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About Us ... The GivaGeta Story
Give a smile ... Get a smile™... GivaGeta has positive "Learn By Doing" programming tools and workshops that helps you create connections and build relationships in a fun filled way.
Corporations, families, schools and youth development organizations including camps and unified sports programs in 45 states and 26 countries are having success opening the dialogue and facilitating programs with positive and interactive "Get to Know You" icebreakers, mixers, energizers, problem solving, diversity and opening and closing activities for character, leadership, family and team development.
GivaGeta, a family owned and operated business based in Glastonbury, Connecticut, was started in 2005 by Jackie and Jim Cantoni, GivaGeta Founders. The GivaGeta Mission is to help make a positive difference in peoples' lives, with the hope that together we can do our part to make our diverse world a better place.
Give a positive attitude ... Get a positive attitude™ The positive team building interactions are fostered with "Get to Know You" icebreakers, energizers, mixers and opening and closing activities through active, "experiential" learning using The World's Kindest Playing Cards™ by GivaGeta Smiles™. There are over twelve editions of regular size, oversize (5"x 7") and GIANT size (8.5" x 12") cards. Our most popular product is a self contained easy to implement GivaGeta Leadership Tool Kit. It is available in Corporate Kindness™ (aka Leadership Kindness™), Educational Kindness™ and more. You will find it engages all ages. View a summary of all the editions of The World's Kindest Playing Cards™ by GivaGeta Smiles™.
Give understanding ... Get understood™ As part of the fun, you will find short, catchy and positive ways of thinking called GivaGeta Kindness Messages™ printed on The World's Kindest Playing Cards™, Positive Pen™, Positive Pencil™ and more. Positive values and "mirror neurons" like Give a smile ... Get smile™ and Give understanding ... Get understood™ open the dialogue and get people proactively talking about character, respect, responsibility, kindness, forgiveness, appreciating diversity, leadership, teamwork and more. The universal positive values create positive thinking for positive results.
Give Teamwork ... Get Results™
In three separate GivaGeta workshops conducted in Jan/Feb 2010, participants surveyed said:
- 97% were engaged in activities that fostered interaction, communication, and cooperation
- 100% learned positive ways of thinking like a leader of character
- 100% of students were engaged in and learned valuable lessons that will help sustain them throughout their lives
- 94% learned how a school community can make acceptance acceptable
- 87.50% learned what individuals and groups can do to minimize the chances of bullying and teasing taking place
- 100% found the activities fun
Schools and camps use GivaGeta to proactively improve climate and culture and for staff professional development that transfers onto the kids for positive youth development. Corporations use it to strengthen teams and to build unity, community, connection, character, leadership and teamwork through active learning. GivaGeta team building activities help break down barriers to create connections and develop relationships. View more Positive Outcomes.
"It's a real easy way for kids to mingle and talk to each other. They get to meet each other without feeling like they are forcing it. It allows the kids to break the barriers down."
~ Bill B. Assistant Program Director.
2009 State wide implementation of GivaGeta cards
The GivaGeta Story began in 1971 with a six year old girl named Jackie, who would dot the letter "i" in her name with a special smiley face. Even as a little girl, Jackie understood the power of a smile. Her parents taught her the value of kindness and always encouraged her to show gratitude.
Give inspiration ... Get inspired™ Jackie's kindness and positive attitude was recognized when she received a Miss Congeniality Award and was voted "Best Smile" in high school. In 1992, Jackie married Jim Cantoni. A few years later they were blessed with two boys. In 2003, inspired by Jackie's special smiley, Jim created the phrase "Give a smile ... Get a smile GivaGeta" and they named Jackie's smiley GivaGeta Smiles™. They developed many more short, catchy, positive ways of thinking now known as GivaGeta Kindness Messages™. In 2005, their nine year old son Jimmy Jr. came up with the idea to put these messages onto playing cards for a Memory Match Game. Today, there are four GivaGeta Kindness editions (Educational, Family, Corporate, and Heavenly) made up of over 60 GivaGeta Kindness Messages™.
Give gratitude ... Get grateful™ The Cantoni family is very grateful as camps, schools and corporations in over 45 states and 26 countries use the GivaGeta "Learn By Doing" tools and workshops for character, leadership and team development. The GivaGeta Collection of positive products includes The Educational Kindness™ Leadership Tool Kit which includes three editions of The World's Kindest Playing Cards™, a programming book Give Teamwork ... Get Results, 36 character, leadership, family and team development activities, an assortment of Positive Pens™, Positive Pencils™, the Teamwork and Teamplay™ edition of GivaGeta Character Cards™, Smile in Your Heart Appreciating Diversity patches ... all in a GivaGeta Smiles backpack.
Give hope ... Get hope™ In 2006, about one year after the GivaGeta oval logo was created, we learned that the oval represents the law of reciprocity which states, "When you give ... the more you get in return." Believing in giving back, the Cantoni family created the GivaGeta Foundation which is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization to help children with special needs. The foundation was inspired by Jim and Jackie's son Nathan who requires extra love and care as he cannot yet sit up, walk, talk or see due to cerebral palsy, epilepsy and cortical visual impairment. A portion of GivaGeta profits is donated to The GivaGeta Foundation.
God gave Jackie and Jim a beautiful little boy whose main vehicle of communication is his smile. Nathan's smiles and giggles are contagious and shows the gift, power and love of a smile ... which is at the very core of GivaGeta's Mission of spreading more good feelings and smiles throughout the world.
With a smile, thank you for reading and letting us share The GivaGeta story with you. Please contact us to learn more.
Gratefully yours,
Jackie & Jim Cantoni
GivaGeta Founders