Brightside: Run Saniyah Run
NaNa's Cotton Candy Kloudz
DELAWARE – Many times, parents need assistance with their little ones, even more so when they have a child with special needs. On this week’s edition of the Brightside brought to you in part by Choptank Electric, we hear how a local woman is using a difficult situation to be that helping hand.
Humble Hospitality
Greeting us with a smile and southern hospitality, Gia Love says having a child with special needs is tough but losing that child can be devastating. “It’s hard, I miss my daughter, I love her, I miss her. I wish she was right here with me, but she is…”
Despite the pain she’s endured, she says her daughter’s life gives her something to live for “So now Saniyah is living her best life ever. So, while God has her with him, I’m going to do what I can do to help all the parents, and I’m never going to stop. This is my mission, to help each one because it’s stressful.”
Silent Suffering
Gia’s daughter Saniyah suffered from multiple disabilities, but Gia said she could still light up the room. Her non-profit, Run Saniyah Run helps the parents get through the hard times.
“She lived a long life for herself. They said she would only have 3 years; she outdid that… As a parent, you always want what’s best for your child. As much therapy and things, I could do, she still would try to run- we’d say, “Run Saniyah, run!”. That’s where the name came from, and she was non- verbal, but she had a big spirit.”
Saniyah passed just a month before her 12th birthday. Gia says those years gave her the strength to help families now with Run Saniyah Run. From taking people into her home, to giving them the shirt off her back she says she can’t just sit by when she sees families struggling.
“The resources that they need are like gift cards, gas cards, food vouchers, a lot of them are trying to find a place to live, they’re in hotels, they’re outside. We’ve taken more people in- like our home has become a pathway to success. I just don’t want to see the struggles.”
Cotton Candy
Na Na’s Organic Candy Kloudz is how they fund that assistance. They sell cotton candy to help parents, and many of their special needs children get to help. During the summer some of those kids assist labeling
and distribute the 40 flavors also known as “A little taste of heaven”. She says treats like these are perfect for children who can’t normally have them.
“We don’t use dye’s, there’s no artificial flavors; there’s no gluten, it’s vegan. It’s the healthiest that you can get … And it works well for children that can’t chew really well. Like Saniyah had issues with chewing certain snacks so when she got a hold of cotton candy, and it melted in her mouth her face lit up, she didn’t have to say a word. I knew what it was.”
Her van helps deliver supplies families need, and it takes the entire community “If they have a service, they can provide for a family. If they do housekeeping because that’s another thing if there’s home is a mess, they call us, we dispatch housekeeping. If someone knows how to fix breaks, do an oil change, it’s those type of things that make a difference for a parent.”
Collective Community
She says she’s going to continue the work- but has a request for the residents of Delmarva. “Understand the needs of the families, that if they have a family in their own neighborhood they know has a special needs child, help them. A lot of times they’re not going to ask…It takes a village you know, and not everything is money related. It’s the heart, it’s the heart and that’s what we need.”
Gia says Run Saniyah Run will continue to focus on the bright side. Fundraising efforts continue, and if you can give, please do.
