Driving the inclusion revolution forward
In 2024, Brightspot continued its in-kind support of Special Olympics highlighted by milestone launches for a variety of websites that showcase and amplify the organization’s impact around the globe. Our 16-plus-year partnership is grounded in a shared commitment to inclusion, empowerment and celebrating the achievements of individuals of all abilities.
The road to Turin
The first launch of 2024 came in June with a new website for the 2025 Special Olympics World Winter Games, which will take place from March 8-15 in Turin, Italy. The new site enables the Games Organizing Committee to share important news about the Games, recruit thousands of volunteers to bring the event to life and serve as a vital hub of information for athletes, volunteers, families and spectators to make the most of their experience.
Creating a more inclusive world
In October, a revamped Center for Inclusive Health website successfully launched. The new site provides Special Olympics Health with a fresh look and supports their work of developing and sharing resources and tools to increase and normalize the inclusion of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in mainstream health care and health promotion services and activities.
Fueling the flame of hope
The final new Special Olympics site of the year, which launched in November, was a complete redesign and replatforming for the Law Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics (LETR). LETR engages law enforcement officers worldwide to champion acceptance and inclusion for individuals with intellectual disabilities, starting with their local communities, and serves as the largest fundraiser for Special Olympics. Ahead of its 2024 International Conference, Brightspot migrated and launched a new site that will allow the LETR team to promote its annual conference, increase public awareness, create and share resources with LETR chapters across the world, and highlight its successes as the largest fundraising arm of Special Olympics.
Each site we launched represented a step forward in connecting communities, sharing inspiring stories and providing vital resources to support Special Olympics’ game-changing work. As we look ahead to 2025, we are excited to continue this meaningful collaboration, leveraging technology and innovation to further the mission of Special Olympics.
Empowering athletes, one volunteer at a time
Brightspot's commitment to inclusion and support for Special Olympics extended far beyond the digital realm. Through volunteer opportunities and Special Olympics Unified Sports, Brightspot employees fostered meaningful connections and created lasting memories on and off the playing field.
Brightspot once again celebrated inclusion through its annual Spread the Word Inclusion Global Activation Day on Wednesday, March 6. Led by Brightspot QA & Content Specialist and Special Olympics athlete, Rose Pleskow, employees from across the company pledged to spread inclusion in their day-to-day lives. The event kicked off with inclusion-themed bingo and ended with an ice-cream social and a presentation from Special Olympics Virginia Global Messenger, Jamie Spiering, who discussed the importance of inclusion and using respectful, people-first language.
Later in March, Brightspot’s Colorado-based employees volunteered at Special Olympics Colorado’s 2024 State Games to support the alpine skiing and snowboarding competitions at Copper Mountain. On-hill volunteers assisted with course setup, gatekeeping, recording time and keeping the energy high on the hill. Meanwhile, back at the lodge, off-hill volunteers worked on the awards team to present awards and ribbons to the 250 competing athletes from across the state.
When a storm rolled in Saturday night and sent many event volunteers home early, the Brightspot team made the decision to brave the weather and return for the second day of competition on Sunday. Their commitment was instrumental in facilitating the second day's events.
Volunteering at the 2024 Special Olympics Colorado State Games was a highlight of our winter. The energy and joy shared at the event were so impactful that my daughter and I decided to stay an extra day to continue volunteering. One standout moment was seeing the athletes' unwavering determination and pure excitement — it was a reminder of the power of sports to bring people together and inspire us all.
Brightspot also hosted two different Unified Events throughout the year, fostering camaraderie and meaningful connections between employees and Special Olympics athletes. In the winter, Brightspot hosted a Unified Bowling event at The Branch in Leesburg, Virginia, where 14 Brightspot employees were paired with 14 Special Olympics athletes for a night of friendly competition and shared experiences. Laughter and cheers filled the lanes as participants celebrated strikes, spares and gutter balls together.
Building on the success of this event, Brightspot organized the company’s first-ever Unified Bocce night at Potomac Green in Ashburn, Virginia. After sharing a meal, participants kept the good times rolling as they played bocce while getting to know each other.
On Saturday, September 14, a dedicated group of Brightspot volunteers participated in the 2024 Dulles Plane Pull, a fun-filled and impactful event benefiting Special Olympics Virginia. The team of 12 spent the morning running the Kids Truck Pull, a fun variation of the marquee event, where children enthusiastically tested their strength by pulling a full-sized dump truck! Volunteers also played a vital role in ensuring the smooth operation of the Kids Zone, where they managed activities, engaged with families and kept the area organized and welcoming. This volunteer effort not only helped the event run seamlessly but also brought smiles to countless young faces and created a positive experience for all involved.
2024 Special Olympics Virginia Events
Volunteering with Special Olympics continues to be a joy for Brightspot employees, and we look forward to more opportunities to connect with Special Olympics athletes through meaningful volunteer experiences in 2025 highlighted by the 2025 Special Olympics World Winter Games.
Building brighter futures
In 2024, Brightspot proudly continued its partnership with Buzz Aldrin Elementary School in Reston, Virginia, by supporting the school and its students through a variety of unique efforts. Brightspot’s active partnership showcases its commitment to giving back and investing in the next generation.
The power of mentorship
At the heart of Brightspot’s partnership with Aldrin Elementary School is our mentorship program. This program, which runs for the entire school year, is designed to provide consistent, hands-on support for students and teachers in the classroom. Every week, Brightspot volunteers dedicate an hour to working in both a second-grade and a fifth-grade classroom, focusing on strengthening students’ math skills and building their confidence in the subject.
The [mentorship] experience is very fulfilling and rewarding and I loved working with the kids one-on-one whenever I would go in there. I loved getting to build those relationships.
For the second graders, the mentorship sessions emphasize foundational skills like addition, subtraction and understanding patterns, often incorporating games and activities to make learning fun and engaging. In the fifth-grade classroom, our volunteers help students navigate more advanced topics such as fractions, decimals and introductory algebra and geometry.
Full STEAM ahead
On March 21, Brightspot volunteers helped facilitate the first-ever STEAM night at the school. The event featured numerous interactive stations that encouraged students to problem solve and think outside of the box. At one station, students had to build a functional bridge made entirely out of cookies, while other stations challenged them to build boats or even small submarines with recycled items such as water bottles, straws and plastic cups.
Overall, it was a rewarding experience for our team, who got to witness the students’ excitement and enthusiasm firsthand. Brightspot is proud to support initiatives that encourage young learners to explore STEAM fields and foster a love of discovery and innovation that will serve them in the future.
Inspiring future generations
On April 5, Brightspot also participated in Aldrin’s Career Day, with four employees, representing a wide range of careers, providing insights about their professional experiences to eager fifth- and sixth-grade students
Brightspot Director of Content, Alistair Wearmouth, spoke about the art of storytelling and how impactful content can connect people. Senior User Experience and Visual Designer, Lindsey Shields, captivated the students with eye-catching designs as she explained and demonstrated how design and UX/UI influences how people experience websites, apps and other products.
Principal Software Engineer, Xhama Vyas, got technical with the students, explaining the basics of building websites and applications, using simple metaphors and interactive activities to showcase how coding turns ideas into reality. To finish the day, Brightspot’s Chief Financial Officer, David Bultema, masterfully broke down the complexities of finance into kid-friendly concepts. He explained how managing budgets and resources helps a company grow, emphasizing the importance of math, critical thinking and teamwork in his daily work.
I truly enjoyed presenting at Career Day at Aldrin Elementary. Sharing my passion for finance and breaking it down into concepts kids can understand was incredibly rewarding. Seeing their curiosity and enthusiasm reminded me how important it is to inspire and empower the next generation to dream big and think critically.
The event offered an engaging platform for students to learn about various career paths, and our team came away mightily impressed by the future content strategists, UX designers, software engineers and financial professionals that they met.
Rooted in service
In late April, Brightspot volunteers ventured to Aldrin for our sixth annual beautification day. On a sunny spring day, our team worked side-by-side with students around the school property weeding, planting, mulching, building compost compactors and creating a new commemorative garden area.
In addition to our in-person volunteer activities, Brightspot once again extended its support to Aldrin Elementary with our annual back-to-school drive. In order to equip every student with the tools they need to succeed, Brightspot employees collected and filled over 60 backpacks for students from kindergarten through sixth grade with the necessary school supplies.
Brightspot is proud to continue supporting the Aldrin Eagles in meaningful ways that uplift students and help them reach their full potential.
Supporting those in need
Over the past decade, Brightspot employees have helped feed and provide vital necessities to thousands of people across our nation’s capital and beyond. In 2024, we continued this legacy by supporting organizations like Cornerstones, the Greater DC Diaper Bank, Arlington Food Assistance Center, the Salvation Army, the Austin Diaper Bank, the HopeLine and Nourishing Hope.
Filling plates, filling hearts
One of the most popular volunteer events throughout the year is packing lunches for those experiencing homelessness. Twice last year, employees gathered at headquarters to prepare lunches in support of our neighbors at the Cornerstones Embry Rucker Shelter.
Building on this passion for feeding others, we dedicated 85 hours to volunteering at food banks in 2024. In April and November, volunteers at the Arlington Food Assistance Center (AFAC) bagged beans and sweet potatoes to feed incoming clients. In December, our Chicago team joined the action by volunteering at Nourishing Hope’s El Mercadito location, where the group helped clients shop for food, stocked shelves and unpacked deliveries.
Providing essentials for families in need
In May, Brightspot's Austin, Texas, employees visited the Austin Diaper Bank, where they packed over 5,000 diapers for Texas families. Not to be outdone, 14 volunteers later visited the Greater DC Diaper Bank warehouse in Maryland, where they packed over 9,000 diapers. Our top diaper packaging team, however, was our New York group that returned to the HopeLine in the Bronx to help sort and package over 12,000 diapers. This event followed a company-wide effort to restock the HopeLine’s shelves — inundating the organization with much needed items such as diapers, wipes, snacks and children's books ahead of our in-person volunteer event.
As a first-time volunteer at Greater DC Diaper Bank, I didn’t fully know what to expect. Hearing a local mother share her struggle to provide basic necessities for her child deeply moved me, especially as a mother myself. It made me grateful for resources like GDCDB that help ease the burden for families. Beyond diapers, the organization offers so much more, and I was amazed by how thoughtfully and efficiently it operates. The experience left a lasting impression, and I can’t wait to volunteer again.
Delivering holiday joy
Brightspot employees closed out the year by continuing one of the company’s most cherished traditions — participating in the Salvation Army’s Angel Tree program. This year, 90 employees adopted 133 Angels, generously providing clothes, toys and other items to bring holiday joy to children in need. On December 13, an additional team of ten volunteers traveled to the Salvation Army warehouse to help distribute these and other gifts to thousands of local families.
From ensuring families have nourishing meals to providing diapers, clothes or toys to children in need, Brightspot continues to live its values and show its commitment to making a meaningful difference in the lives of children.
Honoring those who serve
In 2024, Brightspot continued to support organizations that serve veterans and their families, including the Boulder Crest Foundation, Holistic Horsemanship Services and Honor Flight Chicago.
Caring for heroes at Boulder Crest
We book-ended our year with volunteer days at the Boulder Crest Foundation’s Bluemont, Virginia, campus. The Boulder Crest Foundation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting veterans, first responders and their families through innovative programs that promote mental health, resilience and post-traumatic growth. In January, we kicked off our year of service at Boulder Crest with a post-holiday volunteer event, where we cleaned and stored holiday decorations to help reset the property for the New Year. Later in December, we returned to decorate the cabins and lodges to spread cheer to the heroes and their families visiting the retreat during the holiday season.
Horses, healing and helping hands
In June, a team of Brightspot volunteers spent the day in Purcellville, Virginia, supporting Holistic Horsemanship Services (HHS). HHS is a nonprofit organization that provides Equine Assisted Learning and Equine Assisted Activities therapies to individuals facing life challenges, including veterans and first responders, to promote personal development and healing through interactions with horses. During our visit, the crew assisted with seasonal farm chores such as cleaning and organizing the barn and moving rocks to improve drainage and ensure the safety of the horses.
Spending time at HHS is always a meaningful experience. Not only do participants gain valuable insight into Equine Assisted Learning and its therapeutic benefits, but they also have the opportunity to experience it firsthand. Through her work, HHS Founder and Executive Director, Adrienne Freeland, emphasizes the importance of mindfulness, breathing, self-care and understanding how our energy can influence those around us.
Greetings and gratitude
This year, Brightspot also had the honor of connecting with Honor Flight Chicago. Honor Flight Chicago is a nonprofit organization dedicated to honoring and thanking war veterans by providing them with a memorable, all-expenses-paid trip to Washington, D.C., to visit the national memorials dedicated to their service and sacrifices.
In August, Brightspot served as greeters for an Honor Flight arriving at Dulles Airport. To prepare, Brightspot employees created handmade signs to salute the heroes upon arrival. On the day of the flight, the crew donned patriotic gear, and with signs and flags welcomed the arriving World War II, Korean War and Vietnam War veterans. It was a special and moving experience for everyone involved.
As the child and grandchild of veterans, and as someone who once worked closely with active and retired military members, I'm grateful for the chance to serve and honor those who have served us. I am particularly grateful for the opportunity we had during the Honor Flight welcoming ceremony to shake the veterans' hands and look each one in the eyes as we thanked them for their service. Each veteran took our thanks differently, but I felt we connected with them in those moments and were able to convey many things — gratitude, appreciation, admiration and more.
Brightspot’s deep appreciation for the sacrifices made by veterans and their families is demonstrated by our continued efforts to support and honor those who have given so much to our country. In 2025, we look forward to continuing to identify and support organizations that provide vital resources to the brave men and women who have served our nation.
Looking ahead to 2025
As we turn the calendar to 2025, we are energized by the impact we have had over the past year and eager to continue to expand our commitment to service by connecting with new organizations and strengthening and growing our existing partnerships.
