Wednesday Happenings

Greetings friends! So what's the latest? Well, yesterday I was at Lowell Police Department dropping off another donation of stuffed animals, books and coloring books/crayons. We donated over 250 items. They are always happy to have our donations. Lowell is one of the larger departments that we donate to. Here is a photo from our donation.

In other news, we had a great meeting on Friday about our fashion show- I met with the marketing team at Assembly Row, the event stylist, the event set designer and the head of the fashion retail department at the New England Art Institute- who is helping us by providing their fashion students to run all the backstage details for the fashion show. Everyone is really excited about the event and really committed to making it a success. I think this is going to be the best one that we've ever had! Ticket sales are moving along nicely. We've filled all our spots for models which is great. We have some great marketing partnerships coming up. I'm happy that we're in a good place for the event, but I still get anxious, I get nervous that ticket sales will suddenly dry up and we'll have an amazing show and no one to watch it. I know that won't happen, but still, I worry.

Well, that's the latest for tonight. I know this is just a short post, but I have a few work things that I need to catch up on. Until tomorrow friends...

Latest and Greatest

Greetings friends! So what's new? Well, I was on vacation all of last week- went on an exciting trip to Miami and a Caribbean cruise. It was my first time to both places and it was amazing. It was lovely to get away and enjoy seeing somewhere new and spending time at some amazing beaches. It's amazing how wonderfully warm the water is down there! It is such a good thing to take time away from work. It helps give you a different perspective and it is a good time to think about things. I came back feeling excited and inspired. The only downside to coming back is that there is lots and lots to do when you get back. So, I'm trying to catch up and get back on track.

We are only a month away from our spring fashion show. The first major email blast to our Smiling Stiletto members went out today and that generated a nice little bump in ticket sales. I'm still looking for a few more models for the event and we have a few more spots available for sponsorship. We have a great partnership with Yelp for the event. They will be featuring it in their weekly newsletter the week before the event. Yesterday, I filled out the submission form. It took me a while because I wanted to make the posting as catchy as possible. You have to provide a sub headline of 10 words or less along with a paragraph of 100 words describing the event. I kept playing around with a different headline to see which one I would like the best if I was reading the event for the first time. It took me a while today to get the wording right for our email blast for the fashion show. I keep editing- sending sample emails to myself so that I could open it as if I was looking at it for the first time. It is amazing the difference it makes when you send it to yourself. You can keep staring at it when it's in the editing mode, but when you open it as if you were seeing it for the first time it sparks something in the brain. I sent it to myself 5 times and made changes after each time. The events are all so important to us and it takes a lot of work to get people to show up.  Everything needs to be done the best way that I can in order to ensure that we get a great turnout and raise the most money that we can.

Well, that's the latest for tonight. I'm off to sort a few more stuffed animals that arrived in the mail- there were 16 boxes of stuffed animals waiting for me at the post office when I returned. Then, I need to catch up on a few emails. I had intended on doing some grant research as well, but my eyes are getting tired, so I don't think I'll get to that tonight. Until tomorrow friends...

A Very Special Request

Greetings friends! So I wanted to share with you a request for stuffed animals that we received. It's a request that sums up exactly why we do our work. Last Friday, I received an email from a police sergeant in St. Paul, Alaska. On Monday morning, I received a phone call from the sergeant. He was following up and said that he had found us online and asked for help with a donation of stuffed animals for the children they encounter in their community. He told me that St. Paul was an island located 300 miles off the coast of Alaska. The island only has 1000 residents and a very small police department- I think he said it was only 4 officers. He said that there is an alcohol problem on the island and they go on almost daily calls involving domestic incidents, with most of the calls involving families with children. He said they were in desperate need of some help for the children. The sergeant wanted to be able to give the children a stuffed animal to help comfort them. His email was so touching and his call was just as heart warming. This is exactly why we do our work, so that the people who respond to situations involving children are able to give them an item to comfort them and take some of the fear and anxiety away. It makes me so proud to know that a department so far away wants to be a part of our work and sees the value of giving stuffed animals to the children then encounter. I love hearing from police officers who really care and want to make a difference in the lives of children. It is tough work that they do every day and I am happy to be a part of their efforts to bring a smile to a child.

So tomorrow, I will be packing up stuffed animals with my new intern and zooming down to the post office with them. I'm not sure how many boxes yet, at least three. I also want to add some coloring books/crayons. It's expensive to mail stuffed animals and it's going to cost a lot to send them this island, 300 miles off the coast of Alaska, so if you would like to help with a donation towards the mailing cost, the would be much appreciated! You can make a donation easily with PayPal. Our email address to send a donation through PayPal is: cpisacane@projectsmile.org

Well, that's the latest for tonight. I'm off to catch up on some work and start brainstorming some ideas for an exciting event that I'm heading up with DCF. More info to come next week! Until next time friends...

Latest and Greatest

Greetings friends and welcome March! February was a pretty dreadful weather month with all the snow, so I'm happy that we are onto March and hopefully some nicer weather. The days are definitely getting longer and that is always  a good thing. It's been so long since I blogged and I'm happy to be back writing. So what's new? Well, things are chugging along nicely. I am so excited for our 4th Annual Step into Spring fashion show that we are working with Assembly Row on. It is going to be an awesome event on Friday, May 1, 6:30pm. Assembly Row is the new shopping and lifestyle center in Somerville. It is a great place and they have an amazing space for us. It is an open space that will eventually be turned into offices, but right now it is all bare bones, which makes it a phenomenal space for events.  Our sold out events at Copley Place had a max of 120 guests, but Assembly can hold 300 guests. We're also going to be doing a silent auction, can get sponsorship and we will be getting 100% of the proceeds to Project Smile, so that really opens it up to become a major fundraiser for us. I am so happy about that! Assembly is also handling getting their restaurants involved to serve appetizers and desserts along with specialty cocktails to the guests. This makes it even easier for me, because I had to get the food and beverage vendors before. Assembly has some awesome retailers, so we are definitely going to be having terrific fashions.

Danielle Vollmar from News Channel 5, Boston will be hosting the event again for us. She's hosted 2 of our shows before and always does a lovely job. We also have the RevGirls, Miss Massachusetts USA, Miss New Hampshire and Miss Maine USA as special guests along with the Miss Teen USA from each of those 3 states. The founder of UsTrendy, Sam Sisakhti will be returning as a celebrity guest judge for the Best-in-Shoe competition and I'm working on getting some more special guest judges. We're using the same DJ as our past events, he always does a good job. I reached out to our fall show event planner Mauryn and she is meeting with Assembly in order to possibly partner with them to work on the event layout/design. She has an awesome eye for detail, so I hope it works out for them to work together on the event design.

Well, that's the latest for tonight. I'm off to catch up on some emails and do some more sponsor research. The Step into Spring Show is a wonderful marketing opportunity for sponsors that want to reach women and young professionals. We already have some sponsors on board, but I'm excited to get some more partners for the event. Until tomorrow friends...

Welcome February!

Greetings friends! So what's new? Besides lots and lots of snow everywhere! Well, things are chugging along over here. I'm happy that we have a new financial donor coming our way. I have been researching new grant sources and I found a financial company which has a foundation which supports children's causes. I applied for a donation and they responded promptly and said that they weren't able to donate because they already donate a lot to the Dept. of Children and Families. I decided to write back and remind them that our partnership with DCF is only a portion of the program. The Chairman responded that he would take another look at it. A few days later, he wrote back and said that they would be making a donation in the second quarter. I don't know how much they will be donating, but every dollar counts. I'm so glad that I just didn't give up when I got the first email and persisted. It is so important to do that when you can. Many times it doesn't make a difference, but those times when it does make a difference make it worth while every time.

On the Date Auction side of things, both of our hosts are committed to returning which I am really happy about. They do an awesome job. I was on IStock today to find a new image to use for the event flyer. I emailed our designer Lisa because I think it is about time we give the flyer a whole new look. We use a different image every year, but the format has generally remained the same. I saw some good images of groups of young people with their hands raised as if they were bidding. I think it would be great to incorporate that kind of image instead of the couples image that we usually use. Our sponsorship packet is all updated. I already started work on getting the gift certificates donated for the couples and I need to start working on getting sponsors.

Tomorrow, I'm off to the Worcester DCF office to drop off crayons, coloring books and stuffed animals for their Easter baskets that they do for children. We've been donating items for the baskets for the past few years. It is one of my favorite donations to do. I've seen some of the baskets that DCF gives out and they are beautiful.

On that note, I'm off to box up some more items for tomorrow's donation, then I want to research some more grants that we can apply for. Until tomorrow friends...

Latest and Greatest

Greetings friends! We are half way through January- it feels like New Years was yesterday! Things are chugging along well over here. I'm happy to announce that we've booked our 9th Annual Project Smile Charity Date Auction for Friday, Sept. 18 at Venu. It is a great location for our event and they were happy to have us back again. I've reached out to Yelp and we will be partnering with them as the featured event in their weekly Yelp newsletter the week before the auction. I  also asked if we could partner for one of our fashion shows and they are willing to partner with us for a second event, so that is good news. Originally, I was thinking of promoting our fall fashion show during Boston Fashion Week with Yelp, but I might promote the spring one instead. Our Step into Spring Show will not be happening at Copley Place this year. It had been great having the event there, so it was a little disappointing not to be there this spring but it opens up a whole new opportunity to have a great event somewhere else and possibly raise additional funds. I will be meeting with another lifestyle shopping center who is interested in hosting the event. I will keep you posted.

In other news, next week I'll be dropping off more items for the Dept. of Children and Families. It's always my favorite donation to do. The need is so great at DCF for items for children. I'm also starting to reach out to the Worcester office to donate crayons and other items for the Easter baskets that they do for children.

Well, that's the latest for tonight. I know it's a short posting, but I'm off to catch up on sending some thank you letters for stuffed animal donations and then eat my grapefruit! Until next time friends...

Happy New Year!

Greetings friends and a happy new year! Hard to believe we're almost a week into the new year. I'm excited to kick things of and get going for the new year. It's always full of lots of potential. 2014 ended on a high note. We received a surprise $2,000 donation from a New Jersey foundation which was great. I hadn't heard of the foundation before, so it was great news to open up the envelope and see the check. We had a good year and that unexpected donation helped make up for some of the event sponsorship that we didn't receive this year.

On another nice note, I received a check and a note from a school teacher in New Hampshire. She collected small change along the street and she wanted to pay it forward by donating the money to Project Smile to help our efforts for children. She said she would keep collecting the "pennies from heaven." That was a very kind gesture and I really appreciate that she chose us. Some people are so thoughtful, it's really remarkable. 

Our donation to the Entre Familia homeless shelter right before Christmas went great. The children were so happy. They loved their gifts and they loved the Santa Claus. It was awesome to see their faces. One of the girls squealed in delight when she opened her doll. One of the moms came up to me and gave me a hug. She thanked us for bringing such happiness to the children. Her four year old son loved trains, so it was perfect that we had given him a train set for his gift. He was so happy sitting with his mom and playing with the train. Here is a photo of some of the kids with their gifts and a photo of me with Santa and one of the program directors at the shelter.

A special thank you to everyone who donated, our awesome Santa and Shepherd & Goldstein in Milford for all their help in making this party for the children possible. You can check out more photos on our FB page:
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10152873403309536.1073741836.50833009535&type=1

Well friends, that's the latest for tonight. I'm off to eat my grapefruit and watch TV for a bit. Until tomorrow friends...