An Unexpected Act of Giving

Posted by Melissa on 6/18/2011 to Charitable Giving

On Sunday June 19th, Pretty Up Parties was all set to have a booth at the Lovestruck Baby and Family Fair in downtown Vancouver. Due to some very strange and unforseen circumstances however I was no longer able to attend this particular tradeshow. Since the booth was nonrefundable I felt that this would be a wonderful way to give something back to a well deserving charity.

Fortunately, Sarah from Free the Children was able to fill in on such short notice! If you haven't heard of Free the Children before here's what they do:

Free The Children is the world’s largest network of children helping children through education, with more than one million youth involved in our innovative education and development programs in 45 countries. Founded in 1995 by international child rights activist Craig Kielburger, Free The Children has a proven track record of success. The organization has received the World’s Children’s Prize for the Rights of the Child (also known as the Children’s Nobel Prize), the Human Rights Award from the World Association of Non-Governmental Organizations, and has formed successful partnerships with leading school boards and Oprah’s Angel Network.

I am so proud and unbelievably happy to be able to provide Free the Children with my booth on Sunday. I hope that they have a wonderful, positive experience and are able to spread the word about what they do to all the people who attend the show.

Also, when you book these tradeshows you are often given free tickets to the event. I had heard of Kids Up Front Foundation who take tickets that aren't being used and donate them to charities so that children can attend. I am very pleased to have donated my ten tickets to this lovely Foundation!

The circumstances surrounding my decision to not participate with Lovestruck has really made me think long and hard about the mission of Pretty Up Parties and what I want to accomplish with my business. I know that I am deeply committed to the environment and to helping reduce the amount of garbage going into the landfills. I also want to participate more in charitable giving, whether it's through donating silent auction prizes or providing decorations for festivals and events I'm determined to give back as much as I possibly can.

"I am only one; but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something; I will not refuse to do the something I can do." - Helen Keller