{"id":143534,"date":"2026-05-13T16:04:21","date_gmt":"2026-05-13T21:04:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/madison\/?p=143534"},"modified":"2026-05-13T16:07:35","modified_gmt":"2026-05-13T21:07:35","slug":"transformational-grant","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/madison\/transformational-grant\/","title":{"rendered":"Transformational Grant: GiGi\u2019s Playhouse Madison Awarded $900,000 State Grant for New Playhouse"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/madison\/files\/2026\/05\/Madison-Build-Grant.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"737\" height=\"379\" src=\"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/madison\/files\/2026\/05\/Madison-Build-Grant.jpg\" alt=\"Transformational Grant for the GiGi's Playhouse Madison Build \" class=\"wp-image-143535\" srcset=\"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/madison\/files\/2026\/05\/Madison-Build-Grant.jpg 737w, https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/madison\/files\/2026\/05\/Madison-Build-Grant-300x154.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 737px) 100vw, 737px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Transformational Grant pushes our fundraising goal closer to the finish line! <\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Big news for our dream of creating a larger, more inclusive, and more impactful home for the Down syndrome community just took a major step forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We are honored to announce that GiGi\u2019s Playhouse Madison has been awarded <strong>$900,000 through Wisconsin\u2019s Non-State Grant Program<\/strong>, a statewide initiative supporting nonprofit construction projects that serve a public purpose. A huge thank you to our long-time volunteer and primary grant writer, Amy  Ulrich, for her hard work on this very involved grant application!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Our Executive Director shares a little more about this incredible gift: <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"10 Years and Building \" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/IBJaqG1dE8s?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>This funding represents more than just dollars toward a building project.<strong> It is a powerful recognition of the impact our Playhouse has on individuals with Down syndrome and their families across Wisconsin.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The grant program, administered through the Wisconsin Department of Administration on behalf of statewide non-state grantees, received more than 250 applications from organizations across Wisconsin. After a rigorous review process evaluating public purpose, project impact, organizational capacity, community support, and shovel-ready readiness, only 71 projects were selected for funding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>To be included among those selected is an incredible honor.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Since opening our doors in 2016, GiGi\u2019s Playhouse Madison has grown from serving just 25 families to now supporting more than 430 families annually through free educational, therapeutic, career development, health, and social programming for individuals with Down syndrome of all ages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As our participation has grown, so has the need for a space designed specifically to support meaningful learning, independence, inclusion, and achievement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Our future Playhouse will allow us to:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Expand free programming opportunities for all ages<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Create inclusive spaces intentionally designed for individuals with diverse learning and sensory needs<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Grow career development and workforce readiness programming<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Increase access for families traveling from rural and underserved communities<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Strengthen partnerships with schools, businesses, therapists, and community organizations<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Serve more individuals and families than ever before<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>This investment from the State of Wisconsin validates what our families and community already know: GiGi\u2019s Playhouse Madison fills a critical need and creates life-changing impact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We are especially proud that this funding recognizes not only the importance of our mission, but also the incredible support behind it. The grant required organizations to demonstrate strong local investment and the ability to match funding through non-state revenue sources. That means this award is also a reflection of the trust and generosity of our donors, sponsors, volunteers, and community partners who continue to believe in what we are building together.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As a 99% volunteer-run organization, we remain committed to maximizing every dollar raised to create the greatest possible impact for families.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While this grant is a tremendous milestone, our work is not finished. This funding helps move our capital campaign forward in a major way, getting us to about a 95% funded campaign, but <strong>we still need the community\u2019s continued support to bring the full vision to life.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Visit our campaign page <a href=\"https:\/\/support.gigisplayhouse.org\/madison-believe-in-our-build\/home?_gl=1*1qcs4g2*_gcl_au*MTQ0MDMyMDYyOC4xNzc4NTE2NjA2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">HERE<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Together, we are building more than a building.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We are building a future where individuals with Down syndrome are accepted, included, challenged, celebrated, and empowered to achieve their dreams.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To every family, donor, volunteer, partner, and supporter who has helped us reach this moment: thank you. This belongs to all of us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Transformational Grant pushes our fundraising goal closer to the finish line! Big news for our dream of creating a larger, more inclusive, and more impactful home for the Down syndrome community just took a major step forward. We are honored to announce that GiGi\u2019s Playhouse Madison has been awarded $900,000 through Wisconsin\u2019s Non-State Grant Program,&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":242,"featured_media":143535,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1537,1487,1649],"tags":[905,23,1648,22],"class_list":["post-143534","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-advocacy","category-down-syndrome","category-grant","tag-community","tag-down-syndrome","tag-grant","tag-madison"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/madison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/143534","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/madison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/madison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/madison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/242"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/madison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=143534"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/madison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/143534\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/madison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/143535"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/madison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=143534"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/madison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=143534"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/madison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=143534"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}