Kaleidoscope Family Gym Needs Some Help!
Donation protected
#smallbusinessrelief
If you are a "just the facts" type of person, this part is for you:
The Who: Kaleidoscope Family Gym opened in December 2020 and we have been providing Pierce and surrounding county’s families with a safe, clean, comfortable place to play for the last 3 months, one family at a time. We have a special focus on families with additional needs, but every type of family is welcome!
The What: We are attempting to raise at least 3 months of rent. Any funds we raise will be strictly used for paying the rent while we work our way to a more stable position within the Covid environment.
The Why: We didn't intend to open our family playground during a pandemic, but things happen. We signed our lease in early March, expecting everything to be back to normal by June. Instead, we had to remain closed from March until December; the bills still had to be paid even though we had no revenue coming in. Now, with the love and support of our community, we are beginning to see some bright shining light in our future, but we haven't been able to catch up with everything yet.
The When: We will start using any funds raised for rent immediately.
The How: Anyone who chooses to contribute can, of course, pick any amount they wish. It would be so wonderful if everyone had $200 or $1000 to send our way. Reality though, looks a lot different, families are struggling, money is tight. I like to break things down to a more realistic option for everyone - did you know that if everyone could donate $25, it would only take 573 donations to reach $14,336 (3 months of rent)!
If you are a person who likes to have the full story, please read on:
This little guy - with his bright shiny eyes and sweet little smile - is the joy of his gramma's life. He loves to give his "friends" big hugs, loves his dinos, has a crush on Dino Dana, loves to play! He is also autistic and experiences some of the sensory issues that come with autism. He, along with hundreds of other kids with additional needs in Pierce County, needed somewhere to play that was safe, welcoming, inclusive. A place where the whole family could go and play together.
So we built Kaleidoscope Family Gym. We signed our lease at the beginning of March 2020, expecting Covid-19 to be over by June. And we started designing/building the playground.
It was definitely a labor of love, taken on by my entire family and so many others. Money was very tight, and as month after month passed without any hope of opening, fear started setting in. How will we continue to pay the bills if we can't open? Are we going to have to quit before we even begin? There were many discussions about when and if we should make the decision to give up.
We decided giving up wasn't an option yet, we were going to forge ahead with faith in our belief that our community and so very many families needed. We applied for grant after grant, finally receiving funds for rent from Pierce County and City of Puyallup. We paid the past-due rent and opened in December 2020 , following the state mandates for indoor family gatherings. After a very soft, quiet opening, news of Kaleidoscope hit social media and a few mom's groups and we found out how much our families needed a place like this! Family after family booked times to come in and play. Kids who hadn't been anywhere in months stood at the door and stared, before running off to play with so many different toys. Parents joined in the fun and/or relaxed while their kids enjoyed themselves.
And here we are - that safe, welcoming, inclusive environment we had hoped would be loved by Puyallup and surrounding communities is a reality. Are we making enough to pay our bills, including rent? Not yet. Will we ever? We certainly plan on it! We really want to be able to hang on, to remain open and available for all types of families, all types of kids.
We couldn’t have made it to this point without the overwhelming love, loyalty, and support we’ve received from this amazing community. We would be beyond grateful to be able to continue to serve this community for many years to come.
So, this is our plea - we humbly ask that anyone who feels they have the means to, please contribute to our fund-raising event. As I said above, I like to break fund-raising down to manageable numbers - it is my belief that many many people contributing a small amount can bring about huge results. If 573 people can afford to contribute $25, we would reach our goal in no time! Please contribute if you can, share if you can. Any donation of any size will be so very much appreciated!
If you would like to follow, or book a visit at, Kaleidoscope Family Gym, our website is www.kaleidoscopefamilygym.com, our FB page is www.facebook.com/kaleidoscopefamilygym and our IG is @kaleidoscopefamilies.
If you are a "just the facts" type of person, this part is for you:
The Who: Kaleidoscope Family Gym opened in December 2020 and we have been providing Pierce and surrounding county’s families with a safe, clean, comfortable place to play for the last 3 months, one family at a time. We have a special focus on families with additional needs, but every type of family is welcome!
The What: We are attempting to raise at least 3 months of rent. Any funds we raise will be strictly used for paying the rent while we work our way to a more stable position within the Covid environment.
The Why: We didn't intend to open our family playground during a pandemic, but things happen. We signed our lease in early March, expecting everything to be back to normal by June. Instead, we had to remain closed from March until December; the bills still had to be paid even though we had no revenue coming in. Now, with the love and support of our community, we are beginning to see some bright shining light in our future, but we haven't been able to catch up with everything yet.
The When: We will start using any funds raised for rent immediately.
The How: Anyone who chooses to contribute can, of course, pick any amount they wish. It would be so wonderful if everyone had $200 or $1000 to send our way. Reality though, looks a lot different, families are struggling, money is tight. I like to break things down to a more realistic option for everyone - did you know that if everyone could donate $25, it would only take 573 donations to reach $14,336 (3 months of rent)!
If you are a person who likes to have the full story, please read on:
This little guy - with his bright shiny eyes and sweet little smile - is the joy of his gramma's life. He loves to give his "friends" big hugs, loves his dinos, has a crush on Dino Dana, loves to play! He is also autistic and experiences some of the sensory issues that come with autism. He, along with hundreds of other kids with additional needs in Pierce County, needed somewhere to play that was safe, welcoming, inclusive. A place where the whole family could go and play together.
So we built Kaleidoscope Family Gym. We signed our lease at the beginning of March 2020, expecting Covid-19 to be over by June. And we started designing/building the playground.
It was definitely a labor of love, taken on by my entire family and so many others. Money was very tight, and as month after month passed without any hope of opening, fear started setting in. How will we continue to pay the bills if we can't open? Are we going to have to quit before we even begin? There were many discussions about when and if we should make the decision to give up.
We decided giving up wasn't an option yet, we were going to forge ahead with faith in our belief that our community and so very many families needed. We applied for grant after grant, finally receiving funds for rent from Pierce County and City of Puyallup. We paid the past-due rent and opened in December 2020 , following the state mandates for indoor family gatherings. After a very soft, quiet opening, news of Kaleidoscope hit social media and a few mom's groups and we found out how much our families needed a place like this! Family after family booked times to come in and play. Kids who hadn't been anywhere in months stood at the door and stared, before running off to play with so many different toys. Parents joined in the fun and/or relaxed while their kids enjoyed themselves.
And here we are - that safe, welcoming, inclusive environment we had hoped would be loved by Puyallup and surrounding communities is a reality. Are we making enough to pay our bills, including rent? Not yet. Will we ever? We certainly plan on it! We really want to be able to hang on, to remain open and available for all types of families, all types of kids.
We couldn’t have made it to this point without the overwhelming love, loyalty, and support we’ve received from this amazing community. We would be beyond grateful to be able to continue to serve this community for many years to come.
So, this is our plea - we humbly ask that anyone who feels they have the means to, please contribute to our fund-raising event. As I said above, I like to break fund-raising down to manageable numbers - it is my belief that many many people contributing a small amount can bring about huge results. If 573 people can afford to contribute $25, we would reach our goal in no time! Please contribute if you can, share if you can. Any donation of any size will be so very much appreciated!
If you would like to follow, or book a visit at, Kaleidoscope Family Gym, our website is www.kaleidoscopefamilygym.com, our FB page is www.facebook.com/kaleidoscopefamilygym and our IG is @kaleidoscopefamilies.
Organizer
Arlene Keeler
Organizer
Puyallup, WA