Build-Out

For many new parents, particularly those with limited resources and support, welcoming a child to the family can be both a joy and a challenge. Therefore, HelloBaby was created as a nonprofit organization whose mission is to support, empower and inspire families raising young children in underserved neighborhoods in Chicago. HelloBaby provides free programming and…

Dear Friends, Resilience has always been at the core of GiGi’s Playhouse Chicago. We continued to demonstrate our capacity to grow and thrive amidst challenging times in 2021. Of course, everything that we accomplished could not have been possible without the creativity and drive of our staff, participants, families, friends, volunteers, donors, sponsors, and many…

  On December 5, 2021, GiGi’s Playhouse Chicago had the pleasure of hosting one of our favorite annual events, our Dance-A-Thon with a virtual attendance option – all in effort to raise funds for an incredible cause! This was our 7th annual Dance-A-Thon and we are so grateful to our board members and committees for…

By: Shannon Lyons, Child Development Intern at GiGi’s Playhouse Chicago This past Sunday, GiGi’s Playhouse hosted a Halloween party with our adult EPIC group. The group celebrated the spooky season by watching ‘Hotel Transylvania’, decorating the Playhouse, snacked on Halloween treats and popcorn, and created a Halloween pumpkin craft. Disney’s Elsa, Sonic the Hedgehog, Spiderman,…

  This month we are celebrating Down Syndrome Awareness Month!   Tune in and learn more about the role of occupational therapy at GiGi’s Playhouse Chicago on the Moxie OT podcast. In this podcast, Jenny Popova (Board President and volunteer at GiGi’s Playhouse Chicago) and Hannah Hartz (volunteer at GiGi’s Playhouse Chicago) discuss how they…

  GiGi’s Playhouse Chicago has formed a community partnership with HelloBaby to expand access to therapeutic services for infants, toddlers and their families that are residents of the South and Westside of Chicago.  HelloBaby is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to “support, empower and inspire families raising young children in underserved neighborhoods in Chicago.”…

Shannon Lyons is a third-final year Child Life Graduate Student at Erikson Institute. She will be interning with GiGi’s Playhouse Chicago for the Fall 2021 semester. Shannon grew up in a small town 4 hours south of Chicago. Her master’s degree major is a Master’s in Science: Child Development with a concentration in Child Life.…

As summer comes to a wrap, we are excited to congratulate Kate, Megan, and Hannah on their graduation from the Occupational Therapy Doctoral program at Rush University. Since their first week at the Playhouse, Kate, Megan, and Hannah have become indispensable members of the Chicago Playhouse team. From developing one-on-one and group lesson plans to…

If you have been to the Playhouse this summer, you have most certainty seen our incredible Rush University occupational therapy student interns, Megan, Kate, and Hannah working hard with our Playhouse participants! For the last 14 weeks, they have been busy completing their doctoral capstone projects for graduation. Megan has been working with 7 incredible…

  This past month in our EPIC: Journaling Club, we discussed positive affirmations, what it means to be a superhero and our inner superheroes powers. Everyone in the group shared what makes them strong, brave, happy and more importantly who their sidekicks are. Meet our amazing superheroes below!   Meet Kate! Superhero name: KateKat Superpower:…