On a stunningly beautiful fall evening, SPARC participants arrived at their gala. Dressed in creative cocktail attire, they graced the red carpet leading into the grand ballroom of the Washington Dulles Airport Marriott. It was a dream come true for the young adults.

SPARC is the acronym for Specially Adapted Resources Clubs. It is a nonprofit organization that provides vital day programs for adult participants with severe and multiple disabilities, and the evening of Saturday, Nov. 4, was their 2023 Gratitude Gala. The young adults planned the event themselves because they believed in the mission of SPARC, “Nothing about us without us," and they had two goals for the gala.

“The event was created by our participants as an answer to the question,’What can SPARC do to help you live the life of your dreams?’ Overwhelmingly, they wanted a sparkling event, pun intended, at which they could showcase their talents, make new friends, socialize, laugh, have fun, and dance however they fancied,” said Ellen Dyke, SPARC's board chair.

Another goal of the reception-style gala emerged: everyone deserves a chance to attend SPARC. The gala raised funds for SPARC's cost-effective program, which assists young adults who have outgrown the K–12 system's special education support and are ineligible for other community-based programs that help people with severe disabilities.

SPARC’s public-private partnership with Fairfax County is an alternative to the Medicaid model. It provides a choice for many adults with severe disabilities who do not fit into traditional day support programs funded by Medicaid.

The reason SPARC participants called their event the "Gratitude Gala," Dyke said, was that they wanted to express their gratitude to all of the attendees, sponsors, elected officials, and others who helped them realize not only their dream for the evening but also their concern for others and their willingness to give of their time, energy, financial resources, and, above all, their humanity.

Mark Ingrao, interim CEO and president of the Dulles Regional Chamber and chair of the Reston Hospital board of directors, served as auctioneer for the evening’s live auction while the silent auction continued in the hallway. Items in the silent auction included original wheelchair action art by SPARC participants. Jonah, one of the artists, said, "Everyone at SPARC can paint. Green represents the season, spring, when leaves begin to emerge.” From choosing the bright paint colors, applying them with a paint roller extension pole, to using the tires of their wheelchairs to paint instead of brushes, the artists created original patterns across the painting papers that provided a canvaslike surface with no buckling. A completed work, matted and framed above shows the artist’s wheelchair tracks and was one of many sold during the silent auction.

From the roast beef carving station to the crispy chicken sliders, black-eyed pea hummus with vegetable crudites, and the dessert display of miniature cupcakes, chocolate truffles, and petit fours, SPARC participants planned every aspect of the gala. Award-winning chefs at the hotel prepared all of those dishes and more. The hotel’s wait staff came forward as volunteers to support the fundraiser, serving the guests and thereby helping to cover the organization's costs. Guests noticed the event venue's all-around inclusive layout — wheelchair accessibility, stage ramp, and deliberate lack of high-top tables.

As master of ceremonies and emcee, Jim Dyke oversaw the proceedings. “You have given your time, energy, and wherewithal to celebrate some of the most important, courageous, but often forgotten people in our community and, at the same time, make their dreams come true,” Dyke said.

Dyke named the sponsors, including the Claude Moore Charitable Foundation, Dominion Energy, Google, Tullman Family Office, Washington Gas, and The Washington Group Special Care Planning Team. Dyke told how Sen. Janet D. Howell (D-Fairfax) received the first SPARC Hero Award this past June and set a high standard for other recipients. According to Dyke, Howell’s leadership resulted in the 2023–2024 Virginia state budget including, for the first time, an annual $250,000 line item for SPARC, positioning it to become a pilot program for Virginia.

“SPARC has changed the long-term care blueprint for young adults with severe disabilities by providing a safe, caring environment where they learn and have fun together,” said Rose Mario Risley, chair of Fairfax Area Long-Term Care Coordinating Council. “The SPARC model is designed to provide access to community services, individualized supports, and other forms of assistance that promote self-determination.” 

SPARC has five clubhouse locations: Fairfax, McLean, Reston, Vienna, and Arlington.

Katherine Montgomery, a SPARC participant and secretary of the SPARC board, took to the stage, joining Dyke, as did U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, Sen. Richard L. Saslaw, Adam Toobin, Ellen Dyke, and Mark Ingrao auctioneer. Montgomery handed Kaine the award and said, “Thank you, Senator Kaine, for being a champion."

Montgomery commended Kaine for realizing the vital roles that family caregivers and direct care providers play in the lives of individuals with disabilities. She expressed her gratitude to him for his bill, the Supporting Our Direct Care Workforce and Family Caregivers Act, which directs the Department of Health and Human Services, through the Administration on Community Living (ACL), to develop a national care center for the direct care workforce and family caregivers. It affects not just SPARC members but also individuals with disabilities and chronic medical conditions.

The SPARC Hero Award is given to a person who has tirelessly worked to fill the huge hole in our social safety net that ignores and neglects far too many citizens and who works to remove barriers when others have declined to act. “It’s very difficult to find direct care professionals because of the lack of compensation and the ability to provide a living wage,” Montgomery said.

SPARC honored Saslaw with the Lifetime Achievement Award. Jim Dyke said that for this award, SPARC honors those talented, committed, and visionary individuals who have dedicated their careers and devoted their time and energy to improving the lives of others.

“Individuals who have had a major positive imprint on our community and whose actions and accomplishments have been transformative. If you put those guidelines into Google, no doubt up will pop Senator Dick Saslaw,” said Dyke.

Toobin presented Saslaw with the award and told Saslaw what his support meant to him and his friends. It meant that when he had COVID, he could join his SPARC friends from home on his computer and was still able to participate in the activities.

Shawn Flaherty, a board member at large and communications chair, reported that as of Monday, Nov. 6, SPARC had raised $152,000 during the gala.
SPARC offers day programs five days a week. Programs include a curriculum based on daily living activities like continued education, skill building, exercise, outings, cooking, music, art, lectures, discussion groups, and more. The annual cost for each participant is $9,000, compared to an average of $39,000 per year in publicly funded costs for a program through Medicaid.