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Great Lakes Adaptive Sports Association | GLASA

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Great Lakes Adaptive Sports Association (GLASA)

Great Lakes Adaptive Sports Association (GLASA) strives to ‘Let No One Sit on the Sidelines’ and operates under a mission to promote and support the optimal development and well-being of youth, adults and military veterans who have a physical or visual disability through the provision of inclusive recreation, fitness and competitive sports activities. GLASA offers opportunities for empowerment through education, leadership and training in collaboration with community-based organizations.

 

GLASA is still run by the same Executive Director, Cindy Housner, who founded the agency in 1999 in order to provide health and wellness programming to a segment of the population that was not being served in traditional physical activity and health promotion programs. Started with less than a dozen participants, GLASA now serves over 1100 individuals in Northern Illinois and Southern Wisconsin each year through direct programming. Over 3,000 youth and adults are also served each year through education and outreach initiatives. Educational clinics and elite level competitions bring in athletes, teams and families from around the country.

 

GLASA provides programming to individuals with physical and visual disabilities. Programming can be adapted to meet the needs of individuals who use manual or power wheelchairs, in addition to those with ambulatory disabilities. GLASA serves athletes who have disabilities such as:

-amputation

-cerebral palsy

-muscular dystrophy

-spinal cord injury

-spina bifida

-stroke

-visual impairment

 

GLASA believes that health is a lifelong pursuit and offers programs for individuals ages 6-60+. Specialized programming is offered to injured military veterans. Additionally, programming is offered without regard to socioeconomic status. No one is ever turned away due to an inability to pay. Recreational and competitive programs are available; no prior experience is necessary to join a GLASA program.

Activities

See All

Adaptive Shooting

Para Shooting has been part of the Paralympic Games since Toronto, Canada in 1976 and currently is being practiced in over 75 countries. Air Rifle and Pistol shooting is a test of skill and mental discipline, in which competitors use pneumatic rifles and pistols to fire a series of shots at a paper target. Competitions…

Archery

Archery is a versatile activity. It is something that can be done for fun, for hunting, or for competition. “Target shooting wasn’t a thing for me,” said US Para Archery Head Coach Jonathan Clemins. “But I realized I enjoyed shooting my bow as much as I enjoyed hunting.” In addition, archery can be a year-round…

Basketball

In the beginning you had to have a spinal cord injury in order to play wheelchair basketball. But that, much like the game itself, has come a long way since 1946. Today, in order to be eligible to play wheelchair basketball within the NWBA (National Wheelchair Basketball Association) a person must have a permanent lower…

Cycling

Rain, sleet, snow, or hail … it seems that no matter the weather, you can always see a cyclist biking for pleasure, on an errand, or keeping fit. The love of bike riding is rapidly growing across nearly every demographic. Cycling has always been a great way to enjoy the outdoors, socialize with fellow bikers,…

Equestrian/Horseback Riding

Horseback riding is naturally therapeutic. Whether they have physical, cognitive, sensory or emotional disabilities, participants benefit from riding or working with horses. Nicole Budden, Founder and Director of Happy Trails Riding Center   All About Equestrian Getting Started Equine-assisted therapy, hippotherapy, therapeutic riding…These are all terms that have specific definitions, but they share a common…

Football/Wheelchair Football

Goalball

You are on an indoor athletic court and you can’t see. It is quiet. Suddenly, you hear a ball, with three bells on the inside, coming at you at nearly 40 mph. Your teammates are relying on you to stop it from going into the net. That is the sport of goalball. “For any fan…

Golf

“That’s what makes golf so great. It’s a handicap system. If I’m playing against a guy who’s got all his limbs and he’s got a 14 handicap, I’ve got to give him seven strokes. Golf is such an equal game because of the handicap system. That’s what makes it fun for people everywhere to play.”…

Kayaking

When you go skiing, you need to find a mountain and cold weather. You don’t need anything special to start kayaking. Kayaking is just down the road. -Joe Mornini, Executive Director of Team River Runner   Getting Started Looking to spend a quiet afternoon enjoying the outdoors and scenery?  Perhaps you’re more of a thrill…

Martial Arts

Taekwondo Taekwondo is an ancient Korean martial art using dynamic movements including a variety of foot skills. The sport gets its name from the combination of three Korean words “Tae” meaning foot, “Kwon” meaning fist and “Do” meaning way or discipline. The combination provides the basis of the sport, which focuses on sparring techniques utilizing…

Powerlifting

You are lying on a bench. You reach up to grab the bar that is nestled on the rack. You bring the bar off the rack, descend it to your chest evenly and ascend it back up before putting the bar back in the rack. In essence, and in the simplest terms, that is the…

Sled Hockey

All About Sled Hockey Sled Hockey A Sport for All Abilities Sled hockey had its beginning in the early 1960s when some enterprising athletes at a physical rehabilitation center in Sweden wanted to play the game. The men modified a metal frame sled with two regular-sized ice hockey skate blades that allowed the puck to pass…

Soccer/Power Soccer

There is a rapidly growing adaptive sport that is changing the way people think of those using a power chair. That sport is power soccer. “It is not only changing the perception others have, but also how participants think of themselves,” said Jonathan Newman, the Adult Sports Coordinator at Bay Area Outreach and Recreation Program…

Swimming

Since the first Paralympic Games in Rome in 1960, swimming has been one of the Games’ main sports.   The thrill of competition aside, swimming offers many benefits including strengthening the cardiovascular systems and the major muscle groups of both the upper and lower body. It also develops flexibility in the muscles and joints as…

Tennis/Wheelchair Tennis

The people you meet through tennis are friendly, happy, optimistic and outgoing, They just want to have a good time and want others to have a good time. – Steve Kappes, Director of the San Diego Wounded Warrior Tennis Program and Director of Military Outreach for the San Diego District Tennis Association   All About…

Track and Field

Track and Field is the largest Olympic and Paralympic sport in terms of the number of athletes and number of classifications and categories. In addition to the races that take place on the track, there are a number of competitions that take place on the field inside the track. In particular, there are throwing and…

Water Skiing

Water Skiing 101 Ride the Wake! There is nothing like spending a warm summer day by the water. But water-skiers will tell you that even better is a day spent water skiing along on the surface of the water with the wind in their hair. Don’t think because you have a disability that you can’t…

Yoga

It is difficult to find balance without the ability to look inward, whether it is physical balance or balance in our daily lives. Starting the day healthfully can be as simple as breathing and stretching. An important component of a total fitness program is stretching. Add focused deep breathing to a stretch and you’ve entered…

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CONTACTS

Lake Forest IL 60045

LOCATION

Lake Forest IL 60045

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