Submitted Photo Pictured is The Glass Half Full’s founder and president, Kalee Halladay, (fifth from the right) and the 2023 Co-Ed Summer Volleyball League.The proceeds went to Nicole Barr, and the funds helped her start an organization called Rays the Barr in honor of her son who had passed away in a drowning accident in Lakewood in 2023.

In 2022, Kalee Halladay found out that a close friend was facing a difficult medical challenge, and she did her best to support her friends during this challenging time. She knew that she could do something to help. In an effort to provide financial assistance, she and a few close friends organized a volleyball tournament, and the proceeds would go to her friend.

This tournament took place in August of 2022, and it was very successful. When Kalee saw how much it helped her friends, she thought about how there’s a lot of other people in the community that are struggling too, whether from cancer, house fires, or other hardships. It was then that Kalee decided to take this fund-raising idea and turn it into an organization. Of course, she knew she couldn’t do this alone. She asked some of her friends if they would be interested in helping to create this organization. A few friends agreed to help, and The Glass Half Full was born.

In the following months, The Glass Half Full was able to secure 12 local businesses as sponsors and received donations that helped support the organization and their endeavors. During 2023, this small committee of young women organized four more fundraising volleyball tournaments, a benefit, and an anniversary gala.

At this point the Glass Half Full was successful in helping some people, but Kalee was determined to continue to help even more people in the community. In January 2024, she recruited more altruistic people. They appointed board members who make final decisions as well as committee members and chairpersons. With persistence, she and her fellow members secured more sponsors and donations, and they now have a total of 32 sponsors.

This organization is continuing to grow and helping more people, just as Kalee had envisioned. “There are so many people in our community that need support, and we want to help as many of them as we can,” she said.

This year alone, The Glass Half Full has hosted two new and exciting events. In February they held an outside volleyball tournament that took place at the Mayville Winter Festival on Feb 18. The temperature was only 16 degrees at game time, yet this group of volleyball players still played their game.

A few weeks later, The Glass Half Full had its first corn hole tournament, thankfully inside, on March 9th. Both tournaments were very successful, and the proceeds went to two local families that need support.

The Glass Half Full’s next big fundraising event will be something a little different that requires little skill, and just a little luck. The Glass Half Full is going to have their first BINGO fundraiser. There will be 10 games of BINGO with cash and prizes for the winners. The last game will be worth a full jackpot prize of $1,000 cash. Those attending must be at least 18 years of age and ID must be provided by everyone who registers to play. The doors open at noon and the first game will be at 1 p.m. To register for BINGO, visit www.facebook.com/share/XuZbLTmGkBPrVefP/?mibextid=WC7FNe to go to The Glass Half Full’s Facebook page and look for the BINGO post or contact Kalee.

In the next few months, they will be having more fundraising events. There will be a golf tournament in June, a formal anniversary gala in August, and more events to come in the fall.

To date, The Glass Half Full has helped more than 35 people and donated more than $20,000 to Chautauqua County residents since the organization first began. To find more information on The Glass Half Full events and more, go to their Facebook page or you can call Kalee at 716-426-3082.

To continue to help more people that are struggling, The Glass Half Full needs to continue to find more people that are eager to help. People interested in helping can do so in many ways. Local businesses can help by becoming sponsors or by donating money, goods, and/ or services. People can also donate money or gift cards as well as volunteering their time. Participating in the events that they have is also a big help. You can even help by sharing their Facebook posts. Every act of kindness helps The Glass Half Full help others.