History of Stephanie’s Day:

The first Stephanie’s Day event was held in 2001 in Miami . The event was conceived by CBS 11 and TXA 21 President and General Manager Steve Mauldin.

“Quite simply, Stephanie’s Day was born out of necessity,” Mauldin said. “We had two goals. The first was to provide a comfortable atmosphere for kids to enjoy some fun activities and feel accepted for who they are, and the second (but no less important) goal was to connect parents with the resources – education and therapy options, advocacy organizations, support groups and much more – necessary to help their kids reach full potential.”

Steve tells a heart-warming story about the very first Stephanie’s Day. “Stephanie and I had appeared together in the commercials informing South Floridians about the event,” Steve says. “When we arrived, a father his 16-year-old son approached us, and the young man said, ‘I saw Stephanie on TV and just wanted to give her a hug!’ The father explained to us that his son also had autism, and that Stephanie’s Day was the first event they had ever attended for families like theirs … and mine. That memory still brings tears to my eyes, and to me, it is the perfect illustration of why we hold Stephanie’s Day.”

Stephanie’s Day came to North Texas in October 2004 and has since helped thousands of local parents and children with special needs. We hope that you can join us for this very special event!