Our Mission
The Beginning of a Mission
Madison “Maddy” Flaherty was born with her twin sister, Morgan. Although Maddy's early life appeared typical, her family eventually discovered that she was living with an extraordinarily rare neurodegenerative condition known as Cockayne syndrome.
Maddy's journey was filled with challenges.
She faced obstacles that many families of children with complex disabilities know all too well — access to specialized equipment, communication technology, therapies and resources that are often difficult to obtain and, in many cases, difficult to have covered by insurance.
But those challenges never defined Maddy.
Maddy was defined by her personality, her determination, her beautiful smile and her ability to connect with the people around her.
She communicated in her own way. She made people laugh. She formed powerful relationships with her therapists and caregivers. And she showed everyone who knew her that a child's ability to communicate should never be measured solely by their ability to speak.
Maddy passed away shortly before her fifth birthday.
But her story did not end there.
It became a mission.
From Loss to Legacy
Following Maddy's passing, her family created Maddy's Mission to Help with a purpose: to make sure that other children facing challenges similar to Maddy's would have access to resources that could make a meaningful difference in their lives.
One of our earliest and most significant partnerships developed with Orlando Health Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children.
What began as a family's desire to honor Maddy evolved into a lasting relationship with one of Central Florida's leading pediatric healthcare organizations.
Maddy's Mission made a $125,000 gift to Orlando Health Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children to help provide resources and equipment for children receiving rehabilitation services.
A centerpiece of that gift was the creation of an AAC Lending Library.
AAC — augmentative and alternative communication — gives children who cannot communicate through traditional speech additional ways to express themselves, interact with their families and participate in the world around them.
For Maddy, communication was always about much more than words.
The AAC Lending Library created in her honor helps give other children something Maddy understood so well:
A voice.
Orlando Health recognized the significance of the gift and the impact it could have on children receiving rehabilitation services. The hospital's rehabilitation team described how Maddy's legacy would allow children to explore new ways to communicate and make meaningful connections with their families and the world around them.
That is the heart of Maddy's Mission.
A Partnership That Continues to Grow
Our relationship with Orlando Health has continued to evolve beyond a single gift.
Maddy's Mission has proudly supported the work of Orlando Health and Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children, including participation in the hospital's philanthropic community and Champions Circle.
Through this relationship, we have been able to help support the broader mission of improving the lives of children and families throughout Central Florida.
We believe philanthropy is most powerful when it becomes a partnership.
Our goal is not simply to write a check.
Our goal is to identify needs, create solutions and help make resources available to children and families who need them most.