Volunteering at Anthopologie

How often do you get to volunteer at your favorite store and for something so meaningful? I'm very honored to be invited to help with the preparation of the 8th Annual Lucile Packard Children's Hospital School prom.  

The hospital school puts on an annual prom to give chronically and terminally ill children a chance to participate in an event they would otherwise miss. This is the biggest night of the year for the hospital kids. According to Kathy Ho, schoolteacher, advisor, and organizer of the prom, "...several of our hospital's high school students miss their own school proms because of their illnesses, and some of our younger students may never get the chance to go at all."

Every year, Kathy and her team come up with a theme for the evening and transform the hospital cafeteria for the event. In the past, the themes had been Alice in the Wonderland, Pirate's Ball, Passport to Adventure, etc.

So why Anthropologie? This year, the theme of the prom is "Mysteries of the Deep." Coincidently, Anthropologie thinks that's a good idea too. The store is decorated with thousands of fish made with bubble wrap painted in different shades of blue. The schoolteachers approached the store manager and asked if Anthropologie would donate the material for the event. She not only said yes, but also offered the store to have the volunteers come to cut the fish! 

Even the not-so-experienced scissors operator was able to help.

What a fun day. Now, I can't wait to see the transformation. Thank you Anthropologie!