A Fantastic Friday At GiGi’s Playhouse Detroit

“Louie, I think this is the start of a beautiful friendship” – Casablanca

A successful program is never the result of just one thing. It’s a blend—of the right materials, dedicated volunteers, and participants who bring energy and excitement to the room. All of those ingredients came together beautifully on the first Friday in February during our Fantastic Friends program at GiGi’s Playhouse Detroit.

This month’s gathering was extra special because it marked a growing connection between two organizations with shared missions: GiGi’s Playhouse Detroit and Best Buddies. And at the heart of that connection? One incredible volunteer: Becca Mansfield.

The Spark Of An Idea

Becca has long been involved with both GiGi’s Playhouse and Best Buddies, and her passion for inclusive community building quickly inspired something new. She envisioned a fun, creative event where adults from both organizations could come together to hang out, create, and build friendships.

Her idea blossomed into a “Paint With a Twist”–style evening: a relaxed space for participants to learn to paint, enjoy snacks, laugh, and socialize. And because Becca knows how powerful cross-organization connections can be, she took the lead in making it happen from start to finish.

Making The Event Come To Life

A lot goes into planning an event like this, and Becca was involved in every piece. She connected leaders from both organizations, handled behind-the-scenes logistics, and even recruited a guest instructor to guide the painting session.

Thanks to her dedication, the help of all the volunteers and staff from both organizations, and the incredible generosity of our community, the night was a huge success.

We’d like to extend a heartfelt thank you to the supporters who helped turn this idea into a memorable experience:

🎨 Blick Art Materials — for donating a gift card that allowed us to purchase brand-new paintbrushes.

🖼️ Maggie Gilkes — for generously donating all of the canvases and sharing both her time and artistic talent as our guest instructor.

We are so grateful that each participant had the tools they needed to create something beautiful—and the encouragement to try something new.

If you would like to participate in our future adult programming, please email Kathleen Tynes [email protected] if you have a participant, or Erin Whaley [email protected] if you’d like to volunteer.