2324annual update
changing the story of disability
from our director
Dear friends,
In a recent moment of reflection, I held a photo in each of my hands. From an outsider’s perspective, they are simple snapshots from two days in my life taken 18 years apart, and yet, as I look back and forth, these fleeting moments frozen in time bring with them waves of nostalgia.
In the first, my friend Heather and I stand next to one another, smiling widely at the camera while holding our baby boys. Together, we had embraced the joys and challenges of pregnancy, and were now navigating this new journey of motherhood.
The year was 2006 – the last year I held my son, Eliot.
Fast forward, and I am sitting on Heather’s porch. The image is proof of a beautiful, long-lasting friendship, but it couldn’t possibly show the full picture. The tears that were shed may not be documented but are imprinted on my heart as much as the compassionate support my family received from the community around us.
My mind takes me back to that day. My friend’s son, Luke, who graduated from high school in May, had just returned home from work. With such enthusiasm, he was telling me about the summer plans he’s made with his friends before they all leave for college in the fall, but despite my best efforts, my thoughts began to wander.
In the 18 years since that first photo was taken, so much has changed, and while Eliot should’ve been a member of the Class of 2024 walking alongside Luke in his cap and gown, I find peace in knowing that a deep sense of his legacy lives on through the work of 99 Balloons.
Luke is only a few months older than our daughter Lena, who we adopted from an orphanage in Ukraine. She has significant disabilities, and for that reason, most people would look at the two of them and think that their needs are vastly different. But I see the sameness. I see a shared humanity, an innate longing for community that is present within all of us.
Their needs are not different. Their path is.
It is funny to be in this season with Lena. As a society, we have actually come a long way. Not only are there numerous social policies in place and services available to her, as she enters adulthood, but churches are offering adapted curriculums, addressing the specific needs of people with disabilities. And yet, I still see pity in the eyes of others, as they ask me what Lena will do after school. Resources are essential, but at the end of the day, so is the desire for human connection, and at 99 Balloons, everything we do revolves around nurturing authentic relationships between people with and without disabilities.
Our 23-24 year brought a greater focus on bEfriend, and we are so grateful that your generosity has paved the way for us to reshape and rebuild this program to be more than an occasional group gathering. I can’t help but see poetry in the beautiful timing of this. In the year that Eliot would be turning 18, God has led 99 Balloons to take a deeper dive into adult friendships, specifically.
And so, we press on, allowing Him to light the way as we seek to fill the universal need for connection through respite, relationship and global work. In Eliot’s honor, we continue to build inclusive communities where the image-bearing beauty of each and every individual is fully embraced and fully celebrated.
Thank you for being on this journey with us. The best is yet to come!
-Ginny
Mission
BUILDING INCLUSIVE COMMUNITIES SO THAT EVERY PERSON WITH A DISABILITY & THEIR FAMILY CAN LIVE A FULL LIFE WITHIN RELATIONSHIPS.
Vision
CHANGING THE STORY OF DISABILITY BY PROCLAIMING THE WORTH AND IMAGE-BEARING BEAUTY OF EACH AND EVERY HUMAN BEING.
theory of change
WHEN PEOPLE WITHOUT DISABILITY AND PEOPLE WITH DISABILITY GET TO KNOW ONE ANOTHER, THEY START TO CARE ABOUT EACH OTHER.
JULY 2023-JUNE 2024
2023-2024 was another year of significant impact for 99 Balloons. Over the organization’s lifetime, we have received such amazing encouragement, and we’ve witnessed incredible forward momentum in building inclusive communities and unleashing the power of human connection. This season was no different.
Relationships are the heartbeat of all we do. The people in our lives impact the way we view ourselves, others and the world around us, and everyone deserves to belong. Inclusion matters, but it doesn’t happen on its own, and that is why we continue to work so hard to change the story of disability.
Your financial support makes a direct impact on the lives we touch and enables us to press deeper into this mission of fostering authentic, life-affirming relationships. It is a mission that we truly believe has the capacity to change the world, but we can’t do it without you, and we wouldn’t want to.
Let’s carry on in this walk together, pursuing God’s will on earth as it is in heaven.
befriend sites
Palmer, AK
Fayetteville, AR (4)
Rogers, AR
Bentonville, AR
Springdale, AR
Jacksonville, FL
Tyro, KS
Dallas, TX
San Antonio, TX
recess sites
Palmer, AK
Fort Payne, AL
Montgomery, AL
Bentonville, AR (3)
Fayetteville, AR (3)
Rogers, AR (2)
Anaheim, CA
Engelwood, CO
Frederick, CO
Greenwood, IN
New Albany, IN
Lyndon, KS
Bowling Green, KY
Baton Rouge, LA
Bolivar, MO
Branson, MO
Springfield, MO
Tupelo, MS
Pontotoc, MS
Charlotte, NC
Canton, OH
Tulsa, OK
St. Louis, MO NEW NEW
Brentwood, TN (2)
Lebanon, TN
Memphis, TN
Mount Juliet, TN
Dallas, TX
Fort Worth, TX
Houston, TX
Lubbock, TX
San Antonio, TX
Hurricane, WV
Carlton, VIC, Australia
Oakville, Ontario, Canada
Etobicoke, Ontario, Canada
Willowdale, Ontario, Canada
17 years of impact
Recess is a holistic model of ministry that serves the entire family–children experiencing disability, as well as their parents and siblings–through a monthly night of respite. With 42 sites around the world, our flagship initiative has grown into a turnkey program that will only continue to expand its reach.
This year, rEcess established a greater presence in Alabama with the launch of a second site at Fort Payne First Methodist Church. This is where two sweet friends named Ella and Nora Rose spent their first fun Sunday evening together in early June, thanks to the faithful advocacy of their mothers, who had bonded over a shared need for rest through respite.
Recognizing that this desire might resonate with other families in their community, Stacey and Katie began to seek out help from surrounding churches to start a rEcess site. They even offered to take on the responsibility of leading it themselves.
Yet, when the women approached Pastor Jeff Tate, they were not only met with an enthusiastic “YES” but also a commitment to providing whatever means necessary to make their vision a reality. When the program finally kicked off, both Stacey and Katie received much-needed respite, alongside many other Fort Payne parents, including fellow mother Paige, who shared a bit about her son’s experience with us:
“We were met outside the door with smiles. Camden ran right in and did not even turn around to look for me. I know he had such a good time playing with his new friends! While he was being loved on and cared for, I was able to have lunch, do some grocery shopping and clean up the house. We are so grateful!”
mutual & pairingsmeaningful
bEfriend nurtures the growth of authentic, life-changing relationships between adults with and without disabilities.
Here at 99 Balloons, we believe it is revolutionary for how we can take the story of disability from one of isolation to one of inclusion.
Our transition from group-based gatherings to one-on-one pairings has been met with great success, measured not by the number of friendships we have established but by the authenticity within these relationships. We are so proud of bEfriend – how far it has come this year and its potential for future impact.
One of our first pairs, Sarah and Karla, were fast friends.
Sarah is not a volunteer giving time to someone less than, and Karla is not a client needing resources or services. These two are genuine friends, and their friendship began as naturally as any other, thanks to a Sunday morning carpool. Through 99 Balloons, Karla – who was on the waitlist for bEfriend at the time –became interested in attending services at Christ Community Church. She needed a ride though, and that’s when Sarah came into the picture.
Their connection was immediate, and their friendship now continues to grow through bEfriend.
They are both busy, hard-working women, who enjoy running everyday errands together. They both have a job and a heart for others, and they trust one another fully, something they agree is rare and difficult to find nowadays.
Scan the QR code to hear directly from Sarah and Karla, and get a peek into their sweet friendship for yourself!
a widespread,movementlife-changing
99 Balloons partners with organizations in Nicaragua, Uganda and South Asia to provide education and therapy to children with disabilities. By securing sponsorships, organizing global trips and producing documentaries, our team seeks to support these global partners, as they continue to do God’s work in school settings, family homes and local community centers.
With our help, over 200 students in these three developing nations have gained access to education, therapy and medical services, and in turn, their families are now connected to a community they may not have had otherwise.
The story of disability is changing globally, and we are so grateful that we’ve been able to assist in providing financial help, resources and encouragement along the way.
Following a yearslong pandemic-related hiatus, Global Trips have officially resumed!
Last March, we sent a wonderful team of four physical therapy graduate students, led by their UAMS professor Andrea Myane, on a weeklong trip to Nicaragua. Working directly with our partner organization, the women assisted the staff by providing therapy to children experiencing disability at the clinic, offering in-home palliative care for patients unable to travel and educating the center’s physical therapists on new clinical skills and services.
On the first day, the team was tasked with a home therapy session to attend to a mother and her 15-year-old son, who was not mobile and nonverbal. The women demonstrated a few positioning changes that would allow the teenager to sit upright, using a rolled towel around his neck for support and placing a can of beans on his knees to promote stretching.
Speaking on that experience, Lizeth, one of the graduate students, said:
“The mother was very diligent in telling us about her son’s story, and I think it was healing for her to go through all the experiences she’s had. Being a single mom and not having the necessary resources, she still considers herself to be blessed. That was impactful to me because if she considers herself to be blessed, the things that I’ve taken for granted are just… There are no words.”
As of now, it is expected that this trip will be an annual recurrence, and we are hopeful that we will be able to relaunch trips to our other partners soon. In fact, plans for Uganda 2025 are already in the works, so stay tuned!
While the timing for a trip to South Asia is still uncertain, that does not mean our support has dwindled. 99 Balloons was able to give a grant to our partner there, enabling the organization to continue furthering its mission and enhancing the lives of local families impacted by disability.
No matter the miles between us, we are all neighbors made in God’s image and likeness.
in action
WE HELP OTHERS ENGAGE WITH DISABILITY AND SEE THE SAMENESS.
At 99 Balloons, it can be difficult to quantify some of the ways in which we set out to change the story of disability. We exist to work with and on behalf of individuals and families experiencing disability to ensure they are welcomed and known within an unlimited number of communities.
In our efforts to make that happen, we recognize that it’s equally important to educate, equip and empower the public. Here are a few ways we do so:
Fellowships + Internships: Our yearlong fellows program allowed 11 students to gain a greater understanding of our work through curriculum, panel discussions and hands-on leadership at local rEcess and bEfriend sites. We also had 3 of interns assisting us with our annual fundraiser, local rEcess preparations, and administrative tasks.
Consulting, Training + Support: Our team is sought after to provide insight and assistance to others in their pursuit to be more inclusive of people with disabilities. Our work extends to various churches, ministries, as well as other nonprofits and businesses.
Storytelling: We often say that to change the story of disability, you must know the story of disability. We believe the story is one of hope, and through speaking engagements near and far, in addition to producing short documentary-style videos and content, we help others envision a world that does not yet exist.
Night for 99: Every September, we host our largest event titled Night for 99. While fundraising is certainly a goal, the last few years have also ushered in a reminder of our shared humanity through creative visual experiences. We approach this fun evening as an opportunity to connect with our community, share our mission, draw a larger audience into the story of disability and extend the invitation to join us.
99 balloons staff
Executive Director
SARAH COFFEY Program Director
MIKE RUSCH President
SARAH HEIMER Vice President
BURNS Office Director
JOSH BELL Treasurer
AMBER LEONARD Operations & Development
board of directors
KATE CULLY Secretary
MATT MOONEY Founder, Board Member
GINNY MOONEY
MADELINE
change the story with us!
The words and images that fill these pages are a mere snapshot of the impact that 99 Balloons has on people around the world. We are so proud to be filling pockets of isolation with seeds of community and a deep sense of belonging. We believe in the transformative power of relationships for all human beings. We believe in the difference a friend makes.
Throughout the years, God has continually revealed His heart to us through the families we impact, our dedicated volunteers and our incredible donors. We could not do His work without you, and we wouldn’t want to.
We are changing the story, but there is always more to be done, and we need you. None of this would happen without your ongoing support and generosity. Please continue to join us in being part of something so much bigger than ourselves.
Follow the QR code to see how you can become involved and support our mission!
