Thank you for visiting our CHA CHA CHERISH Team’s page! At CHERISH, we believe in the power of relationships to strengthen communities and promote healing for families. We are thrilled to be a part of this community-building event, which celebrates July as Disability Pride Month.

Disability is a part of the human experience across age, culture, and identities, and it exists within the parenting experience as well. Parents with disabilities can and do raise their children. Like many parents, parents with disabilities thrive when they are supported through positive relationships, a network of support, and resources. We want to strive towards these resources and opportunities for all families.

We appreciate the opportunity to connect with others, build relationships, and imagine a world that supports all children and families. Please join us!

Team Members

• Mara Calhoun
• Julie Fisher
• Dianna Zaorski

Let’s start this journey together! Whether an individual or a group, you can join hands and form a Move-A-Thon team, uniting for a common cause! Don't forget to register for the event if you have not already done so.

1. Join a team, donate or form your squad, unleash your creativity, and make a team name representing your support spirit. The colors of the disability pride flag and their meanings can be a great source of inspiration!

• Red: Physical disabilities

• Gold: Neurodiversity; cognitive and intellectual disabilities

• White: Invisible disabilities and disabilities that are undiagnosed

• Blue: Emotional and psychiatric disabilities, including anxiety, depression, and mental illness

• Green: Sensory disabilities, including deafness, blindness, lack of taste or smell, and audio-processing disorders

2. Send your fundraising page/link to your community, and take pride in your fundraising work!

3. On July 30th, we will celebrate our collective fundraising at Crossroads Park in Bellevue. You can wiggle, walk, stim, rock, roll, shake, dance, crawl, or any-way-that-works-for-your-body!

The below video gives an overview of creating a team and getting started (self-service). For white-glove service, please contact Ryan Fonda (ryan.fonda@kindering.org or 425-362-6420) to set up a team on your behalf or to receive templated messages (email, text, or social media). For team setup, please provide the following information:

• Do you want to build and captain a team, or are you individually fundraising?
• What do you want your team's name (or individual page) to be?
• There are two goals. Individual goals and team goals. What is your personal goal, and what is your team's goal? For example, Emily, the fundraiser, has a goal of $100.00. Her team, consisting of 4 other people, has a goal of $500.00.
• Photo (optional) for both yourself and your team.
• A description of your donation page (what you will share with other people to donate) and your team page; this is where all individual fundraising efforts are summarized to show the team's progress.