Don't you just love it when good things come together and everybody wins? I sure do! That's why I am so excited to partner with XV (Fifteen) Designs.
My favorite hostess gift (to give and receive - lol!) is a bottle of wine. The problem is that I was spending a lot of money on gift bags and wine bags to make sure my hostess gift was presented well. Looking for ways to save a little money but still present the gift in a cute way, I started using some plain gift tags and tying them around the wine bottle. Not only did my handwriting never fit quite right, but they were just plain BORING!
Imagine how my eyes lit up when I saw Christi's gift tags for the first time!
They were so vibrant and cute and looked like she spent hours making them. A creative person with lots of time on their hands might think "I can make those".
I, however, am not creative and even though I used to think I was, I do not have the time or the desire to make my own gift tags (Hundreds - maybe thousands- of dollars worth of scrapbooking and jewelry making supplies that sat in my house for years and eventually got donated can attest to that!)
I wanted my own stash of these fun gift tags to have on hand for every occasion! I couldn't believe Christi was just keeping these to herself. When I asked her if she would be willing to share these with other (non-creative, time-crunched) people, her wheels started turning. She loves creating but never wanted to profit from her talent...so she immediately thought to donate her proceeds to an organization she had recently started mentoring with - Starting Right, Now.
Starting Right, Now, is an organization in Tampa Bay that tirelessly works to put an end to youth homelessness. Providing one-on-one mentoring services, a stable home environment, assisting with employment opportunities, teaching financial literacy/life skills and promoting educational achievement are some of the services provided by SRN.
Within the Tampa Bay Area, there are over 6,000 students who are stuck in poverty and are homeless. These children do not know where their next meal will come, where they will sleep, or what the next day beholds. Even though they do not know the luxury of material possessions or the comforts of a stable home, these remarkable kids possess strength, resilience, and determination. On StartingRightNow.org many of these students share their stories as a testament to their own personal success with the help of SRN.
One of the unique aspects of SRN’s success is the one-on-one mentoring program. Each student is paired with a mentor carefully selected based on his or her personality and needs. The mentor helps instill social, emotional, and life skills to ensure the student’s success. The mentor acts as a trusted confidante usually resulting in a lifelong friendship. The results are astounding, providing students with a sense of stability and confidences within themselves to stop the cycle of homelessness.
There is no question in my mind that Christi is making a difference in the life of her mentee. Many lives are being positively changed thanks to this organization and it is our hope that we can further the mission by spreading awareness and contributing proceeds from the sale of every gift tag.
**If you are interested in joining the Starting Right, Now team, becoming a member, or becoming a donor, please visit www.StartingRightNow.org or email: info@startingrighnow.org for more information
Starting Right, Now is A Recognized 501(c)(3) Non-Profit Organization