Hi All! This year I am taking Maryam Zahra  – strapping her to me and doing a 10 K Walk! Want to join my team? I will be walking on October 16th at 11 AM! To join 1. create a campaign here 2. Set a fundraising goal – no amount is to big or to small! 3. Send me a msg and I’ll give you details for our walk on the 16th!

If you can’t make a campaign and join me please do help by donating!! All funds will go towards supporting kids and youth with disabilities.  Also you will get a tax receipt!

This year fundraising for SMILE is crucial -Since March 2020, there has been an increase of 62% in the number of families that we support and advocate for, the majority of whom are Syrian refugees with multiple children with disabilities facing food insecurity and job loss due to the pandemic, in addition to the challenges and hardships of accessing support and services in their mother language while settling in. Recently, we have seen an increase in the number of Afghan refugees with disabilities, and we are getting all set and ready to ensure that we support and advocate for these families. Immediately, we mobilized our support and translated our documents into Pashto, Dari and Farsi.

PROGRAMS

Our services range from connecting families to public resources and available funding to helping with translations and connecting them with community organizations such as local food banks and services where the families can get their needs met without facing any criticism or discrimination. We have also officially launched a children’s hospital support program whereby we provide culturally responsive support to families whose children are hospitalized or have to make frequent visits to the hospital due to critical illnesses and/or disabilities. This program includes service navigation in multiple languages, assisting the families through a Facebook support group, through specifically catered parent/caregiver toolkits, financial assistance in the form of subsidized parking and meals, and more.

To learn more visit smilecan.org