Christmas 2024
At our Living Well Disability Services Transforming Lives Gala on August 15, we will showcase the annual Dreammaker Award winners. The winners will be celebrated for their hard work, building awareness for the disability community and using their voices as a platform for advocacy. Today we are happy to introduce Beth Ryan and her family, our 2025 Donor Dreammaker winners.
Beth’s Daughters
Beth Ryan has been actively involved in the Living Well Gala for decades and has bought a table at the event for many years. Lucky for us, this generous spirit has been passed on to her daughters and their families who have also bought tables at the Gala. One of Beth’s daughters has contributed items to our live auction and doubled the opportunity when the original auction item garnered lots of interest. In addition to donating items, her family has actively participated in the live auction, bidding on and winning several items, including a dinner party offered by a well-known local chef. The entire family has been generous in contributing to our fund-a-need, as well. Everyone at their tables gets a workout from raising their bid numbers at the event!
In addition to attending the gala, Beth donates a $500 gift certificate to Manny’s Steak House almost yearly, her mother has knitted baby blankets for gift baskets which Beth has filled with other baby related items that she bought on her own, she is always willing to ask stores and vendors to donate goods and services, and last year she donated a $500 Delta Airlines card to help boost a live auction items value. She is a standout supporter!
Beth’s Siblings
Perhaps even more exciting, Beth has worked for Living Well for almost four decades.
She has been such a strong advocate for Living Well and the people we support that she has inspired many others to assist Living Well’s mission, too. Beth has inspired at least 10 of her family members to become employees at Living Well, including her grandson Liam who works at our Poppler home during the summer, her brother John who works at Casey Court, and her sister Sheila who works at Inndale.
Beth at the Capitol during 2025 Disability Services Day
Over the years Beth has helped in big ways at multiple homes when they were short staffed. She has also been very active in public policy advocating with legislators on the importance of services to people with all abilities. Her devotion to the people we support has led her to bring people on vacation and she even planned and hosted a wedding for a couple that lives at 3801. Years ago, Beth invited someone we support to attend a conference out of town with her and when she found that he didn’t have dressy clothes, she took him shopping for an outfit and also paid to have his haircut so he could look his best.
With the Inndale crew a few years ago at Family Fun Day
Beth has nonstop energy whether it be at work or helping out with our gala where she strives to make it the best it can be – large donations, small donations, and everything in between. She purchases many things out of her own pocket and is always dropping off new stuff.
The devotion that Beth and her family show to Living Well and people with disabilities does not stop. We look forward to celebrating them at our Transforming Lives Gala. For more information, click here.
(The Donor Dreammaker award Honors an individual, family, company or foundation whose financial support has created/generated/underwritten/provided for exceptional services that transform the lives of people impacted by disabilities).