For the parents of a person with a disability, the question that weighs heavily on their minds is “Who will take care of our son or daughter with a disability when we are no longer able to do so, and where is the money going to come from?”

Did you know that the average cost to support a person with a disability is approximately $57,000/year in the community, $85,000/year in a nursing home, and $125,000/year in a state operated facility? These costs can wipe out a lifetime of savings in a short period of time unless you have done the necessary planning. Planning for the care of a person with a disability should be done with experienced advisors—including an attorney experienced in special needs estate planning. In most cases, a Special Needs Trust is an essential part of the plan. A properly drafted Special Needs Trust will allow your family member with a disability to become eligible for important governmental benefits or to preserve needed benefits that will help pay for some of the costs of care. 

The purpose of a Special Needs Trust is to manage your child’s financial resources while preserving eligibility for government benefits. Medicaid and other public benefits programs will not pay for everything your child might need. A Special Needs Trust can pay for medical and dental expenses, necessary or desirable equipment, training and education, insurance, transportation, and special foods that might not otherwise be available to your child without a Special Needs Trust. Although establishing a Special Needs Trust is important, it is equally important to make sure that the trust contains adequate financial resources. Through the use of a Special Needs Trust, the right kind of attorney and trustee, life insurance, annuities, and other financial tools, families can create the financial resources necessary to build the future they desire for their loved one with a disability.

Everyone Is Welcome, Inc. works with families nation-wide to navigate through the complexities of establishing and funding Supplemental Needs Trusts. Call for a free consultation appointment, and we will:

·       Explain the various types and how a Supplemental Needs Trust (SNT) work and can benefit your family;

·       Guide you in selecting the Supplemental Needs Trust (SNT) that best fits your family’s specific circumstances;

·       Assist you in connecting with an existing Supplemental Needs Trust that can serve as Trustee or enroll in one of their existing pooled Trusts if appropriate;

·       Assist you in connecting with an Elder Law/Estate Planning Attorneys that will draft individual Supplemental Needs Trust if appropriate;

·       Explore and determine the various sources available and tools needed to properly fund the Supplemental Needs Trust;

·       Suggest alternative strategies for funding a Supplemental Needs Trust;

·       Assist you selecting and securing the most appropriate financial tools to fund the Supplemental Needs Trust;

·       Assist you in connecting with an appropriate and reputable company to invest funded individual Supplemental Needs Trust funds.

 To schedule a free appointment, call 630-302-0970 or email EIWelcome@sbcglobal.net

Our goal is to educate and provide a way for families of individuals with disabilities and the elderly to have the financial resources necessary to care/support the current/future needs of their family member with a disability. One of the ways we accomplish our goal is to offer free presentations to parent groups and organizations.

Planning for How to Pay For Current and Future Care Needs.

Our presentations focus on how to bring the pieces together and make sure there are adequate financial resources to fund your loved one’s Special Needs Trust.

·       You will learn about the various types and how a Special Needs Trust work and can benefit your family.

·       You will learn how to navigate the complexities of establishing and funding a Special Needs Trust.

·       You will explore the various sources available and tools needed to properly fund a Special Needs Trust.

·       You will also find out the advantages and disadvantages of types of trust funding.

·       Finally, you will learn how to select or match the various sources to meet your family’s specific needs.

To schedule a free presentation, call 630-302-0970 or email EIWelcome@sbcglobal.net

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Our Advocacy Services

Our approach to advocacy had been and remains focused on the needs of the student. Our goal is to work with school personnel towards resolution of issues respecting the input of all participants. One advantage we offer over others that advocate, is the fact that we work in schools on an ongoing basis and know first hand what support structures are possible.

Our advocacy and consulting team provides customized services based on the needs of each family/school, recognizing that each family and school community is unique. We pride ourselves on the fact that we make a commitment to understand the needs of families and the culture of schools and provide advocacy/consulting services that are customized to each families/schools particular need.

Our professional advocacy services range from simple to very complex just as the needs of the students and families we support. Services have ranged from answering a few questions on the telephone to testifying in a due process hearing. We support students of all ages, abilities, and grade levels. Most of our clients are focused in the Chicago Metropolitan and Northern Indiana areas however we have and will travel to most locals to provide advocacy support. We are not bound by any geographic boundaries.

 The following are just some of the areas of advocacy we provide:

Meeting Attendance & Participation
Interpreting Evaluation & Educational Data
Individual Education Program (IEP) Process Support
Program Monitoring
Educational Program Assessment
Transition Planning
 Expert Witness Testimony 

 Meeting Attendance & Participation

© 2002 Michael F. Giangreco, Illustration by Kevin Ruelle
Peytral Publications, Inc. 952-949-8707 www.peytral.com

We attend any of the following types of meetings:

• Planning Meetings (formal and informal)
• Individual Education Program (IEP) Meetings
• Eligibility Determination Meetings
• Staffing Meetings
• Person-Centered Planning Meetings
• Team Meetings
• Transition Planning Meetings
• Mediation Meetings

Interpreting Evaluation & Educational Data

Testing and educational data plays a very large part in the development of a child's educational plan. Our advocate/consultants are familiar with common evaluation tools and are able to connect them to a particular child's educational needs in order to develop an appropriate plan. We have both the knowledge and experience to understand the different tests that schools use when conducting a case study evaluation. We are able to interpret the many reports and scores that are read and discussed during the IEP meetings. Deciphering basic educational evaluations and understanding what are the measures of intelligence result in effectively using the testing in preparing your child's education plan.

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 Individual Education Program (IEP) Process Support

A working knowledge of the basic rights under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) provide a framework for building an appropriate plan for any child. All protections and recourse for the child must be addressed in writing in the IEP. Our advocate/consultants can help construct an enforceable IEP that secures appropriate education for the child. We understand the IEP process and what all those boxes and check marks really mean. Therefore, we can explain to you the basic components/core elements in an IEP, the details of the evaluation and the various eligibility designations, and help identify the need for and various types of related services and appropriate accommodations and modifications for inclusion in your child's IEP.

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Program Monitoring

• The various models of support used to provide support to students with disabilities.
• The relationship of special education cooperatives and the school district.
• The players and the roles of teachers (general and special education) administrators, therapists (speech & language, physical, occupational), psychologists, school nurses, social workers, outside agencies and their relationship to students with challenges and their families.
• The make-up of collaborative teams.
• The building level and student level teams and their role in support of students with disabilities.

The knowledge and expertise of our advocate/consultants can assist you in monitoring your child's educational program. Our advocates/consultants can determine:

• Whether your child's IEP's is drafted properly.
• If your child is receiving the necessary and appropriate related support services.
• If your child is receiving necessary and appropriate curriculum modification and accommodations.
• If your child's IEP is being properly implemented.
• If your child's placement is in the Least Restrictive Environment.
  

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Educational Program Assessment

Our educational consultants are often requested by parents, schools, & attorneys to provide an educational program assessment. Reasons vary depending on who is making the request. Both parents and schools may what an objective observation of the child's educational day to learn what is working and if there is room for improvement. Attorneys may want to know similar information in order to prepare for a staffing, mediation or due process hearing.

Our educational consultants are familiar with the various specific disabilities and their impact on learning, access to curriculum and support. They know where to look and who to talk with in order to gather additional information or expertise with regards to a specific disability.

Our educational consultants are able to gathering information and decipher what the main issues are and the student needs. This process may often involve a review of basic documentation in a school file; parent, student, and other interviews; and direct observation of the student in their educational program to gain an understanding of the issues and their needs.

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Transition Planning

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 Expert Witness Testimony

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