{"id":142419,"date":"2026-04-24T13:40:32","date_gmt":"2026-04-24T18:40:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/hoffmanestates\/?p=142419"},"modified":"2026-04-24T13:40:32","modified_gmt":"2026-04-24T18:40:32","slug":"celebrating-our-volunteers-national-volunteer-week-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/hoffmanestates\/activities\/celebrating-our-volunteers-national-volunteer-week-2026","title":{"rendered":"Celebrating Our Volunteers! National Volunteer Week 2026!"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/hoffmanestates\/files\/2026\/04\/newsletter-headers-1.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"552\" height=\"200\" src=\"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/hoffmanestates\/files\/2026\/04\/newsletter-headers-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-142420\" style=\"width:840px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/hoffmanestates\/files\/2026\/04\/newsletter-headers-1.jpg 552w, https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/hoffmanestates\/files\/2026\/04\/newsletter-headers-1-300x109.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 552px) 100vw, 552px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At GiGi\u2019s Playhouse, we are able to offer all of our purposeful programs completely <strong>FREE<\/strong> thanks in large part to the dedicated volunteers who give their time, energy, and expertise day in and day out. Quite simply, the impact we make would not be possible without them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On any given day at the Playhouse, you might see a volunteer leading a program, working one-on-one with a participant in tutoring, helping keep our space clean and welcoming, or assisting with maintenance projects. Others are reaching out to donors and families, supporting staff with administrative tasks, preparing materials for programs, getting ready for large events, or working in the Hugs &amp; Mugs Caf\u00e9. No matter the role, every volunteer plays a vital part in creating the positive and empowering environment our community depends on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To put this incredible impact into perspective, in 2025 alone, the National Playhouse in Hoffman Estates recorded nearly <strong>10,000 volunteer hours<\/strong> contributed by more than <strong>400 volunteers<\/strong>. That\u2019s 10,000 hours given after work and school, on weekends, virtually and in person\u2014time dedicated to ensuring our participants and families can access free, purposeful programming every single week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It\u2019s a powerful reminder that behind every program, every milestone, and every moment of growth at GiGi\u2019s Playhouse, there is a volunteer making it possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThank you\u201d hardly feels like enough\u2014but it comes with deep gratitude for each and every person who chooses to give their time to this mission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To all of our volunteers past and present, we hope you feel the deep and intentional gratitude from your playhouse staff, families, and participants forever and always! <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Want to learn more about becoming a volunteer with GiGi&#8217;s Playhouse? Check out the link below for upcoming volunteer opportunities and to connect with our Program and Volunteer Manager!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"ohy5dClkD8\"><a href=\"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/hoffmanestates\/volunteer\">Volunteer<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; visibility: hidden;\" title=\"&#8220;Volunteer&#8221; &#8212; Hoffman Estates - Down Syndrome Achievement Center\" src=\"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/hoffmanestates\/volunteer\/embed#?secret=WefZ1viquO#?secret=ohy5dClkD8\" data-secret=\"ohy5dClkD8\" width=\"500\" height=\"282\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>At GiGi\u2019s Playhouse, we are able to offer all of our purposeful programs completely FREE thanks in large part to the dedicated volunteers who give their time, energy, and expertise day in and day out. Quite simply, the impact we make would not be possible without them. On any given day at the Playhouse, you&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25306,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wpo365_audiences":[],"wpo365_private":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,6,1525,1526,5,1543,1537],"tags":[22,23,80],"class_list":["post-142419","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-activities","category-adults-with-down-syndrome","category-community","category-free-programs","category-friends","category-hugs-mugs","category-volunteering","tag-down-syndrome","tag-gigis-playhouse","tag-volunteer-appreciation"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/hoffmanestates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/142419","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/hoffmanestates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/hoffmanestates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/hoffmanestates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/25306"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/hoffmanestates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=142419"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/hoffmanestates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/142419\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/hoffmanestates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=142419"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/hoffmanestates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=142419"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/hoffmanestates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=142419"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}