SKSF celebrates 25th anniversary: Started with a handful of clients, today serving over 700 as Colorado Springs grows
Published: Jul. 14, 2024 at 2:10 PM MDT |By Rebecca Gvozden KKTV
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KKTV) – Special Kids Special Families (SKSF) has been a neighboring nonprofit in Colorado Springs for 25 years. They serve people with disabilities from ages “2 to 102″. This year, they’re celebrating that quarterly anniversary.
“To see individuals day in and day out, continuing to grow and increase independence, and be able to live a purposeful life, and to take on educational opportunities to employment and volunteer opportunities,” Kevin Porter, Special Kids Special Families executive director said.
25 years ago, SKSF started with a handful of staff and clients, no vehicles, and was located in one rented building. Today, the organization is serving more than 700 clients, a number that’s growing every year.
“We know that Colorado Springs is going to continue to grow, whether you like that or not, which means the need for more disability services and to get more creative and innovative,” Porter said. “There’s going to be that need and we want to be there to fill that need.”
SKSF covers three pillars of service. Zach’s Place is their founding program, a children’s center. Joey’s Place is the nonprofit’s adult day center. Their third pillar focuses on behavioral mental health services. All of these together, support the lifespans of their clients as they move through life.
“I think it’s really important to offer a continuum of care across the lifespan,” Porter said. “Because so many individuals aged out of the system, fall between the cracks as they go through life.”
Special Kids Special Families says their employees aren’t doing this for the paycheck, but out of an abundance of the heart. They’re serving clients and their families, in ways now that they couldn’t before the expansion.
“We have folks that come in and they’re nonverbal, they’re nonresponsive, they’re not functioning at their optimum,” Derek Wilson, senior director of development and communications, said. “A few weeks, a few months into what we provide them, what we offer… the differences is very noticeable… families come back and tell us, ‘Wow, they’re speaking now, they’re using numbers, they’re using letters.’”
SKSF says the community is what helped make this organization stay afloat.
“We wouldn’t be here for 25 years without support of the community, our individual donors, our corporate partnerships,” Porter said.
To celebrate the organization’s 25th birthday, they’re inviting the Springs community to come out, support, and shed some laughter at their “Night of Comedy” on September 28th, 2024.
“We want folks to come out and really have a great time,” Wilson said. “And we do comedy because these folks are carrying a lot of heavy things and laughter is great medicine.”
Click here to learn more about SKSF’s “Night of Comedy”.
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