The Michael Spano Foundation

Sharon Spano

18th Annual Michael Spano Golf Tournament

 

The Promise of Independence and Choice…

Like most young men, Michael Spano had a dream to live independently from his parents. And, he loved to make his own choices. Today, thousands of people with disabilities are denied those same choices. They are denied those choices not because they have no dreams—not because they are incapable of making those choices. They are denied independence and choice because the options and support are simply not there.

Golfer

Your continued support of Michael’s dream is now being expanded via the Michael Spano Foundation. The Mission of this Foundation is to provide people with disabilities options for independence, choice, and a meaningful life in the community.

Register Here

Please join us for the 18th Annual Michael Spano Golf Tournament to help us further realize Michael’s dream. We will continue his legacy by a great day of golf and the opportunity to make a difference right here in our own community. You don’t want to miss the fun and prizes, and you don’t want to miss an opportunity to be inspired by our surprise guest speaker.

The Michael Spano Memorial Golf Tournament,
 The Spano Companies
will be held at
Heathrow Country Club
Lake Mary, Florida
on
Monday, March 24, 2005

The tournament features a scramble format with a 9:00 AM shotgun start. We will have a hole-in-one contest on all the Par Threes featuring prizes that include two automobiles. In addition to the Par Three contests, we will also have a putting contest, a longest and straightest driving contest.

For more information, contact: Ralph Spano, 407-247-5258 or Sharon Spano, 407-247-1419

Register Here

The Michael Spano Foundation is a qualified charitable organization, and all donations are tax deductible. The mission of the foundation is to provide people with disabilities options for independence, choice, and a meaningful life in the community.

The Gift of a Wheelchair-Accessible Van

Written by Olivia B.

The Gift of a Wheelchair-Accessible Van
It was a party in Northland at Longwood’s foyer as people gathered around a family on the brink of a life-changing moment. A young woman named Karmann sat, dressed in her Sunday best, in a large wheelchair. She let out peals of laughter every few minutes, drawing smiles from her mother, Christina, and sister, Kayla.

The family was awaiting the arrival of a wheelchair-accessible van, a gift from the joint efforts of the Michael Spano Foundation and various Northlanders and distributed churches.

The Gift of a Wheelchair-Accessible Van“People don’t realize how limiting it can be to load over 150 pounds into and out of the car every time we go somewhere,” Christina explained. “When people help me transfer Karmann and the wheelchair into our car, they ask, ‘How do you do this every day?’”
[Read more…] about The Gift of a Wheelchair-Accessible Van

Coldwell Banker Cares

Look what Coldwell Banker Cares did for The Michael Spano Foundation today! And, the donation was matched by Thad Czapka in memory of Jim Eaton.

Thanks to you all for your generosity.

We know Michael and Jim are smiling down on the work ahead for persons with disabilities. So grateful to Coldwell Banker Cares and Thad for honoring this work.

After Losing a Child . . . Then What?

sunlight through dark clouds

September 4th marks the day our son Michael officially stopped breathing. One minute we were all packed up and ready to leave the hospital—in the next his lips began to quiver, and we were suddenly marching down a dark road to nowhere.

It was a horrific scene. One of those Grey’s Anatomy moments when everyone comes rushing in. Code blue, red, whatever. Suddenly Michael was their child, no longer mine. I’m shoved out the door—just one more hysterical mom in the hallway, out of the picture, erased from his life.

It’s taken me six years to stop reliving every second of that hour. Still, when I wake on this day I remember that September 4th marks that moment when Michael officially left us.
[Read more…] about After Losing a Child . . . Then What?

The Empty Space of Losing a Child

starry sky

I’ve hit that empty space of loss again. It’s like a wave that never subsides, only diminishes in shape and form.

Seems I’ve been writing about spaces a lot lately, in-between spaces and sacred spaces. Now, another kind of space has emerged. That empty space of loss where I’m reminded of the awkwardness of life without Michael.

I’ve come to accept these empty spaces. Yet, as we near the anniversary of his passing, I still hunger for the sound of his voice, the touch of his skin, the smell of his hair.

There is good news. After almost six years, my joyful memories of Michael, once overshadowed by the nightmare of his last seventeen days, are now resurrecting.

Still there are moments. . . there will always be, empty spaces. [Read more…] about The Empty Space of Losing a Child

Having a Child with Special Needs . . . Can Be Complicated

A man holding hands with someone in a wheel chair.

If you have a child with special needs, you know life can be complicated. The nature of those needs is irrelevant. It doesn’t really matter if your child is physically challenged, has visual issues or is learning disabled. When a child—your child—has special needs, a different kind of parenting is required. Once that child enters into adolescence or adulthood, things get even more interesting.

Our son Michael was born with a rare metabolic disorder known as Cytachrome C Oxidase Deficiency. I remember meandering our way through a young allergist’s office one day when Michael was in the third grade. By this time, we already had a host of specialists we saw on a regular basis, so I was used to the look of perplexity that swept across a new doctor’s face when I offered up Michael’s diagnosis.
[Read more…] about Having a Child with Special Needs . . . Can Be Complicated

Are You a Nonprofit Leader Who’s Letting the Tail Wag the Dog?

children reaching for the sky
Image credit: geralt via Pixabay

If you’re a nonprofit leader who sometimes feels like the tail is wagging the dog, this post is for you.

At the heart of everything I do, I am first and foremost, the mother of a child with special needs. Even though our son Michael is no longer with us, I still get calls from parents who struggle with nonprofit leaders who are so busy working the business they sometimes forget why they exist in the first place.

Times have definitely changed, and in my many years of working with nonprofits, I’ve come to realize that such leaders can enhance their capacity to fulfill the mission by exploring three specific questions:
[Read more…] about Are You a Nonprofit Leader Who’s Letting the Tail Wag the Dog?

Living with Loss

Photo Credit: jessica mullen via Compfight cc
Photo Credit: jessica mullen via Compfight cc

If you’ve been living with loss of a loved one, you’ve probably discovered that it’s a process. I’ve been in this process for almost six years now, and I’m still amazed by the things I keep learning. Like just yesterday.

I was rummaging through the closet in my home office. The mission was to scan and toss all the old files that are no longer relevant. And, then it happened. There before me, several large folders filled with yet more of my son’s medical records.

When you have a child with a disability, you save everything because you never know when a doctor, psychologist, therapist, or even lawyer is going to ask you for a date, time, or diagnosis. We have mounds of paperwork that represent Michael’s journey.

I take a quick glance through the first record, and quickly snap the folder shut.
[Read more…] about Living with Loss