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This article tells the story of how friendship, respite, and shared faith shaped a growing rEcess community at Family Church in Arkansas. Through simple acts of care and long-term commitment, 99 Balloons continues to change the story of disability for families and churches alike.
Photo shared by 99 Balloons
99 Balloons is an organization seeking to change the story of disability through respite, one-to-one friendships between adults with and without disability, and global work. Beginning in Northwest Arkansas, their rEcess and bEfriend sites have scaled across the US, Canada, and Australia.
One of our rEcess Site Directors, Debbie Sutherland, has been leading a site for 13 years in the Toronto region and has relocated to Niagara. She continues to faithfully lead volunteers to engage in the story of disability through hosting a local respite night. She is looking for a new church to partner with in hosting rEcess and building real relationships in the disability community.
If this sounds like something your church would like to be part of, or you’re curious about being involved with 99 Balloons, email info@99balloons.org to be connected!
Sometimes, God weaves lives together long before we realize it.
That’s certainly true for Dana Goodall and Corey Addison, who launched a new rEcess site at Family Church Siloam Springs in Arkansas last April.
The two had known each other for years. Corey and her husband even served as student leaders to Dana’s son at a previous church. So, when Dana’s family joined Family Church in early 2024, it felt like a full-circle moment—old friends reconnecting in a new season.
Before long, Dana noticed that Corey spent Sunday mornings in a side room with her youngest daughter, Klementine, who has a disability. Out of kindness, she offered to care for Klementine one-on-one in her classroom during the service.
“That simple act was such a huge blessing,” Corey said. “It allowed me to worship and sit with my family for that one precious hour each Sunday.”
One precious hour for Corey. One relational hour for Dana and Klementine.
Dana faithfully spent time getting to know Klementine and her family in a deeper way, making church accessible to them in a way they hadn’t experienced before—spending time together on Sunday mornings, but also throughout the week.
As their friendship deepened, Dana opened up about her childhood experience as a sibling to someone with a disability. Around that same time, 99 Balloons Programs Director Sarah Coffey reached out to Corey about starting rEcess at Family Church. It was an answer to a prayer and the beginning of a shared vision now touching families beyond their own.
Since launching, this rEcess program has grown from two families to five, welcoming 17 kids total (ages 18 months to 16 years) and 25 volunteers, many of whom are students at a local university.
“They’ve become such an incredible backbone to our team,” Corey said. “It’s been beautiful to watch what God is building through this community.”
These students brought such energy to rEcess—crafting with the kids, playing large group activities, and facilitating Four Square (99 Balloons curriculum just for siblings of those experiencing disability).
These students not only serve once a month through rEcess, but they carry with them a different view of disability—one where they embrace both what makes us different and what we have in common. 99 Balloons believes that when people with and without disability get to know one another, they start to care for each other, and that changes the story of disability.
Beyond rEcess, the church has also taken steps to make every child feel welcome, purchasing a special chair with a five-point harness, which has allowed Klementine to safely join her peers in class, and Big Joe bean bag chairs for movie nights.
Family Church’s rEcess gathers again every month, continuing a story that began with a simple act of kindness and a prayer that’s still being answered.
Hosting respite is a beautiful way for the church to begin entering into the story of disability or to go deeper with what already exists. It is a tangible way to show up in the lives of families experiencing disability—to say, “we see you, we love you, and we want to do this life with you.” 99 Balloons is here for you wherever you are in the journey—reach out to info@99balloons.org to begin the conversation.
About the Author:
Sarah Coffey:
Sarah Coffey serves as the Programs Director at 99 Balloons, where she helps lead and support rEcess sites that create meaningful respite and foster genuine relationships between people with and without disability. With a deep passion for community, belonging, and the local church, Sarah works alongside families, volunteers, and church partners to help change the story of disability—one relationship at a time.
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This article tells the story of how friendship, respite, and shared faith shaped a growing rEcess community at Family Church in Arkansas. Through simple acts of care and long-term commitment, 99 Balloons continues to change the story of disability for families and churches alike.
Photo shared by 99 Balloons
99 Balloons is an organization seeking to change the story of disability through respite, one-to-one friendships between adults with and without disability, and global work. Beginning in Northwest Arkansas, their rEcess and bEfriend sites have scaled across the US, Canada, and Australia.
One of our rEcess Site Directors, Debbie Sutherland, has been leading a site for 13 years in the Toronto region and has relocated to Niagara. She continues to faithfully lead volunteers to engage in the story of disability through hosting a local respite night. She is looking for a new church to partner with in hosting rEcess and building real relationships in the disability community.
If this sounds like something your church would like to be part of, or you’re curious about being involved with 99 Balloons, email info@99balloons.org to be connected!
Sometimes, God weaves lives together long before we realize it.
That’s certainly true for Dana Goodall and Corey Addison, who launched a new rEcess site at Family Church Siloam Springs in Arkansas last April.
The two had known each other for years. Corey and her husband even served as student leaders to Dana’s son at a previous church. So, when Dana’s family joined Family Church in early 2024, it felt like a full-circle moment—old friends reconnecting in a new season.
Before long, Dana noticed that Corey spent Sunday mornings in a side room with her youngest daughter, Klementine, who has a disability. Out of kindness, she offered to care for Klementine one-on-one in her classroom during the service.
“That simple act was such a huge blessing,” Corey said. “It allowed me to worship and sit with my family for that one precious hour each Sunday.”
One precious hour for Corey. One relational hour for Dana and Klementine.
Dana faithfully spent time getting to know Klementine and her family in a deeper way, making church accessible to them in a way they hadn’t experienced before—spending time together on Sunday mornings, but also throughout the week.
As their friendship deepened, Dana opened up about her childhood experience as a sibling to someone with a disability. Around that same time, 99 Balloons Programs Director Sarah Coffey reached out to Corey about starting rEcess at Family Church. It was an answer to a prayer and the beginning of a shared vision now touching families beyond their own.
Since launching, this rEcess program has grown from two families to five, welcoming 17 kids total (ages 18 months to 16 years) and 25 volunteers, many of whom are students at a local university.
“They’ve become such an incredible backbone to our team,” Corey said. “It’s been beautiful to watch what God is building through this community.”
These students brought such energy to rEcess—crafting with the kids, playing large group activities, and facilitating Four Square (99 Balloons curriculum just for siblings of those experiencing disability).
These students not only serve once a month through rEcess, but they carry with them a different view of disability—one where they embrace both what makes us different and what we have in common. 99 Balloons believes that when people with and without disability get to know one another, they start to care for each other, and that changes the story of disability.
Beyond rEcess, the church has also taken steps to make every child feel welcome, purchasing a special chair with a five-point harness, which has allowed Klementine to safely join her peers in class, and Big Joe bean bag chairs for movie nights.
Family Church’s rEcess gathers again every month, continuing a story that began with a simple act of kindness and a prayer that’s still being answered.
Hosting respite is a beautiful way for the church to begin entering into the story of disability or to go deeper with what already exists. It is a tangible way to show up in the lives of families experiencing disability—to say, “we see you, we love you, and we want to do this life with you.” 99 Balloons is here for you wherever you are in the journey—reach out to info@99balloons.org to begin the conversation.
