Last year the fundraiser brought in a little over $20,000, and this year the organization more than doubled their earnings from the previous year with over $20,000 coming from sponsorship sales alone. Hosting the event for the second year in a row, local bowling alley, Capital Bowl, catered to over 300 attendees, including Blaze, the Buffalo Wild Wings mascot. Buffalo Wild Wings, a new platinum sponsor for the 2017 year, offered up their mascot who danced, took pictures with the kiddos, and even bowled a couple of frames. Outside of the event, the Capital City Farmer’s Market brought fresh meats, vegetables, eggs, and more to bowlers and local residents before taking their permanent location in the 300 block of East High Street for the first time this past weekend. 
One of the coolest things about the event this year was that everyone with a developmental disability who came to bowl got to do so for free. Day Solutions Day Habilitation Program covered the cost for all their clients to participate, and local businesses and members from the community offered up “scholarships” to cover the cost for adults from area group homes to bowl. Our foundation was able to cover the rest. In total, over 30 special needs bowlers and their families participated this year. The day was full of smiles, laughter, and excitement over friends, pins, and door prizes given away by event emcee, 1st Ward City Councilman, David Kemna. For more photos from the event, courtesy of Chris Holloway at Pro Photo, visit the Day Solutions Foundation Facebook Page.
What does this mean for our community? The Day Solutions Foundation will now be able to start on many of the projects lined up for the 2017-2018 year. The first of which will be a community dance held at local hot spot, Avenue HQ. The Foundation’s goal is to start offering events which integrate disabled adults into the community and familiarize them with local places and opportunities they may have not yet encountered. “We are focused on providing engagement opportunities for families that are both fun and safe,” says Foundation Vice President, Danielle Schwartz. The event, which will accept up to 50 attendees, will be held on Sunday, July 30 from 2-4 p.m., with a DJ, door prizes, and food donated by Jefferson City Buffalo Wild Wings. Making safety a priority, attendees must be signed in and out, and the event, which is completely free to participants, will be supervised by DSF volunteers who require registration with the Family Care Safety Registry and a background check prior to volunteering. Event registration will be available on the Day Solutions Foundation website starting at the end of June.
Additionally, the foundation has now grown enough to begin the establishment of a Missouri Specialty License Plate, promoting Disability Acceptance. With the help of this years event, the foundation was able to raise the money to initiate this project and will be moving forward with the Department of Revenue this month. The funds generated by the purchase of the license plate will create a permanent source of funding to provide scholarships to special needs camps for individuals and families in need of assistance. Over the last twelve months, the Day Solutions Foundation has issued a total of five week-long scholarships to Wonderland Camp. “It’s absolutely amazing to be able to assist with this need, and to see the smile on the face of an adult getting the opportunity to enjoy camp for the first time. It’s what drives us,” says Schwartz. With the cost of camp being over $600 for one week, the need for this type of assistance is great. The foundation promises to continue their expansion as this project moves forward. Once the plate has been approved, the foundation will need a total of 250 verified plate purchases before the plate will become available to the general public. To stay up to date on the availability of the Disability Acceptance license plate project, or to sign up to purchase the plate when they become available, please submit your information at the Contact Us form on the Foundation’s website.