Northern Suburban Special Recreation Association (NSSRA)

This month, NSSRA is highlighting the Inclusion Support Team. Throughout the summer, the team has worked incredibly hard at NSSRA’s partner agencies and has been at camps almost daily. The Team has worked closely with the Partner Agencies to make program adaptations, assist participants, and ensure that camp is an excellent experience for everyone! Daniel Galis Sam Greenfield Kate Clemenz Bella Troglia Maddie Sell Abby Anderson Brady Clark Thank you for a great summer!

Congratulations, Nadia, for earning our Inclusion Companion of the Week! Since her first day, Nadia has received recognition from the park district for being a stellar staff member. She will always go above and beyond to ensure her participants are having a successful time at camp, but she is also willing to lend a hand in helping out with other campers. Nadia brings a positive attitude to work daily and is enthusiastic about accepting new challenges. Thank you, Nadia, for all your hard work! We appreciate everything you have done to help us have a successful summer!

Congratulations, Katie, for being our Inclusion Companion of the week! Katie has been doing an amazing job this summer supporting her participant. She comes to camp every day ready to create a successful and inclusive environment to ensure her participant has an amazing summer. Katie is always willing to lend a hand to other campers and staff and has had outstanding communication from day one. We are so lucky to have her on our team; camp wouldn’t be the same without her! 

We are WILD about camp and fantastic staff! Adventure Seekers Nikki R. talks about her experiences with NSSRA and how they have helped prepare her for her future explorations. 

Celebrating Northern Suburban Special Recreation Association (NSSRA): Enriching Lives Through Recreation At the Helping Hands Network, we’re thrilled to spotlight one of our six incredible beneficiaries: the Northern Suburban Special Recreation Association (NSSRA) What is NSSRA? NSSRA is a beacon of inclusion, dedicated to enriching the lives of individuals with disabilities in our partner communities. Through quality recreation services, they empower children, teens, and adults to thrive, connect, and experience joy. Why We Support NSSRA Innovation: NSSRA leads the way in recreation, providing exceptional services that inspire and uplift. Community: Their programs foster connections, friendships, and a sense of belonging. Impact: NSSRA changes lives, one activity at a time. Join us in celebrating NSSRA’s unwavering commitment to inclusion! #NSSRA #InclusionMatters #HelpingHandsNetwork #hhngolf #hhngolfgames #specialneeds #inclusion #autismawareness #golfouting #charityevent #chicagononprofit #InclusionInspires #ChangingLives To learn more about NSSRA, visit https://www.nssra.org/

Congratulations to Daniel on being chosen as NSSRA's Camp Staff of the Week. 🌟 He has been nominated by three different staff for all of his hard work. Daniel is brand new to the field and fully embraces therapeutic recreation. He has had to change camp locations and camper groupings and work with new people he's never met without missing a beat.👏 Daniel is willing to learn and implement new skills every day, which has been very helpful for our campers. (He also rides his bike 45 minutes each way to work each day!) His dedication to his camp is second to none. We are grateful to have staff like Daniel on our team.

Congratulations, Purnima, our Inclusion Companion of the week! Purnima has worked amazingly with her companion at Kal Kids in Northbrook! She brings a positive attitude to camp daily and is a team player for the other counselors. This is Purnima's third year at NSSRA, and we appreciate your commitment to the participants. We look forward to your continued growth in this position! 

Congratulations to our Camp Staff of the week, Cynthia! Cynthia is amazingly flexible and always willing to help! She brings her expertise to everything she does and has backups on backups ready if there are better ideas than the first idea! She is so caring and brings items from home if it would make any camper happy! 

Congratulations to Stephanie for being this week’s Companion of the Week. Stephanie continuously drives to form meaningful relationships with her participants and assist them in developing relationships with others. She remains calm and patient in difficult situations and works hard to get to know her participants as individuals and what works best for them. She always has a smile on her face and has made this first week of camp full of laughter and fun. Thank you, Stephanie!

Congratulations to Hadley, a New Trier Trailblazers camp counselor, on her amazing summer work! 👏 She brings the energy to camp, keeping her campers engaged and safe and making adaptations on the fly to keep everyone included in each activity! Way to go, Hadley! 😊