, learn, work and play in their communities." Since joining hands with others at Easter Seals, I have had the honor of watching this mission be lived out day in and day out.
Therapists at Easter Seals provide therapy services (speech therapy, physical therapy, occupational therapy, feeding therapy, developmental therapy, behavioral therapy...and more!) to help children reach their full potential. Skills such as walking, playing with toys and talking are things that many of us take for granted. However, these skills must be explicitly taught to some children through skilled therapy services.
One of my favorite parts of working for this organization is the fact that Easter Seals prioritizes families and their needs and dreams for their children. Parents and other family members are encouraged to be active team members in their child's therapy and therapists work alongside families to coach them in ways to help their children. We've seen that when families take an active role in their child's therapy, the progress can be even greater.
Take a few minutes and watch these videos created over the past year that highlight a few of our Easter Seals kids who have reached some really exciting milestones (and have a tissue handy!):
Easter Seals of Peoria Milestones Video
Easter Seals of Bloomington Milestones Video
I've committed to raising $5,000 (plus!) between now and the end of October 2013. This is a HUGE, lofty goal and as of today I am almost halfway there! I still have a long way to go, which means lots of work on my part...but this is nothing compared to the work and dedication the children and families I work with at Easter Seals have to put forth to meet their milestones.
I am amazed by the ways in which hobbies such as marathoning can turn into much more than a hobby...and into a vehicle to raise money and awareness for a wide variety of organizations, as well as a way to enrich lives and form relationships that may have not been formed otherwise. The money raised by Team Believe through our participation in the 2013 NYC Marathon will help provide therapy services for children whose families don't have the financial means to pay for all of the therapies needed to help them reach their full potential.
Your donation is much appreciated by me, but more importantly by the kids and families served at Easter Seals. Gifts of any size will help me meet my fundraising goal and will help children reach exciting milestones in their lives.
Click on the link to go to my secure First Giving fundraising page:
Rachel's Marathon for Easter Seals
If you'd rather mail a check, you may send it to:
Team Believe/Run Rachel Run
Easter Seals of Bloomington
2404 East Empire
Bloomington, IL 61704
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| Me with Matthew, an Easter Seals Ambassador child, pictured on a checklist of developmental milestones distributed in our community. Materials like this help families determine if they should pursue developmental screenings for their child. |
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| Me with Iris, an Easter Seals ambassador child, who I worked with for a number of years. This picture was taken at one of our Telethon events, held in March each year. Speech therapy helped Iris develop her communication skills so that she is better able to communicate with her family and classmates. |
THANK YOU for your support, on behalf of Matthew and Iris and all of the other Easter Seals kids!
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