Girl with Down syndrome wearing a purple GiGi's Playhouse t-shirt in front of a rack of quilts.

Playhouse Inspiration: Small Business, Big Heart

Liberty Green Quilt Shop, formerly known as JEllen's house of fabric, is an award-winning contemporary quilting boutique & “sewcial” lounge designed to tingle the heart and inspire your creative soul.  Liberty Green Quilt Shop is owned and operated by Joyce Ely, parent and strong advocate for her adult daughter, Sarah,...
two volunteers sitting next to Santa and using Christmas props

Volunteer Spotlight: Amy

Amy was instrumental in making our first-ever Snow Much Fun event a success! With her expertise and background in nonprofit fundraising, Amy was able to make our winter wonderland come to life. Amy was introduced to GiGi's Playhouse by her daughter, Serena, who is our current Literacy Coordinator. Amy came...

CDC Updates: January 2022

As things continue to be everchanging, we wanted to share the latest updates from the CDC so we can keep each other and our participants safe. Please make sure all guests are checking in to the iPad AND completing the health screening questionnaire at the front of the Playhouse each...
woman with blonde hair in front of a brick background

Volunteer Spotlight: Sam

Tell us a little bit about yourself. I’m a mom to an amazing little girl. I have worked in nonprofit focusing on deaf services for almost ten years. We want to get to know you! What are some of your favorites? (food, color, season, activity, restaurant, place to shop, etc.)...

2021 Gift Giving Guide

The holidays can be stressful, but we're here to help! Below are some gift-giving ideas for your friends and loved ones. Lock Laces Get your No-Tie Shoelaces Today! We are happy to announce the partnership between GiGi’s Playhouse and Lock Laces! Purchase your laces today and 25% of your order...
girl with blonde hair sitting in front of the GiGi's logo and wearing a blue GiGi's t-shirt

Volunteer Spotlight: Maddie

Tell us a little bit about yourself: I am currently attending the University of Toledo majoring in recreational therapy. I will be furthering my education in occupational therapy in the Fall of 2022. My passion for volunteering and working with individuals with disabilities has come natural to me due to...
boy with blond hair wearing a face mask and glasses holding a cactus

Best of All: Matt

Claire, our Destination Discovery Program Leader, was so proud recently that she reach out to our Site Manager after the last session to share how  proud she was of our friend Matt! She shared "Matt gave his best of all tonight putting his stickers on [his cactus pot] even though...
A group of GiGi's Playhouse volunteers wearing similar shirts in front of a green leafy background

Leadership, Learning, and “The Lucky Few”

Earlier this month we closed the Playhouse doors to the public for one week, and one week only in order to learn new and innovative ways to best support our community. The 2021 GiGi’s National Leadership Conference was a tremendous success! We cannot wait to implement all we learned to...
man wearing a blue GiGi's Playhouse shirt in front of a colorful background

Volunteer Spotlight: Jeff

Tell us a little bit about yourself. I am a Professional Family Entertainer and I love interacting with people.   How did you learn about GiGi’s and what do you do at the Playhouse? Through my son. He was a part of the construction crew who remodeled the facility where...
Young girl with Down syndrome in a blue dress wearing a hat and sunglasses

Dear Medical Professionals

In my opinion, I was lucky that we had a birth diagnosis. If you ask Tim he would disagree - he would have rather known ahead of time. But in a Facebook group, I just read about a parent pregnant and not enjoying her pregnancy because of the repeated urging...
Black and white photo of a young girl with Down syndrome

Defining Down Syndrome

"Down Syndrome – It means different things to different people.  For me,  the meaning has evolved over the years as we’ve journeyed through life with Maylee,  my 12-year-old daughter. When Maylee was born,  Down syndrome was a “Curve Ball”.  We didn’t learn that Maylee had Down syndrome until the day...
woman with blonde hair wearing a GiGi's Playhouse shirt in front of a colored background

Volunteer Spotlight: Jessi

Tell us a little bit about yourself.  I am the mom of 3 kids, Blaiden (9) Adilene (7) who has Down syndrome, and Kallie (4). I am married to Fred. I am from Colorado but have lived in Ohio for the last 10 years.  We want to get to know you! What are some of...