Our Story, Month by Month: January-March

The first months of 2025 brought new energy and ideas to Easterseals. From kicking off major brand and website initiatives to launching new partnerships, trainings, and storytelling strategies, we made big strides together. Here’s how we set the stage for the year ahead.

January: Building Out 2025 

New research informed our messaging, and a website overhaul got underway. We kicked off new training, launched a big partnership with Coca-Cola, and refreshed our storytelling approach. With added resources for caregivers and smart updates to our brand tools, the team stayed nimble. Even as federal funding changes brought new challenges, our focus stayed sharp. 

• Brand research completed and shared across the network.
• NextGen Easterseals website and pilot sites for Easterseals Central Illinois, Delaware & Maryland’s Eastern Shore, and New York went live.
• As part of the Professional Development Series, Easterseals Midwest EVP/CDO and Development Leadership Network (DLN) Chair Tom Barry led the Community Project Funding session to deliver targeted grants driving local innovation. Mastermind Sessions were added by Professional Development Series co-chairs Easterseals DuPage & Fox Valley Vice President of Development Kelly Moreland and Easterseals Iowa CDO Allison Daniels, sparking fresh ideas and deeper network collaboration.
• Fundraising team sent a premium "Seals" direct mail campaign.
• Face-to-face canvassing program relaunched through June; new donor engagement tested.
• 2025 content calendar set, with a bigger focus on impact stories and building presence on the social platform, BlueSky.
• Started First Five (Make the First Five Count) brand refresh, collaborating with Director of Early Intervention Laura Harrell of Easterseals Tennessee.
• Uploaded all brand tools and templates in one place for easy access across teams.
• Coca-Cola named Easterseals a nonprofit partner for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, securing funding to expand workforce programs in host markets.
• Teamed up with The Sandwich Club to support caregivers through community resources and connection. (Sign up for free membership!)
• Issued statement on halted federal funding, sharing Easterseals Oregon’s story.
• Released a new Early Childhood Education impact video, featuring Katelyn, a student at Easterseals North Georgia. 

February: Fresh Starts, Forward Momentum 

Big changes rolled out this month—brand guidelines are on the way, our new website pilot sites are live, and social engagement keeps climbing. We launched new workshops, announced a major partnership with General Motors (GM), and spoke out on big issues from disability rights to mental health and transportation accessibility. Momentum is building across the board.

• Brand guidelines refresh in the works with the Network Brand Advisory. Updated colors, fonts, logo guidance, and messaging coming soon.
• Hosted a Sprout Social analytics workshop for custom reporting.
• Network-wide data strategy workshop led by Provisio Partners.
• Engagement and impressions up—social stats hit new highs.
• NextGen Affiliates attended a kickoff and project plan briefing for new web platform; content freeze started as teams prepared for migration.  
• Welcomed Ted Thompson as new SVP of Government Relations.
• Launched the Veteran Staffing Network Career Toolkit app.
• Announced major GM partnership supporting early childhood STEM and transportation coalition-building across Affiliate sites Easterseals Serving Chicagoland and Greater Rockford, Colorado, Southwest Florida, and Northeast Indiana.

March: New Milestones

The month brought new leadership, new campaigns, and updated tools—from a record PSA reach to smarter data and tech. Big progress for supporting the Network's community impact.

• Dr. Deborah McGaughey joined as National Director of Major Gifts & Planned Giving.
• Created new brand messaging guidance with updated language for Affiliates.
• Launched “Acceptance Begins with Understanding” campaign and toolkit.
• Released toolkit for accessible community planning with NADTC.
• Hosted workshops on content creation and cultural awareness.
• Rolled out refreshed First Five Count digital assets and templates.
• National PSA campaign reaches a 1.1 billion milestone.
• 71% of Affiliates now using Network Data System dashboards.
• Network-wide HR/IT survey led to new “Systems Encyclopedia.”
• Medicaid ad campaign saw strong engagement before key budget votes, serving more than 2.8 million impressions and 2.5 million video views across various placement types—achieving a high average video completion rate of 52%.