Heartland Community Church

Lighthouse Special Needs Ministry

Lighthouse is a ministry at Heartland Community Church that assists kids with special needs and their parents by providing transformational teaching worship and community to help them become fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ.

Lighthouse has a parent support group that meets the first Thursday of every month from 6:30-8:00 pm. Meet in Meeting Room A146. The group is comprised of parents of children with special needs and those who have a heart for them. This God-centered group is designed to allow parents to share ideas and resources, as well as pray for one another. Child care is provided (both for children with special needs and their siblings) so that parents are free to attend the group.

During weekend services, children with disabilities through 5th grade are encouraged to attend Heartland Kids classes alongside their peers. A 1:1 Friend is made available for children who need extra support to be able to participate. We have adopted a philosophy of inclusion, so we do our best to help kids succeed alongside their peers. Fidgets, picture communication, picture schedules, and child-specific toys are provided within each room when these are beneficial to the child. Lighthouse has a special needs activity room. The purpose of the room is to provide a place of temporary "escape" when needed. Eventually, it may also be used if there are children for whom inclusion is not an option. The room is equipped with "sensory" toys and other items that tend to be calming for the children. The room is also equipped with incandescent lighting that can be dimmed. 1:1 Friends are volunteers with a heart for children with special needs. Some of them have professional backgrounds, such as OT, PT, or special education, but many are people who just want to serve kids with special needs because they love and care about them.

We have added special needs training to our basic volunteer training (for all Heartland Kids volunteers). Soon we will begin monthly "Lighthouse" training, where we will delve into more specific topics of interest for our parents and volunteers such as communication, Autism, sign language, and other topics.

The church's web site is www.heartland.cc

Kirstina Chermak
Lighthouse Ministry Coordinator
Lighthouse@heartland.cc
815.395.8000 x1031

Paula Campbell
Leader/Coordinator Parent Support
Lighthouse@heartland.cc
815.395.8000 x1031
 

NOTE:  For Heartland to provide child care at the support group meetings, parents need to register ahead of time (typically one week ahead, if possible, but no later than the Friday before the meeting)

Click here for Heartland's KidCare Enrollment Form