My Special Place

10/29/2026

💗 Another Wonderful Fundraiser for My Special Place!

A big thank you to the Aberdeen South Ladies for organizing a Chinese Auction to benefit My Special Place!

📅 Monday, November 9
⏰ 2:00 PM
📍 Eisenhower Recreation Center

🎁 Approximately 100 items up for grabs, a 50/50 raffle, refreshments, and lots of fun!

Admission is FREE! Bring a friend and help support our mission of creating safe, supportive housing for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Please note: All attendees must present their Villages Resident ID or Guest Pass for admission.

See the flyer for RSVP details. We hope to see you there! 💗

10/21/2026

🧙‍♀️🎃 💜 A GREAT DAY FOR A GREAT CAUSE! 💜🎃🧙‍♀️

A HUGE thank you to The Villages Cheerleaders for hosting yesterday’s fantastic Halloween Bingo Fundraiser benefiting My Special Place!

Laurel Manor Recreation Center was packed with enthusiastic bingo players, creative witches’ hats, and plenty of Halloween spirit! The Cheerleaders even kicked things off with an impromptu witchy routine that got everyone into the Halloween spirit! From the creative witches’ hat contest to the raffle baskets, 50/50 drawing, door prizes, and bingo games, it was a wonderful afternoon of fun and fundraising.

It was especially heartwarming to see so many of our My Special Place friends and supporters in attendance!

💜 We are incredibly grateful to The Villages Cheerleaders for choosing My Special Place as the beneficiary of this special event. Your generosity, enthusiasm, and hard work mean so much to our organization and the individuals and families we serve.

And thank you to everyone who attended, donated, volunteered, and helped make the afternoon such a tremendous success!

💰 Stay tuned! We'll be sharing the fundraising results as soon as the final numbers are available!

💜 Our community continues to amaze us!

10/14/2026

💜 BEYOND THE FAMILY HOME: FINDING HOPE IN SPECIAL NEEDS HOUSING

For families of adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, the decision to move a loved one from the family home into residential living can be one of the most emotional decisions they'll ever make.

There are so many questions, concerns, and mixed emotions. Will they be happy? Will they adjust? Are we making the right decision? And how do we deal with the guilt that sometimes comes with letting go?

In this latest KevAdvoTech podcast, MSP board member Mike Koss sits down with two amazing moms and dedicated advocates in our local special needs community, Susan Collins and Rhonda Sherrer, who have already experienced this journey with their adult children.

They share their personal stories, the challenges and emotions they faced, what they've learned along the way, and how their perspectives have changed since the move.

At My Special Place, we recognize that this transition is about much more than finding a place to live. It's about helping families feel confident about the future and creating opportunities for their loved ones to thrive.

We hope this conversation offers encouragement, reassurance, and valuable perspective to families who are preparing for a move or are still considering what the future might look like.

💜 Please consider sharing this podcast with a family who might benefit from hearing these stories.

🎥 Read the Intro and Watch the podcast by clicking below

Two moms share their experiences moving adult children with special needs into residential living, including emotional challenges and lessons learned.

10/13/2026

We are excited to announce an upcoming fundraiser hosted by the Music in Motion dance club of The Villages to benefit My Special Place! We are truly grateful to this Club’s members for their dedication, hard work, and generous support of our mission!

Performance Highlight:
The Fantastic Dance Team from our Special Needs community will perform only at the 3:00 pm performance.
Click here to get tickets online.

https://www.thevillagesentertainment.com/ticketed-performances/get-your-kicks-on-route-66/

(Please note, if you purchase tickets online versus at The Villages box offices, there are additional fees.)

10/06/2026

💜 IN MEMORY OF OUR FRIEND ROBERT BAGDONAS 💜

We’d like to share an important research opportunity with our My Special Place community in memory of our dear friend Robert Bagdonas.

The University of Kansas Medical Center is seeking adults with Down syndrome, age 35 and older, and their caregivers for CareFit, a Zoom-based fitness and dementia caregiving study.

Robert’s mom, Julia, continues to share his experience with Down syndrome dementia, and our own Janey Chavez asked us to help spread the word about this important study.

Please see the information below for details, and feel free to share it with other families who may be interested.

📧 For questions or more information:
Janey Chavez: [email protected]
Julia Bagdonas: [email protected]

In memory of Robert. Always our friend. Always part of the MSP family. 💜

10/05/2026

🎃 ⛳ LET’S RALLY AROUND OUR FRIENDS AT CELEBRATE DIFFERENCES! ⛳ 🎃

Our friends at Celebrate Differences are doing wonderful work supporting individuals with intellectual disabilities and their families — a mission that is very close to our hearts at My Special Place.

On October 31, they’re hosting their Halloween Spooktacular Golf Tournament at Harbor Hills Country Club in Lady Lake, with a goal of raising $25,000 to help open a day program for adults with intellectual disabilities.

If you’re a golfer, grab some friends and put together a foursome. If you’re not, please consider sharing this post and helping us spread the word.

It should be a fantastic morning of golf, costumes, fun and — most importantly — supporting adults with intellectual disabilities right here in our community.

⛳ Ready to play? Registration is due by October 14! Scan the QR code on the flyer to register, or visit https://celebratedifferences.org for more information.

💜 Different organizations. Shared mission. One amazing community.

09/29/2026

Once again, we made the news! 📰
My Special Place is proud to have reached our $1.7 million capital fundraising goal — an incredible milestone made possible by the generosity of so many throughout The Villages and beyond.
Thank you to The Villages Daily Sun for once again sharing our story, and to every donor, volunteer, club, organization, family and friend who helped make this possible.
Together, we’re creating a place our special friends can truly call home. ❤️
And while our capital campaign is complete, our mission is not over — it’s entering an exciting new chapter!

09/25/2026

We are absolutely thrilled and incredibly grateful to announce that My Special Place received a phenomenal $20,000 donation from the Parrot Heads from their Charity Golf Outing held September 16 at Bonifay Country Club!

And the generosity didn’t stop there! Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram of Leesburg, one of the tournament sponsors, generously contributed an additional $1,000, bringing the total support for My Special Place to an amazing $21,000!

A very special thank you to Marsha Herring, Charity Trustee, for recommending My Special Place as a sponsored charity, and to Lisa MacLeod, Parrot Heads President, for her fantastic leadership, enthusiasm, and support in making this tremendous event such a success. The Villages Parrot Heads Club is an incredibly philanthropic and generous group whose members are committed to giving back to their community in truly meaningful and impactful ways.

We are so grateful to the Parrot Heads, the tournament sponsors, golfers, volunteers, and everyone who helped make this event possible. Your generosity will help us continue our mission of supporting meaningful and fulfilling lives for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities through inclusive living environments that promote independence, social connection, and personal growth.

THANK YOU, PARROT HEADS, for believing in our mission and making such an incredible difference!

09/24/2026

🎃 Witches, Broomsticks & Bingo! 🧙‍♀️

A big thank you to The Villages Cheerleaders for hosting this fun Halloween Bingo event with proceeds benefiting My Special Place! 💙

Join us Tuesday, October 20 at Laurel Manor Recreation Center for Bingo, prizes, raffles and Halloween fun!

🧙‍♀️ Decorate your witch hat for a chance to win a prize!

We hope to see lots of our MSP friends there! 🎃

👉 If you are interested in reserving a seat or buying a table, please reach out to Pam at 305-340-9551.

09/23/2026

Friends of My Special Place reminder:

🏈 JOIN US TONIGHT! 🏈

Please join us for our next Friends of My Special Place meeting!

This month, we’re hosting a Tailgate-Themed Potluck in honor of our dear friend, Robert Bagdonas. ❤️ Wear your favorite sports team shirt or jersey and come ready for an evening of food, fun, friendship, and team spirit!

📅 Tonight — Wednesday, September 23
⏰ 5:30 PM
📍 Big Cypress Recreation Center

🍔 Tailgate Potluck — Bring your favorite game-day bite or dish to share!

🏈 Wear Your Team Colors — Shirts, jerseys and team gear are encouraged!

❤️ Remembering Robert Bagdonas — We’ll gather together to honor Robert’s memory in a way we think he would enjoy.

🎱 Bingo — A few rounds of bingo, with prizes of course!

🎶 Jukebox Bingo Fundraiser — We’ll also talk about plans for our upcoming Jukebox Bingo Fundraiser.

Special Friends, family, neighbors, and anyone interested in My Special Place are always welcome.

We hope to see you tonight! 💙