Church concert benefits the work of the Little Angels home

Shelley Lewis' family has been helping children in need since she was 3 -- it's become something of a family tradition.

Her mother, Pat Wasmond, started Little Angels, an Elgin home for children with disabilities, in 1958.

Wasmond began by caring for children in her own home, with help from her husband and their 11 children.

"I joke all the time that I knew how to change diapers before I knew how to walk," said Lewis, who, as executive director, now oversees the 57-bed facility's patients and staff.

But even the most experienced helpers sometimes need a hand from the community.

With that in mind, Elgin's St. James A.M.E. Church will host its second annual Christmas concert Saturday. The program will include two choirs, solo singers and a dance troupe.

All proceeds will benefit Little Angels. Last year's concert raised about $3,000 for the home, which provides skilled care to children and young adults with such severe disabilities as cerebral palsy and traumatic brain injury.

The money pays for care and equipment for the home's patients, most of whom require expensive medical equipment and complex around-the-clock care.

"We are funded almost exclusively through the Medicaid program, which has been under a rate freeze for almost 15 years," Lewis said. "One of the biggest things that affects is medical equipment."

"It hurts our ability to afford, for instance, a cardio-respiratory monitor, which runs about $3,500," Lewis said.

"These aren't just things that are nice to have," Lewis explained. "These are necessities."

As such costs have risen and Medicaid rates have generally stayed the same, Little Angels has come to rely heavily on outside fundraising efforts.

The Little Angels Pledge Run, a yearly motorcycle ride, has raised more than $3 million for the home since 1988. Other funding comes from individual donations.

Little Angels' relationship with St. James started years ago, when the home rented space from the church for its developmental training program.

Although Little Angels got its own building for the program five years ago, the relationship has continued through fundraising and other assistance.

"They have such respect for human dignity and life," said the Rev. Francis Senyah, the church's pastor. "The work they do is amazing."

Regardless of funding problems, the home is a lifetime commitment for Lewis.

"I had 10 brothers and sisters," Lewis said, "and the children my mother cared for were all just part of the family."

"We started 50 years ago with only children," Lewis said, "and they've grown into adults."

"Our oldest resident is 52 now," Lewis said. "Some of our residents, I grew up with."

If you go

What: Concert to benefit Little Angels

When: 2 p.m. Saturday

Where: St. James A.M.E. Church, 1100 Summit St., Elgin

How much: Admission is a voluntary contribution for Little Angels

Info: For more details, call Billie Barnett, president of the church's Lydia Missionary Society, at (847) 695-0484.