advocacy
Down Syndrome Awareness Month- REAL Perspectives from REAL Local Families: Henry
This year, to celebrate Down Syndrome Awareness Month, we asked a few of our Playhouse families and friends to give their REAL perspective on what it’s like to love someone with Down syndrome. Throughout the month, we’ll be sharing their stories! Meet Henry – Answers from Henry’s Mom, Cacy How would you describe your…
Read MoreAdvocacy and IEP’S
GiGi’s Madison Guest Blog by Playhouse Mom and Board Member Sarah Berndt Here we go… again! Back to school If you’re a parent of a child with Down syndrome, who is approaching school age, you’ve likely heard about the IEP process, and if you heard about it on the Internet… well, the Internet can be…
Read MoreProgramming with a Purpose: Down Syndrome and Autism
Our Playhouse has been lucky enough to have a dedicated group of volunteers that developed programming for individuals with a dual diagnosis of Down syndrome and Autism Spectrum Disorder, or other sensory processing disorder. Dynamic Duals, a GiGi’s Playhouse-Madison piloted program, is a monthly program designed specifically for families and individuals with a dual diagnosis…
Read MoreCheers to a Successful Summer!
Summer Recap We have so much to be proud of this summer! GiGi’s Madison welcomed 10 New Families and over 100 Returning Families during our last three months of programming. We’re serving more families, running more programs, and celebrating more ‘Best of All’ moments than ever before. During our Summer Session we were able to…
Read MoreWelcoming our newest board member- Sarah Berndt
Sarah Berndt- Board Member We are thrilled to announce that Sarah Berndt has joined our Board of Directors! Sarah is an active Playhouse mom who attends multiple programs with her daughter, Addi. Sarah and her family business are also key sponsors of our annual Gala. With Sarah’s business and marketing background she is a…
Read MoreSelf-Advocate Blog Inspiration
Blog Post by Self- Advocate Committee Co-Leader, Maya Greengus You are probably going to say these are jelly beans and ask what’s important about that. It’s more than two candies sitting on a desk. The colors signifies the point of what I’m writing about. Blue and yellow means to me that when you are…
Read MoreVolunteer Spotlight: A Fantastic Family
Fantastic Friends is a long-standing signature program offered at GiGi’s Playhouse Madison. Week to week this program offers a fun, purposeful social gathering for adults with Down syndrome, their peers, and community. This summer our Fantastic Friends group has been led by the incredible volunteer duo of Lottie and Lexi, along with some dedicated program…
Read MoreIntroducing Board Member- Jacob Donohue
Board Member- Jacob Donohue Jacob Donohue has been a part of our Board of Directors since January 2022. He is a Store Director at Festival Foods and currently oversees their downtown Madison location. He has worked for Festival for 15 years and has held a variety of different roles in many of their stores across…
Read MoreIntroducing our New Executive Board
Incredible Leadership= Incredible Playhouse Our Playhouse is 99% volunteer run and some of our most active and impactful volunteers are our Board of Directors! At our June Board meeting elections were held for the 2022-2024 term and we are pleased to announce our new Executive Board. Kimberly Arndt was our Vice President and moved into…
Read MoreCelebrating Those Who Are Uncelebrated
A Tribute to Evelyn Charlotte Peters January 12, 1914- February 18, 1931 In May 2022, Cindy Hasse contacted the Playhouse to see if we would be interested in some quilts created by someone with Down syndrome. We jumped at the chance and were surprised by the incredible story that came along with these quilts. Cindy…
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