Meet Kate Mardigian | Founder and Executive Director

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kate Mardigian and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kate, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
My thought process behind starting my business was, and still is, to help families caring for children and young adults with disabilities. We create for the family member(s) social, athletic, and enrichment opportunities, with volunteers to assist, which gives the parents a chance to rest, watch their children enjoy independence, and a chance to socialize with other parents.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Jacob’s Chance is a nonprofit formed in February of 2013. But, 6 years prior to creating Jacob’s Chance, we were DBA River City Buddy Ball. The mission of River City Buddy Ball, 15 years ago, was to provide year around athletic opportunities to youth and young adults, 5-23 years old, with developmental, intellectual, and/or physical disabilities. At the time, RCBB was run by volunteers only. Volunteers are the backbone of our nonprofit and we couldn’t do anything without them then, and we still cannot do it without them now! During the first 5 years of making friends with the families, I came to understand more about their struggles and fears. I began to learn about the boundaries that prevented their child from participating in activities, and the simple lack of opportunities that were available to them. For many typical families in the community, searching for activities for their kids to participate was, and still is, simple. Things like sports, enrichment, outdoor adventures, and social opportunities are not usually difficult to find. These resources were not as readily available for children with disabilities, and I knew that this had to change! We soon began to add dances, fishing, family events, and teen social events. I have met so many people on my journey that have played a HUGE role in the growth of Jacob’s Chance, one being Alison Owens. Alison’s knowledge of how a non profit works and her grant writing skills were exactly what we needed to take it to the next level. After years of volunteering my time and working a full-time job, I was able to take a leap of faith and become a full time Executive Director. This year will be 4 years since going full time, and we continue to grow leaps and bounds. In fact, during the height of COVID we expanded our programs and were able to hire a full-time program director, Brooke Hsieh. Over the years we expanded the age cap to 35 years old, and as of January 1^st, 2023, we are expanding even more and raising the age cap to 40 years old! The need for enrichment and social opportunities becomes greater as our community gets older, but opportunities also become more challenging for families to find. At Jacob’s Chance, we are a one-stop shop for it all: Fitness, social programs, enrichment, outdoor adventures, and athletics! If we have not created it – hold tight, we will! The biggest challenges we face now are the need for space for programming, as well as the need for 2 additional paid staff members. We are in the process of looking for a developer that will help with our exciting next steps toward being able to offer programming to more people in our own facility. We all know it takes money to make money. This seems to be the crossroad for so many small nonprofits that want to take it to the next level. We are different and do stand out from others because we serve ALL and offer our programs at a subsidized cost. At Jacob’s Chance, everyone feels comfortable and is able to be themselves, regardless of their diagnosis.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Oh, I love Richmond and the surrounding areas. The things on our to-do list would be visiting museums and having dinner at Tarrant’s Cafe, and walking down Tredegar, Brown’s Island, and the surrounding areas… we would make a total day of it! That day, we would have to end at Triple Crossing for pizza and a beer. I would schedule a white water rafting trip with RVA Paddlesports early the next day, then head over to Scott’s Addition for a walk about! (Breweries) I would for sure add a Short Pump shopping day. One of my favorite things to add would be spending a few nights listening to live music. To top it all off, I would not leave out a few nights of dessert at Gelati Celesti and Coco and Hazel.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?

I have always said the success of Jacob’s Chance is due to 15 years of kind hearted, passion-filled, and dedicated volunteers who truly want to make our community a better place to live. Just a few of the volunteers that have been taking this journey with me are Alison Owens, Eric McMillen, and Brooke Hsieh. Alison has been the mastermind behind raising money, writing grants, and assisting with the structure of our organization. Her guidance will always be a special part of our success.

Eric McMillen was my first athletic director. His role allowed Jacob’s Chance to grow our sports, which allowed me to focus on growing other programs.

Brooke Hsieh, our first program director. Brooke has the heart and passion for creating opportunities for the families that attend Jacob’s Chance, as well as her community. Brooke’s drive to grow our programs has been a big part of the amazing growth we are experiencing.

My family, business partnerships, friends, and the community who are always providing emotional and financial support to ensure our mission continues to make great things happen. My list of names could go on and on! I dedicate my shoutout to ALL that have supported and continue to support this blessed and amazing journey I am on!

Website: www.jacobschance.org

Instagram: jacobs_chance

Facebook: @jacobschance

Image Credits
Mandy Lawrence Photography