With less than a week to go before massive cuts to services for children, the elderly and the disabled are supposed to go into effect, one local social service provider is sending out prayers for lawmakers to fix the state’s budget shortfall.

Cicero-based Seguin Services, which provides shelter, programming and jobs to hundreds of area children and adults with disabilities, could see as much as $7 million of its $23 million budget slashed come July 1, President John Voit said. In response, Seguin is organizing a six-day, 24-hour a day prayer vigil from 10 a.m. June 25 through midnight June 30.

Seguin staff and volunteers will be outside the group’s headquarters to hold a vigil throughout the day and spend the night in tents.

“This is a symbolic gesture,” Voit said. “The symbolism is the homelessness that could be affected here if the General Assembly does not come to an agreement.”

The country’s poor economy has already forced Seguin to cut 25 staff members and with nearly a third of its budget threatened, Voit said Seguin would have to reduce staff even further. The group provides year-round 24-hour care to adults and children with disabilities.

“We’re being jeopardized and challenged to the point where the staff we need will not be able to hired to provide the coverage we need,” he said.

Governor Pat Quinn has warned social service providers throughout Illinois to expect a reduction in funding unless state lawmakers reach a budget agreement by July 1, the beginning of the state’s fiscal year. The legislature had passed a preliminary budget just before adjourning for the summer.

The governor’s office has estimated the budget is $9 billion short, nearly one-third of the state’s $28 billion budget. Social services alone saw nearly a 50 percent reduction in funding, including a $2.2 billion decrease for the Department of Human Services, and a $460 million cut to the Department of Children and Family Services budget.

With possible budget reductions looming, social services agencies have said the cuts could dramatically impact thousands of programs, including shutting homes for the mentally ill, reducing funding for domestic violence and teen pregnancy prevention programs, and reducing payments to foster parents.

When the budget passed, lawmakers knew they would eventually have to come back to the negotiating table to fix the budget shortfall. But estimates of that shortfall have risen, and Quinn’s office said it would be irresponsible to continue spending under the assumption that lawmakers will approve measures to increase revenues, such as large tax hikes, at a later date.

And while lawmakers have since returned to the capitol for a special session to attempt to close the shortfall, Voit said Seguin is hoping lawmakers hear its prayers.

“This not a political event; this is not about who’s right or wrong,” Voit said. “Our interest is to bring awareness to the community and to hope and pray we can figure this out.”