The first quarter of the year is a wrap, but we are just getting started! In these quarterly recap posts, we take a moment to reflect on the impact our mission has had on the community we serve in the last quarter. This reflection brings us so much joy and appreciation for the work that we do and the mission we serve. Thank you for being here and a part of Specially Gifted Foundation – no matter what that looks like for you. None of it would be possible without your support.
SGF Celebrates 5-Year Anniversary
What an incredible milestone to celebrate?! SGF’s mission has been serving families and caretakers caring for children with disabilities for FIVE YEARS!!
In these five years, SGF has welcomed FIFTY-SIX Gifted Families!
Meet SGF’s Gifted Families and read their stories here!
Given the fact that SGF was born right before COVID came into existence, it truly means even more looking back, knowing that not only did SGF’s mission survive the pandemic but also thrived.
Just as the families we serve face dark times and seasons of challenging trials, we believe that our mission has harnessed the resilience and strength of the families behind the mission to not only make it through 2020 but to also get to where we are now.
There will always be obstacles and hardships, but the light comes when we have a community to face them together.
So, thank you to the families we have served and all of our supporters who have been a part of this journey so far. SGF’s 5-year anniversary celebrates YOU!
Not only have we gifted 56 families in this time, we have provided beneficial resources and a sense of community to countless families. From our blog and nonprofit vendors providing resources at events like Spring in the Valley Festival, to hosting SGF mom coffee dates and SGF Family Photoshoot events for our SGF families, our mission’s impact is always growing.
The beautiful thing about the last two functions of our mission – resources and community – is that they benefit families outside of our Gifted Families.
Families caring for children with disabilities all over Georgia have benefited from our blog posts geared towards providing resources. We often receive email and social media inquiries from families asking about resources in the area. The fact that we have become a trusted and reliable source in the special needs community to connect them to other organizations and resources outside of SGF is a testament to the impact SGF’s mission is building.
It’s not a competition – we are all in this together to serve this amazing community.
Whether it’s a post about seasonal-related events and activities that are disability friendly or other organizations that serve their specific needs, we have tried to remain intentional when contributing to our blog to ensure families are aware of resources available and how to access them.
In addition to the community events specifically for our Gifted Families (coffee dates and family photoshoots), SGF also participates in an annual Halloween event for families and individuals with special needs at The Sweet Cocoon. This event brings in families from all over Georgia and even other states.
Then, there’s our favorite and biggest community event which is our annual Spring in the Valley Festival (SIV)! This entire event is a representation of SGF’s mission.
SIV is a family-friendly festival featuring activities for everyone of all ages and abilities, which we will talk more about below (just hang tight…)
Shop Specially Gifted Turns ONE
As we celebrated our 4-year anniversary in January of 2024, SGF also launched our highly anticipated SGF merchandise store, Shop Specially Gifted.
This online store is a way to shop with purpose.
100% of your purchase goes back to SGF’s mission.
For years, we would get asked about SGF branded clothing, so we finally made it happen. Shop Specially Gifted offers philanthropy through fashion, featuring t-shirts, sweatshirts, hats, golf polo’s, and more. We also offer items for babies and toddlers.
In addition to clothing items, you can find accessories like our ABLE collection of canvas totes and SGF tumblers.
Each of these items are not only a means to support a good cause, but also a way to help spread awareness about SGF’s mission and the families we serve.
Our team can give countless examples of situations where someone has seen one of us in one of our shirts or hats and someone asks, “What is Specially Gifted Foundation?”
You can just imagine the joy this brings to our team to have the opportunity to share SGF.
So go get your own stylish conversation starter from our shop, knowing you’re also giving back to SGF’s mission.
Specially Gifted Foundation’s 2024 Impact Report
2024 was a BIG year for SGF! We welcomed 10 new families, built new relationships and welcomed so many supporters into our SGF community, expanded our resources, hosted THREE events benefiting SGF’s mission, partnered with other organizations for community events, and so much more.
In addition to these quarterly and annual recap impact blogs, we wanted to provide a snapshot by means of a one-pager impact report.
This report captures the work of our mission in a direct way and makes it easy to share with others.
So, whether it’s your co-workers, employers, employees, friends, neighbors, or anyone else from your community that’s in search of an organization to give back to, this impact report is a perfect resource to share with them to get them started.
That being said, if you have not downloaded our 2024 impact report yet, here’s your reminder to do so and then find 5 people to share it with! You never know what good can come from sharing SGF, even just with those five people.
Planning SGF’s Biggest Annual Community Event Spring in the Valley Festival 2025
We are only a few days away from our FIFTH annual Spring in the Valley Festival!! WHAT?!?!
This annual community event is designed for the WHOLE FAMILY!
Our team and fundraising committee have been very busy this last quarter getting everything ready to bring all the fun of SIV back in an even bigger and better way.
What are some of the festivities you can expect this year?
Vendor shopping, car and bike show, trackless train, petting zoo, rock climbing wall, inflatable archery, face painting, food trucks, inflatables, live music, and so much more!
Our favorite is hands down the SGF Kids Game Booth! This booth is designed and run by therapists and teachers to ensure that children with disabilities and special needs have a space to not only enjoy games and activities, but to also play right alongside typical children.
SIV loves a good theme, so this year’s event is circus with the PERFECT tag-line: Come One, Come All!
We can’t take credit for this tag-line, as it was designed by one of the families gifted from last year’s SIV, Serenity and her family. We always ask one of our SIV families from the previous year to design our event t-shirt, which helps us build the theme around the event.
To learn more about SIV 2025, check out our pre-event blog post here!
As a part of our program, SIV is dedicated to serving all three parts of SGF’s mission: Gifting, Resources, and Community.
→ We aim to gift 2 new families each year from this event.
→ We partner with other nonprofit vendors to provide resources for parents to access at SIV.
→ This entire event is dedicated to fostering a community for families caring for children with disabilities and other families from the surrounding communities.
With that, we invite you to come be a part of the fun AND a part of SGF’s mission at our fifth annual Spring in the Valley Festival on April 26, 2025, from 10am – 3pm at Coosa Valley Fairgrounds in Rome, GA.
*Tickets can also be purchased on the day of at the gate!
Make a Difference with SGF in 2025
These quarterly impact recap blogs always remind us of how even the small things matter in such great ways – usually far beyond what we ever expected. We are all blessed with the opportunity to serve such a big mission.
This is all made possible by the families we serve and the generous supporters who give back to SGF, whether that’s as monthly donors, volunteers, sponsors, or simply sharing our mission on social media and with your community.
If you are looking for more ways to get involved with SGF and want to be a part of our impact in 2025, we invite you to explore ways to partner with us below!
What to expect in Q2 2025:
Spring in the Valley Festival
NEW Gifted Families
SGF Celebrates Turning 5: Campaign Launch
New partnerships
AND MORE!
