Let's Get Together
Stay active, creative, and connected with Help Us Gather (HUG)! Our community calendars feature exciting events—from exercise and arts to social hangouts—hosted by over 80 local organizations. Click below to explore programs designed for children, teens, and adults with disabilities.
Let's Be Friends
We want you to hang out with us. Check out the awesome, HUG-hosted events below.
Accessible Beaches
We all deserve a fun, relaxing day at the beach.
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Sadly, getting onto a sandy beach is either incredibly difficult or simply impossible for many individuals with mobility challenges. At HUG, we believe having a disability should never prevent a person from enjoying equal access to our natural resources. That’s why we are on a mission to ensure our beautiful beaches are safe, easy to find, and accessible for all.
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Click the button below to find a list of the best beaches in Southwest Florida that offer wheelchair access, mobility mats, accessible parking, and other amenities to ensure your next day at the beach can be enjoyed by everyone in the family.
Inspiring Entrepreneurs
They have the ambition and ability, HUG forged an avenue to success. Check out the stories of how HUG turned these talented individuals with disabilities into (paid!) models, designers, musicians and more.
Ethan Holt
Professional Model
Maxine Simeone
Accessories Designer
Milosz Gasior
Professional Pianist
Introducing “We Include”
You asked, HUG answered!
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Our successes with HUG showed us we needed to make a bigger corner of the world that embraced people with disabilities—way bigger.
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That’s why HUG created We Include, a national advocacy platform that aims to create a more inclusive world for people with disabilities.
We Include is HUG’s national platform for inclusion born out of our local success.
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This new site is full of research that’s on the cutting-edge of inclusion. You’ll find impactful interviews with celebrities, politicians, entrepreneurs, and disability influencers. And, we have curated simple and effective strategies for schools, businesses and society to include people with disabilities in every facet of life.
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We Include is a bold, empowering, and inspiring voice – and we know it’s exactly what the world needs to hear as we make a more inclusive world together.
HUG’s “How Do You Include?” Campaign
Everybody loves our HUG Ambassadors. You will, too, in this public education campaign we launched starring our inclusion champions. They’ll walk you through a first-person perspective on the beauty of inclusion and how simple it is to build a better world.
Meet Tim
People with disabilities love to give back to their communities. Here, Tim talks about his volunteer work in the cat section of the Pinellas County Humane Society. (Yes, there are cats in this video.)
Meet Lauren
Did you know people with disabilities often outperform their counterparts on the job? Here, Lauren talks about her own job and offers some helpful social tips for anyone working with someone with a disability.
Meet Will
Inclusion champion Will coaches you through how to be your best when communicating with a non-verbal person.
Meet Ethan
Need a handsome model with a stop-traffic smile and a little bit of friendly swagger? We’ve got one whose story went viral and proves inclusion works.
Meet Maxine
When we’re talking about inclusion, we mean business. Here, the owner of Sparkles by Maxine shows that people with special needs make great entrepreneurs.
Meet Kartheek
People with disabilities say a lot of valuable things. We only need to take time to listen. Here, Kartheek—a master public speaker—talks about turning people’s #1 fear into his favorite hobby.
What They're Saying About HUG
Featured Stories
Wanna know what we love at HUG? Creating a more inclusive world by showing off our amazing friends and inspiring people to embrace those of us with disabilities. The good vibes behind HUG are catching on—take a look at these top stories.
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HUG featured on FOX 13’s “What’s Right with Tampa Bay” segment for connecting those with disabilities during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Made national news. Went viral on social media. It’s Ethan Holt, our friend with Down Syndrome who landed a modeling gig with Surf Style.
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HUG coordinates ceremonial pitch for Dirk Howard in honor of father lost to cancer.
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Mark Fleming, a personal trainer with autism, owns the first gym in America catering to clients with autism—and it opened here in the Tampa Bay area. How cool is that?
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FOX national news gives a shout-out to HUG for our work with inclusion for people with disabilities.
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The solution is as simple as a connection. This video explains what we’re all about at HUG.
