What is your superpower? This is the question Gabi Angelini often asks when speaking to audiences. After Gabi faced repeated job rejections, she and her mom, Mary channeled their frustration into purpose, by launching their own business, Gabi’s, Powered by Special Abilities. Their venture employs people with unique strengths and celebrates their talents, proving that everyone has a superpower waiting to be unleashed. Through their work, they've created a supportive environment where employees can showcase their capabilities, gain valuable work experience, and develop greater independence.

This heartfelt story highlights the incredible bond between a mother and daughter and is a powerful testament to how embracing diverse abilities can lead to both business success and personal empowerment.

Bios:

Gabi Angelini

Advocate Extraordinaire: Empowering Inclusion, Entrepreneurship, and Equality"

Gabi is the co-founder of Gabi’s, Powered by Special Abilities, a nonprofit that provides workforce training, education, and other support programs to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) to help them secure employment, contribute to society, and live a purposeful, rewarding life.

She is a champion for the Special Abilities workforce and the impact that diversity and inclusion has on the world. After high school graduation, Gabi searched and applied for many positions but no employer would hire her. Not one. Gabi came to learn that 82% of individuals with special needs are unemployed.

Gabi and her mom knew this needed to change.

As a result of this personal experience, together with her mom, Mary Angelini, Gabi co-founded her nonprofit, Gabi’s Powered by Special Abilities to help create opportunities for people with Special Abilities. She wanted to help them join the workforce and live a fulfilling and purposeful life.

Today, Gabi’s employs 40+ people with Special Abilities and partners with more than 25 companies. Gabi’s develops partnerships with logistics companies to fulfill orders through Gabi’s PALS (packing, assembling, labeling and shipping). Also, the nonprofit maintains an e-commerce and packaged coffee and products division that features a range of coffee flavors and related products through Gabi’s Grounds.

Moreover, Gabi Angelini is an award-winning entrepreneur and has received the following awards and recognitions:

2024: “Community Champion”: Gabi’s Pals, NC Down Syndrome Association

2023: “Women in Business Awards; “Entrepreneur of the Year,” Triangle Business Journal; and “Women Shaping Raleigh,” featured in Raleigh Magazine; NC Women in Business Hall of Fame

2022: “Employer of the Year,” Raleigh Mayor Maryann Baldwin’s Committee for Persons with Disabilities

2021: “Founders Award,” Doing Good at Work

2019: “Self-Advocate of the Year,” NC Down Syndrome Association

Gabi maintains strong relationships with the community, her Gabi’s PALS team of employees, and her corporate partner clients. She is also co-author of the children’s book, “Gabi the Puppy.” In addition, Gabi serves as a champion for people with special abilities and speaks at conferences. Her favorite topic is the importance of diversity and inclusion in the workforce and helping everyone find their own superpower, like she did.

Mary Angelini

Co-founder, Gabi’s Powered by Special Abilities

Mary is co-founder of Gabi’s Powered by Special Abilities, a nonprofit that provides workforce training, education, and other support programs to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) to help them secure employment, contribute to society, and live a purposeful, rewarding life.

A personal experience led her to form Gabi’s Powered by Special Abilities with her co-founder and daughter, Gabi. After high school graduation, Gabi was unable to secure employment. Literally no one would hire her. Not one person could see her special abilities, just her Down syndrome.

Mary and Gabi were determined to help shift the conversation from disabilities to special abilities, neuro-diversity, and the power of inclusion to help create employment opportunities for people in the IDD community.

What began in 2017 as a small coffee company (Gabi’s Grounds) has now grown to include a full-scale packaging, assembling, labeling, and shipping company (Gabi’s PALS), as a business solution for mid-to-large manufacturing and logistics companies. In addition, there is a drop-shipping solution for local, smaller companies.

Today, Gabi’s Powered by Special Abilities is an award-winning nonprofit organization and has a team of more than 45 people with special abilities including blindness, autism, Down syndrome, and more. Gabi’s Grounds continues to provide pop-up shops at local businesses and markets, and offers Gabi’s Coffee Club, a subscription membership to businesses and coffee lovers everywhere.

Mary is dedicated to the empowerment of the special abilities community and to help educate the world about the power of diversity and inclusion. She travels with Gabi to speak at corporate events and conferences and help inspire people to see the superpowers in all of us.

Prior to founding Gabi’s with her daughter, Mary held positions with IBM and Our Lady of Lourdes church. She enjoys kickboxing and spending time with her husband, six children and their families.