Thank you for helping us reach our goal of $50,000 to serve more people with aphasia!
A heartfelt thank you for helping us reach our goal! These donations will help us offer support and programs to more families living with aphasia.
Ten years ago, Mike Caputo’s life changed drastically when he suffered a major stroke leaving him without the ability to communicate and with severe physical limitations. As insurance started to run out for physical, occupational, and speech therapy, Mike found himself spending his time in front of the TV and feeling isolated and frustrated. He and his wife, Kathy, realized he was going to need something else – something meaningful. (to read more about Mike’s story, click here)
Mike and Kathy founded, Voices of Hope for Aphasia in late 2011, in St. Petersburg, Florida. They envisioned a place for people with aphasia, a language disorder due to stroke or brain injury, to come together and feel connected. The program began with:
- 4 members –> now we have grown to 60 members with aphasia, plus their families making us one of the larger aphasia centers in the US
- meetings on 2 days per week –> today we offer various programs 4 days per week
- one activity-based program and a monthly support group –> has grown to 5 main programs including educational workshops, bi-weekly resource sharing offerings for families, technology training, monthly lunches, and supported outings in the community
- one location in St. Pete –> as of 2016, we added a second location in Dunedin, FL.
As we reflect on the past ten years, we are energized by the possibilities of the next ten! To honor Mike and Kathy’s vision of serving people with aphasia, Voices of Hope for Aphasia ran a campaign to raise money to offer our programs to more people. The campaign culminated with a private, benefit event and performance of “Dixie Swim Club” at Early Bird Dinner Theatre.
Thank you for helping us reach our goal of $50,000 which will cover the costs of opening another location in South Tampa!
