Leigh Ann

I began my career in independent living in 1993 at just 23 years old when I was hired as an Independent Living Coordinator for Disability Resource Center (DRC) in Joliet, IL. Having multiple disabilities myself as well as “growing up” and being involved during a pivotal time in the IL movement, I know first-hand the importance of consumer control and living independently in the community. After working for 7 years as an IL Coordinator, I took the position of Program Manager, which I held until July of 2004. After that, I moved into the position of Executive Director of AIM-CIL (f.k.a. DuPage Center for Independent Living). Over the years we’ve seen many changes, including shifts in funding, change in physical locations, a name change, expansion of service area as well as expansion of services.  Although, now most of my time is spent on administrative tasks such as grants, reporting etc., I still love the programmatic side of things and direct services. 

In my free time, I enjoy spending time with my family and friends; my husband and I enjoy camping and outdoor activities with our kids & grandkids.  We also love spending time with our pets, and traveling.