volunteer
Volunteer Donates a Staggering 2,300 Volunteer Hours
Volunteer can be a scary word. Not knowing how you can contribute or the amount of time you can give is overwhelming to many people. At GiGi’s Playhouse we are 99% volunteer run and we are grateful to the hundreds of people that have shared their time and talents us whether it was for one…
Read MoreGrowing, Learning and Sharing-a National Conference for Down Syndrome Recap
As an organization, we look forward to our National Conference each year because it means we have the opportunity to network with the other incredible Playhouses and national staff, learn by attending important discussions and share our local Madison best practices. Our local Playhouse collaborates with all the Wisconsin Playhouses because we are truly…
Read MoreGrateful for Tutors that are Changing the World
Meet Math Tutor- Grace Branger Our one-on-one tutoring programs are volunteer led and truly life-changing. Today we want to shine a spotlight on one of our incredible math tutors, Grace Branger. Grace is a Junior at UW-Madison and is a full-time student. She is studying Genetics with a certificate in disability rights and services. This…
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 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 MoreThank you to Julie Byrnes
Inspiring Leadership Julie Byrnes just completed her term as our Board President but that is just part of how she’s contributed to our Playhouse in the past four years. Julie is a Speech-Language Pathologist and learned about GiGi’s when our past Board President, Bill Henry, randomly connected with her on LinkedIn. She quickly fell in…
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 MoreFinding a Place to Belong
This post is about a pilot program established by GiGi’s Playhouse Madison called Dynamic Duals. This is a monthly program designed specifically for families & individuals with a dual diagnosis of Down syndrome-Autism Spectrum Disorder and/or sensory or behavioral challenges. Parents meet in one area to connect, have fun, share successes, resources, and strategies while…
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