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2025-03-19 - Commission for Residents with Disabilities - Minutes Page 1 of 4 1. Call to Order at 7:05pm 2. Roll Call a. Commissioners Present: Chair Judy Samuels, Vice Chair Marty Sussman Commissioners Mark Weiner, Lexi Robinson, Amy Parker, Beth Shapiro, Kate Jauregui, Jack Shapiro, Dean Klassman b. Commissioners Not Present: Commissioners Matthew Dragon, Leo Njongmeta, Allie Zalay, Avi Samuels, Gowri Magati, c. Staff Liaison Not Present: Tyler Ankney d. Trustee Liaison Present: Trustee Andy Stein 3. Approval of Minutes – February 26, 2025 a. Motion: Commissioner Lexi Robinson b. Second: Commissioner Mark Weiner c. In Favor: All Present d. Abstain: None e. Oppose: None f. Motion carries 4. Chair Report (Judy Samuels) a. It is Commissioner Matthew Dragon’s 5th anniversary! Congratulations! b. The next meeting of the RK-CRD will be Wednesday April 23, 2025. c. As the commission is expanding and including more activities and events, there will need to be a Lead and Vice-Lead for ALL RK-CRD events: Buddy Baseball League, Spring Fling, Bowling with Buddies, and Fun & Food. i. Buddy Baseball League – Lead = Commissioner Dean Klassman; Vice Lead = Commissioner Matthew Dragon (pending confirmation from Commissioner Dragon). ii. Spring Fling Dance – Lead = Commissioner Amy Park; Vice Lead = Commissioner Mark Weiner. iii. Bowling with Buddies – Lead = Commissioner Mark Weiner; Vice Lead = Commissioner Jack Shapiro. iv. Fun & Food – Lead = Commissioner Beth Shapiro; Vice Lead = Commissioner Kate Jauregui. d. Each event will need to include volunteer opportunity descriptions as well as sign-up Sheets for ALL events to track and monitor participation and volunteering. AGENDA Rick Kahen Commission for Residents with Disabilities Regular Meeting: March 19, 2025 at 7:00 p.m. Lower Level EOC Conference Room, Village Hall 50 Raupp Blvd, Buffalo Grove, IL 60089 Page 2 of 4 5. Trustee(s) Report (Andy Stein) a. Trustee Andy Stein is not seeking reelection and this is his last meeting as Liaison for the RK-CRD. Trustee Stein has been Trustee liaison for 10 out of 14 years serving as Trustee. Thank you, Trustee Stein for your dedication, support and commitment to the RK-CRD! 6. Staff Liaison Report (Tyler Ankney) a. None 7. Working Groups Report a. Ensuring Opportunities for Hands-on Fun (Commissioners Amy Parker and Mark Weiner) i. Spring Fling (May 17, 2025 from 3-5p) 1. Commissioners Amy Parker, Mark Weiner, and Kate Jauregui toured the venue and the space if very large and very nice. We will have 12 round tables that seat 6-7 participants. 2. There will be a quiet/sensory room hosted by In2Great that will include games, crafts, and regulation activities. They will also bring their elephant mascot. 3. Bagged snacks will be provided, such as goldfish, pretzels, apple sauce pouches. Commissioners Parker and Jauregui will also reach out to Dunkin Donuts and Commissioner Gowri Magati to see about donations of munchkins for participants to enjoy. 4. There will be 2 registration tables in the hallway outside the dance room and one entrance to the building will be open. 4 commissioners will need to run the registration table. Participants will receive a “Hello My Name Is…” nametag upon registration. 5. Commissioner Jauregui will inquire about a photographer for the event. The Rotary Club will be providing a photoboard like they did during Bowling with Buddies. 6. The dance theme will be “Glow Your Own Way” with neon lights, glow sticks, and a disco ball. 7. Commissioner Lexi Robinson’s husband, Brad, will be the volunteer DJ. 8. The registration form has already been created and shared with Staff Liaison Tyler Ankney to share with the Village Communication Team. The Village Communication team will send out a digital invitation the first week of April to our RK-CRD email listserv. 9. We are able to get into the room by 1pm on the day of the even (May 17th) to begin set-up. 10. There will be a 90 participant cap and all participants will bring one parent or guardian to chaperone. ii. Sponsorships 1. The working group has the sponsorship packet materials and will begin distributing them to collect sponsorship for upcoming events. Page 3 of 4 iii. Buddy Baseball Spring League (April 27 – June 9; Sundays at 9:45-11:30am) 1. Communication and registration information has been sent out by the Village Communication Team. 2. There are currently 11 players registered to play and 4 buddies. 3. A local Deerfield baseball team has donated funds and purchased new baseball bats and game balls for the season. They are also looking forward to being buddies at some of the games during the season. b. Advocating for Inclusion and Access (Lead: Vice Chair Marty Sussman) i. There are two facilities in Buffalo Grove that are extremely difficult for handicap or disabled residents to access because the handicap parking is far away from the entrances. Both facilities have closer parking spots that are closer to either employee parking lots or back door/employee entrances that would be more accessible to handicap or disabled residents if there were permitted to use those spaces/entrances. The facilities are not currently allowing for those closer spaces/entrances to be utilized by the public. Members of the Village team have met with representatives from the facilities who are claiming to be compliance with the Illinois code for accessible for parking. Accessibility to these facilities, especially given that both facilities include physical therapy centers, is of the utmost importance to the RK-CRD and the residents in the community. ii. Trustee Liaison Stein will reach out to the Village staff and Village president to inquire about the Village attorney reviewing the code and the parking lots to ensure compliance. iii. The Mariano’s parking lot is currently being redone as a result of the advocacy of Vice Chair Marty Sussman and the RK-CRD. iv. Staff Liaison Tyler Ankney is working to find out who from the Village will be the lead for monitoring parking lots and ensuring they are maintained and compliant with accessibility regulations throughout the Village. c. Trusted Resource for Accommodations and Services (Sharing of Best Practices and Developing a Resource Guide (Education) (Lead: Commissioner Allie Zalay) i. The working group is in the brainstorming phase of adding a list of potential subcategories to the RK-CRD website that will include resources for residents. Those draft subcategories include: Housing, Agencies, Youth Program, Therapy Centers, Parking Resources, etc. 8. Unfinished Business a. Volunteer / Internship (Commissioner Gowri Magati) i. Commissioner Gowri Magati was not present at the meeting but provided a powerpoint presentation for Commissioners to review regarding general information of a potential internship or expansion of volunteering opportunities. Commissioners should review the powerpoint prior to the April 23, 2025 RK-CRD meeting for further discussion. Page 4 of 4 9. New Business a. None 10. Good and Welfare 11. Public Comment 12. Adjournment at 8:22pm a. Motion: Vice Chair Marty Sussman b. Second: Commissioner Kate Jauregui c. In Favor: All present d. Abstain: None e. Opposed: None f. Motion carries Next Meeting: Wednesday April 23, 2025 The village of Buffalo Grove, in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, requests that persons with disabilities who require certain accommodations to allow them to observe and/or participate in this meeting or have questions about the accessibility of the meeting or facilities contact the ADA Coordinator at 847-459-2500 to allow the village to make reasonable accommodations for those persons.