Collaborative Partners Blog Series: 99 Balloons

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In April and May we are going to introduce several of our very experienced collaborative partners in our community who have come alongside us, our friends, their families and churches to train toward excellent inclusion of our friends and their families. You as Young Life staff and volunteers being aware of these key co-laborers is quite critical for excellence in transition. Historically, as you will read in these blogs, our community "partners” have been the link not just for our Capernaum friends but also for their family members.
We often lead with I Corinthians 12:4-11 as a call toward inclusion of our friends into the body of Christ. What if we read I Corinthians 12:4-11 through the lens of being inclusive of excellent community co-laborers to move us all toward the fullness of the body of Christ? What kind of vision could this give your area? Imagine organizations working together and our friends thriving.

We invite you to introduce yourself to the staff of these ministries if they have a location in your area, and begin to set up potential ways to collaborate as you continue to develop your transition plan with your friends. Have questions? Contact your Capernaum Divisional Coordinator for additional information.
99 Balloons
Contributor: Matt Mooney 

First of all, I think I should start by saying I love me some Young Life Capernaum.  In my hometown of Fayetteville, Arkansas, I have gotten to see the beautiful picture of what it can mean to a community.  Thank you for being a part.  It is my hope that it is only the start for you in a life full of relationships with persons with disability.

I was asked to introduce you all to some of the work that we are doing at 99 Balloons.  My wife, Ginny, and I started this organization in order to help the church become a more inclusive community for individuals and families experiencing disability.  We do this primarily through ministry models that we create for the church to implement in their community as well as global opportunities to join with us as we seek to change the story of disability throughout the world.

Ministry Models for Churches::
Our largest initiative for churches to engage is our rEcess respite model.  Through rEcess, we train and equip churches to provide respite to families experiencing disability.  Practically, this looks like a family dropping off their child with disability as well as their siblings for a night off- whereby each child with disability is paired one-to-one with a volunteer leader.  We currently have 42 rEcess sites and are constantly honored to train and equip new sites.

In addition, we are currently developing a teen model for social engagement (rEmix) as well as an adult model of ministry (bEfriend) that entails 1-to-1 pairings in a relationship with an adult with disability.

Global Work::
In addition to local ministry within their community, it is our goal to educate and activate churches to engage the realities of disability globally.  We recruit and take professional teams (therapists, educators, etc.) annually to serve in Uganda, Haiti, Nicaragua & India as well as fund projects for our partners in these locations.  Soon we are set to roll out our newest foray into global work as we launch our child sponsorship program focused on funding education for children with disability.  I invite you to watch Notable, our documentary on disability in Uganda.

The common thread throughout our work is that we believe the only way for the church to present a clear picture of the body of Christ to the world is through inclusion of our friends with disability.

Thank you for serving in Capernaum.

Your biggest fan,

Matt Mooney 

Matt and his wife, Ginny, founded 99 Balloons, an organization working with persons experiencing disability.  This work grew out of their experience with their firstborn son, Eliot, who lived for 99 days.  What began with starting a small respite night called rEcess in their community has grown into a global movement championing relationships and inclusion for persons with disabilities- with now over 40 rEcess sites across 3 countries.

In addition to serving as Executive Director of 99 Balloons, Matt speaks, writes and advocates in areas related to our shared humanity and fragility.  He is the author of A Story Unfinished- a book written by Matt about Eliot’s life and the lessons God taught them through their son.  His work with 99 Balloons has allowed him to be a proponent of inclusive education as well as church inclusion throughout Haiti, Ukraine, Uganda, India and more.  His story and work has been featured on The Today Show, National Geographic and The Oprah Winfrey Show. 


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