Mission
Always B Smiling strives to create smiles for children, teens and young adults with disabilities and health challenges and their families.
Programs and Services
- Always B Smiling Inc. is a Nonprofit Organization established in 2020 with the mission of creating smiles for children and families with disabilities and health challenges in the greater Pittsburgh area. Always B Smiling was founded by Dean and Kristin Huibregtse in honor of their son Bennett who passed away in July of 2020. Bennett had many struggles in life including 2 Kidney transplants, Cerebral Palsy, Cortical Vision Impairment, and Intellectual Disability. When Bennett passed, they made a promise that they would continue to share his smile with the world and in doing so, bring smiles to so many others. Bennett loved a good laugh while flashing his amazing smile and that is the mission of Always B Smiling....to bring smiles to the ones who need it the most.
- Always B Smiling offers support and experiences to an underserved population, over 60,000 children, teens and young adults living with disabilities and health challenges in the greater Pittsburgh area. Our goal is improving the mental, emotional, and social quality of life for the Pittsburgh's region's children, teens and young adults with disabilities and health challenges. We know when this goal is achieved because the smiles start happening.
- There are several areas where we create smiles:
- B Active: B Active is designed to get our participants active and moving, encouraging experiences that promote the individual and their family being well together. Children, teens and young adults with limited mobility enjoy a family bike ride on the Montour Trail from the front seat of an adaptive bike, powered by a trained volunteer. We end the Bike ride with an ice cream social. This experience allows the participant, siblings, mom, and dad an opportunity to experience a family outing that they generally don’t get the opportunity to experience. Being outdoors in nature brings an element of calmness, relaxation and freedom which leads to an improved mental state. Always B Smiling is partnering with Fine Art Miracles to offer outdoor therapy with an opportunity to move and have fun. This program will provide the benefits of creative art therapies and social robotics to people of all ages with a concentration on serving those with special needs. FAM uses fine art lessons, art therapy, music therapy, dance & movement therapy, multi-sensory sessions and FAMbots (social robot enhanced learning), to improve the lives of our participants and their family.
- B Independent: B Independent addresses the need to develop independent life skills allowing our participants to become more active and have a meaningful contribution to the community. We do this through various pop-up programs on the Montour Trail. In partnership with The Special Barkery, a Pittsburgh-based business that makes homemade dog treats, owner Breanna a former Special Needs Teacher, will lead the program on Friday mornings. A team of volunteers will work with our participants to bake, package and sell dog treats.
- B Together: B Together brings children, teens and young adults and their families together for a fun, interactive event supporting social well-being. Every experience promotes family time, and also gives an opportunity for inclusion in the community through a buddy program.
- B Supported: B Supported is a way to create smiles for children and their families so they focus on something other than their health challenges. Support is given to children receiving treatment or facing an extended hospital stay.
- *Buddee Bags – while Children’s Hospital provides extensive care for children, Buddee Bags were designed to bring smiles to the faces of kids facing longer stays. Bags include everything from Beats headphones and plush blankets to stuffed animals and activity kits designed to bring comfort during their stay.
- *Directed Funds – in collaboration with the Children’s Hospital, Always B Smiling helps support the needs of families with children facing extended hospital stays or frequent hospital visits.
- To create many more smiles, our future vision is to have a dedicated activity and learning center on the Montour trail. Establish and operate a dedicated facility on the Montour Trail where Always B Smiling will enhance our existing programs and expand on them, including but not limited to operating a café that supports life skills for teens and young adults, a horticulture program, trail programs and seasonal activities that are not currently offered. This center would be fully handicap-accessible and sensory-friendly and provide families the opportunity to gather in a safe, welcoming environment while enjoying the beauty offered on the Trail and surrounding areas.
Primary Revenue Sources
Fundraising and Grants
Primary Fundraising Event
Miles for Smiles 5k walk in July and B Together event in February
2022 Financials
| Federal Tax ID | 85-3823890 |
| Revenue | 194239 |
| Expenses | 73194 |
| Net Assets | 181433 |
Contact
| Name: | Kristin Huibregtse |
|---|---|
| Title: | Executive Director |
| Email: | kristin@alwaysbsmiling.org |
| Website: | alwaysbsmiling.org |
| Phone: | 412-303-2182 |
| Address: |
304 Pine Valley Drive Bridgeville, PA 15017 |
This website contains an organizational snapshot, as well as links and contact information, for each of our participating charities. We have also included the tax identification number for each charity so Donors wishing to review more detailed financial and governance information may access the Form 990 for that charity via irs.gov.