Super Siblings

On Wednesday, April 10th, we will celebrate National Sibling Day. Often, brothers and sisters of those with Down syndrome are forgotten and not recognized for being SUPER! However, siblings of individuals with Down syndrome tend to be compassionate, understanding, accepting, and wonderful people who go above and beyond for their sibling, although we know it…

Read More

A Volunteer’s Determination, Love, and Commitment

Carol Altomare, our incredible GiGi’s Kitchen Program Leader, always goes above and beyond. During the dark days of the Pandemic, Carol and her daughter, Christine, embarked on realizing our dream – creating a GiGi’s Kitchen Cookbook. The pair spent the next three years organizing, planning, and photographing the group’s favorite recipes. Carol was motivated by…

Read More

GiGi’s, Friends, Connect, and Family

Each month, we host a family group on the first Saturday at 10:00 am. All families are welcome, but we typically welcome families with children under the age of 6. The program is facilitated by two experienced program leaders who encourage discussions, sharing of experiences, and networking while high school or middle school volunteers play…

Read More

Introducing – Westchester’s Generation G Youth Board

We love our volunteers! Earlier this year, a sibling of one of our participants approached us and asked if she could start a Youth Board at our Playhouse. Mira was very passionate and quickly recruited her friends to join her. We reached out to other local High Schools and now have 8 members from Hastings…

Read More

Volunteer Spotlight – Kelly

“Volunteering is an act of heroism on a grand scale. And it matters profoundly. It does more than help people beat the odds; it changes the odds.” – William J. Clinton GiGi’s Playhouse is 99% volunteer-led. As an organization, we are extremely proud of this. We are beyond grateful for our amazing volunteers’ dedication, motivation, enthusiasm,…

Read More

#MyDSStory – Sibling Power!

During Down Syndrome Acceptance Month, we asked our families and community to share stories as part of a #myDSstory campaign. This submission is from an amazing sibling who is constantly changing the way the world views Down Syndrome! “My sister, Ali, who is fourteen months younger than me, is the most hard-working, resilient, and compassionate…

Read More

Help Us To Celebrate Our Volunteers!

“Volunteering is an act of heroism on a grand scale. And it matters profoundly. It does more than help people beat the odds; it changes the odds.” – William J. Clinton GiGi’s Playhouse is 99% volunteer-led. As an organization, we are extremely proud of this. We cannot do what we do without the dedication, motivation, enthusiasm,…

Read More

Volunteerism, Friendship and Generation G

Volunteers are pivotal to our successes and achievements. Without YOU we would not be able to offer our free and purposeful programs to our families and the community. We also know that volunteering at our playhouses and the other playhouses around the country can have a huge positive impact on our volunteers – whether they…

Read More

My Intern Experience

For the last 3 months, we have had the pleasure of welcoming Jenna into our community. Jenna attends Iona college and interned with us this Fall. Late September, she trained and became our Virtual Program Host for the majority of our programs. We asked Jenna to blog about her experience with us, especially as she…

Read More