Month: October 2017

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: LIFEDesigns holds T-Shirt contest for their annual Week of Chocolate.

Every February LIFEDesigns hosts a community-wide festival for all of Bloomington known as The Week of Chocolate. The Week of Chocolate gives local nonprofit organizations an opportunity to spread awareness about their causes while also bringing the community together with a sweet touch of chocolate.

This year, LIFEDesigns will be printing and selling t-shirts as a part of the Week of Chocolate. Since the Week of Chocolate is a community event, we want the whole community to be involved. We are holding a t-shirt contest open to all artists in the community, including students. The design should be focused on The Week of Chocolate but the artist can add their creativity to make it unique and their own design. The juried winning design will be featured on the front of all t-shirts, celebrating our signature events.

The artistic designs need to be one color and can take up the entire front of the shirt. The size will generally be a printable area of 10” w x 12” h.  The winning design will feature the artist’s name and signature and will receive a prize of $100 in the form of a Visa cash card as well as a free t-shirt with their design. Artist’s can submit their entries via email to art@lifedesignsinc.org by midnight, December 5, 2017. All designs should be submitted as a high resolution PDF. The artist should also include their name, phone, mailing address, and a brief explanation about how their design best represents “The Week of Chocolate” and LIFEDesigns.

About LIFEDesigns: LIFEDesigns believes that everyone deserves a home, job among their peers, and access to the community they live in. Everyone has abilities and deserves the opportunity to be valued for their contributions. Everyone deserves the opportunity to meet and make friends and to live in a diverse and welcoming community. The agency exists to provide the support and opportunities that people with disabilities need to achieve their goals. LIFEDesigns is a United Way Member Agency in Bartholomew, Lawrence, and Monroe Counties.

Contact: Stephanie Shelton, CDO (800) 875-9615 | sshelton@lifedesignsinc.org

LIFEDesigns extends a warm welcome to Russell Bonanno to fill the role of CEO as Susan Rinne retires November 11, 2017. LIFEDesigns’ Board invites the community to share this warm welcome with Russell as he becomes acquainted with Bloomington, IN.

Susan Rinne, LIFEDesigns CEO for the last 18 years, is a community leader who has dedicated her career towards righting social injustices specifically for people with disabilities. She has not only improved the lives of people with disabilities and made LIFEDesigns one of the most well-respected, successful non-profit agencies supporting people with disabilities in the state, but also made the entire community a better and more welcoming place. As she leaves, and Russell takes on this new role, he will provide the leadership that LIFEDesigns needs as the agency continually strives to improve services and community opportunities for people with disabilities. Russell states, “For more than 30 years, LIFEDesigns has provided innovative, community-based services designed in partnership with their customers and in collaboration with community members. It is an honor to be able to work with such a forward thinking Board and dedicated staff to continue and expand upon this history.”

Russell comes to LIFEDesigns from his most recent roles: Director of The Autism Program of Illinois, and non-profit consultant. Much of Russell’s background includes experience with policy and advocacy. He also has a strong background in marketing and program evaluation. He has been a member of the Illinois Autism Task Force, the Governor’s Health Care Reform Implementation Workgroup on Workforce Development, The Arc of Illinois, and the Illinois Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics conference committees. He has experience in securing two federal grants to improve libraries accessibility to and services for individuals with autism and their families.

Vonnie Peischl, LIFEDesigns Board Chair states, “The Board is very happy that Russell Bonanno has accepted the CEO position at LIFEDesigns. We believe with his interdisciplinary background, along with his commitment to supporting people with disabilities to be independent in their communities, he is an excellent choice to lead our agency in the coming years.” There will be more information to come and a welcoming reception in the coming months. At this time we want to thank Susan Rinne for her leadership, and extend our hands to Russell as takes on the role of CEO and leads LIFEDesigns into the next phase of our journey to build inclusive communities.

About LIFEDesigns: LIFEDesigns believes that everyone deserves a home, job among their peers, and access to the community they live in. Everyone has abilities and deserves the opportunity to be valued for their contributions. Everyone deserves the opportunity to meet and make friends and to live in a diverse and welcoming community. The agency exists to provide the support and opportunities that people with disabilities need to achieve their goals. LIFEDesigns is a United Way Member Agency in Bartholomew, Lawrence, and Monroe Counties.