PLAINFIELD – Not all dragons attack with breaths of fire. In fact, most don’t.

 

They attack with shyness, anaphylaxis, impaired motor skills, disrupted sensory processing, speech impediments and even big ears.

 

Just ask Joseph Bauer of Frankfort, the DJ who tours with Stacey Glorioso, a Plainfield-based pediatric occupational therapist, as part of her “dragon crew.” Glorioso also is the author of “Joshua’s Dragon,” the story of an autistic boy who beats his fear of loud noises by pretending the fear is a dragon he’s slayed.

 

Bauer, who recently finished his tour with Atlantic Records for his album “Illuminate,” according to a news release, said other kids used to make fun of his oversized ears.

 

But Bauer, the person who creates the sound effects for interactive readings of “Joshua’s Dragon” at school assemblies and then talks to kids about conquering his own dragon, has stood that fear on its head.

 

“My dad always told me, ‘Tell them you can hear better than they can,’ ” Bauer said. “And now I actually work in audio.”

 

It’s that kind of attitude that inspired Glorioso to write “Joshua’s Dragon.”

 

Inspired by young heroes during her 16 years of practice, Glorioso said her young clients have constantly inspired her with their motivation and courage in the face of disabilities: the deaf child who learns to talk; the wheelchair-bound twins who learn to play basketball despite cerebral palsy.

 

Even Glorioso’s own son, Grant, 11, has a severe peanut allergy, which made him fearful of stepping away from Glorioso. But armed with knowledge of his condition, keen observation skills, common sense and an EpiPen, Grant has learned to face his dragon and live like other kids do.

 

But Glorioso didn’t write “Joshua’s Dragon” just for them, she said. She wrote it for everyone else, too.

 

“I always thought that with this push for inclusion, we just never got enough education on autism and cerebral palsy and Down syndrome,” Glorioso said. “And kids have to accept [kids with disabilities], not realizing the dragons these kids face each day.”

 

But the book is for more than showing elementary school children the difficulties kids with disabilities battle, such as navigating social situations and learning to walk, talk and eat. It’s to acknowledge them as heroes so even kids without disabilities can overcome their own Achilles heel.

 

“It’s really about recognizing that we are more similar than different,” Glorioso said.

 

Dragon tours

 

Glorioso released “Joshua’s Dragon” in August and began touring in October. A tour stop is a 45-minute upbeat school assembly, she said. Glorioso estimates that her tours – so far – have reached 10,000 children in preschool through sixth grade.

 

Sean Smith, principal at Grande Park Elementary School in Plainfield, said Glorioso’s presentation is the most inspiring he’s seen in the four years he’s been with the school. The kids were thoroughly engaged, he said, and they bought books.

 

“She really inspired the kids to do some self-reflection and to think about their own selves,” Smith said. “She gave them that extra boost and motivation to continue to work hard, and the message that hard work does pay off.”

 

Glorioso’s dragon presentation is part recorded reading, part music and part video of other dragon slayers. One video presenter is Alyssa Gialamas of Naperville, who was born with arthrogryposis, a disorder that affects the use of joints and muscles, according to the Team USA website.

 

Gialamas was selected to represent Team USA in swimming at the London 2012 Paralympic Games, where she came in fifth place, the website stated. Gialamas was happy to make the video.

 

“I really liked the story, and I really liked the underlying theme,” said Gialamas, now 20 and a communications major at the University of Maryland. “Everyone has dragons, but in order to conquer them, you have to go through stuff.”

 

Despite her upbeat and uplifting exhortations, and despite the life lessons Glorioso brings home to her own children – who include Genna, 9, and Griffin, 4 – Glorioso admits providing occupation therapy to youth with disabilities is not easy.

 

There are losses. Children pass away. Others don’t progress. Glorioso said she has one 8-year-old client she is simply maintaining. That’s not bad, of course, but Glorioso wishes she could do more.

 

“It’s an emotionally difficult field, I think,” Glorioso said of pediatric occupational therapy. “But I stay in because the kids are amazing. And no matter how hard the issues are they’re going through, they are always happy. It’s a hard thing to explain. They are happy and they don’t know anything different. And they do what they’re supposed to do, no complaining; they just do it. They’ve always been my inspiration. They’re just amazing kids.”

Become a dragon slayer: That’s the message local author Stacey Glorioso will have for students at Grande Park Elementary School Thursday.

 

Glorioso, a pediatric occupational therapist, will bring her “Dragon Crew” to a pep rally at the District 308 campus as part of her book tour for “Joshua’s Dragon.”

 

Published in August, “Joshua’s Dragon” tells the story of Joshua, a boy with autism who is looking forward to his class trip to the zoo. But the trip will require Joshua to confront his biggest fear: loud noises.

 

“Just because Joshua has autism, we’re not that different from him,” Glorioso said. “We all have issues that we have to overcome."

 

Glorioso said the book was inspired by her young clients, who are “dragon slayers” conquering their own challenges.

 

“I basically took all the life lessons from my kids and put them in one book,” Glorioso explained.

 

The pep rally isn’t about promoting the book, but about inspiring students to overcome their “dragons,” whether they struggle with shyness, an illness, disability or just the fear of not being accepted.

 

“Everyone has a dragon, and nobody is perfect,” Glorioso said. “It’s about becoming a dragon slayer, just like Joshua, and … accepting everybody for their differences. Everybody has the strength within to conquer their dragon.”

 

The upbeat Nov. 19 pep rally will feature live music from Frankfort musician Joseph Bauer, two DJs and four “dragon slayers,” including Alyssa Gialamas, who will tell their inspiring tales of overcoming challenges.

 

Alyssa was born with arthrogryposis, a condition that prevents joints from moving normally and sometimes causes them to become stuck in one position. Despite her challenges, Alyssa is now a Division 1 swimmer at Loyola University Maryland and has broken 15 American records in swimming. She plans to take part in the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio, Glorioso said.

 

Since late September, Glorioso has brought the motivational tour to more than 10,000 students at schools in Plainfield, Naperville, Aurora and Hinsdale.

 

More stops on the “Joshua’s Dragon” tour are scheduled throughout the country, Glorioso said.

Larkin High School's annual "Bring a Book to Life" program faces an exciting challenge this year.

 

For 16 years, the school's Visual and Performing Arts Academy has taken children's classics like "Peter Pan" or "Mary Poppins" and brought them to the stage with a dance adaptation.

 

But this week, the VPAA dancers will perform a new book that is unfamiliar to audiences -- and that tackles an important issue.

 

"Joshua's Dragon" is a picture book written by local pediatric occupational therapist and author Stacey Glorioso, and the tale follows a boy who works to slay his metaphorical dragon: autism.

 

Because the book is new to both the audience and the dancers, VPAA Co-directors Kelly Hill, Margaret Palmer and their students, have been able to use extra creativity in bringing "Joshua's Dragon" to the stage.

 

"We were really able to use our own imaginations," Hill said. "We were able to create dances around scenes depicted in the book that are part of Joshua's imagination.

 

"With more well-known stories, we typically have to present something more like a musical: you must stick to the story and music everyone knows," she adds. "With this, we got to find our own music that was the right to fit the mood, since so much of the story is really Joshua's feelings. Everything had to really hit home in our hearts."

 

Larkin's VPAA students have been practicing all year for this performance, which is a critical part of their grade. They will perform shows for the public at 7 p.m. Friday and 3 and 7 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 26-27, at the school.

 

Dancers will also perform private matinees for 1,400 elementary and middle school students from Elgin Area School District U-46 on Wednesday and Thursday.

 

For the student matinees, author Glorioso will attend and present a condensed version of her motivational pep rally, "Everyone Has a Dragon."

 

This rally aims to close the gap between children with disabilities and their typically developing peers. Glorioso and her "Dragon Crew" have been traveling throughout Illinois using multimedia to educate elementary students about autism and other disabilities -- and encouraging them to come up with a plan of attack against their own personal dragons.

 

"Her whole family has been involved in the creation of the book and it's so impressive," Palmer said. "Her young son did some voice overs for the pep rally, others contributed vocals to the songs, composed music or created artwork. Stacey has created something special and it's a great example of what you can accomplish when you are passionate about a cause."

 

Both Palmer and Hill say "Joshua's Dragon" will resonate with everyone, whether they are directly affected by autism or not. The book, they say, works around the concept that everyone has a dragon they must conquer in order live a full life.

 

"We were very touched by the story," Hill said. "We all have a challenge we must overcome. For Joshua, it's loud sounds. For others, it may be being shy or clumsy. But we can all conquer it if we believe in ourselves."

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