Nonprofit organization improving the quality of life
for children and adults with special needs

UND.com and Hannah and Friends partner together for Awareness and Compassion campaign

UND.com and Hannah and Friends joined together to promote awareness and compassion for children and adults with special needs through the Hannah's Hands campaign. Hannah and Friends is a charitable organization established by Notre Dame Head Football Coach Charlie Weis and his wife Maura in recognition of their eleven-year-old daughter, Hannah, who is globally developmentally delayed. Hannah and Friends was founded with three primary goals for individuals with special needs; to raise awareness and encourage compassion, to provide quality of life grants for low-income families, and to develop a residential community for adults with special needs. Charlie and Maura Weis recently announced that development for the residential community has been moved to the South Bend area.

UND.com, the exclusive internet source for University of Notre Dame athletics, is sponsoring the Hannah's Hands campaign through the distribution of Hannah's Hands towels at the Notre Dame versus Penn State football game on September 9th. Students from four Notre Dame dormitories -- Farley, Zahm, Fisher, and Cavanaugh Halls -- distributed 75,000 rally towels to Irish fans as they enter Notre Dame Stadium.

The campaign was termed Hannah's Hands in an effort to represent Hannah Weis's support of the Notre Dame football team, as she and many other children and adults with developmental disorders are often unable to attend sporting events in person. Based on three sets of Hannah's handprints formed into the shape of a shamrock, the Hannah's Hands towels are symbolic of the voice for all individuals with special needs.