History of DayOne PACT

DayOne PACT, formerly PACT, Inc. was founded as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization in 1981 by families who had relatives with disabilities.  Concerned about the future care of their loved ones, they established the agency to assure that there would be guardianship and related services available when they, as parents, were no longer able to function in that capacity. This service was initially provided in Chicago, but later services expanded to include the greater Chicagoland area.

PACT, Inc. and DayOne Network merged on January 1, 2016. DayOne Network, founded in 1989 was a "sister" agency to PACT, providing almost the exact services, just in a different location. Providing service coordination to children and adults with developmental disabilities, and their families, DayOne PACT will now provide services throughout DuPage, Kendall, and Kane counties, and in addition the Hanover Township of Cook County.

In the late 1980s, both former organizations began to provide an array of state-funded services known as independent service coordination for people with developmental disabilities.  These services focused on screening people with developmental disabilities to determine their eligibility for state funded services, helping them find an organization that could providing the services they needed and finally provide a long term oversight relationship with the individual to ensure their on-going satisfaction with the services they were receiving.

The early 1990’s saw the increased use of Special Needs Trusts by families as they sought to plan for the care of a child with disabilities. DayOne PACT’s leadership recognized this as another area where families would need assistance when they were no longer able to serve in the role of trustee. The need for this service has expanded our presence from the immediate Chicagoland area to a nationwide presence, and over 700 people have entrusted DayOne PACT to be the future trustee for their relative with a disability through the Life Management Services program.

In the late 1990's, both former organizations were awarded a Child & Family Connections state grant.  This program, serving children from 0 – 3 years of age, has become our largest program. We are serving over 6,000 children annually who have developmental disabilities or delays, linking them to needed services.

The addition of the Child & Family Connections program moved our agency into full life-span service coordination, an aspect of our mission that is of practical, ethical and philosophical importance.   What started as a small, parent initiated organization serving a few hundred people in Chicago over 30 years ago has grown into an organization serving more than 6,000 people annually here in Illinois and around the country.