My Summer Kickoff Charity Event - Benefiting The Dodger Foundation

Last Summer I hosted a Summer kickoff party where families got together to make crafts, enjoy Summer themed treats and over all have a great time! The thought behind it was to gather families from my social community together for the sole purpose of getting to know one another and to have fun. This year I wanted to do the same, but tie in a charity element as well. Wherein my friends and family could come together to have fun while also giving back to a great cause. I teamed up with my friends at Steelcraft and The Fresh Shave in Long Beach to see if they would be interested to what I was calling “a giant family party for charity”. They jumped at the idea and within two months we pulled together what I am now referring to as “the greatest family party ever!”

All the brands and businesses involved with making this event fantastic donated their time and products. I could not be more grateful for their willingness to donate and because of their generosity the families had a memorable time. The venue was at Steelcraft which is an outside space surrounded by good eats, one of which is The Fresh Shave. (Along with The Fresh Shave, my favorite was Waffle Love!) Families were able to grab large tables, enjoy great food and free shave ice compliments of The Fresh Shave. Seedling donated various crafting kits for the children to enjoy while parents conversed with each other and ate! A favorite for me for sure, was seeing all the kids hard at work on their crafts while parents just breathed easy and throughly enjoyed themselves. Seedling is the cutest company who creates crafting kits for children! It was honestly the best idea to have them on each table for families to enjoy. Mila crafted her own mermaid tail! Others painted bird houses and fun jungle masks. 

Tickets to the BBB Summer Kickoff were donation based. So families were able to donate as much or as little as they wanted to the Dodger Foundation - RBI Program. I was blown away by the response as the event filled up within hours of my posting the invite on Instagram! It was quite an incredible feeling to know that families were willing to come together for a greater cause. I was offering them nothing other than a great time. It truly is a testament to how giving people can be and watching 75+ families who came together at my BBB Summer Kickoff was a humbling experience. 

I can’t wait to do it all again next year! 

Together we were able to raise $700+ for the Dodger Foundation - RBI Program! Which for me is an astonishing amount considering it was an event pulled together by friends in such a short time. Again, my social community is nothing short of amazing! I decided to benefit the Dodger Foundation - RBI Program because to me Summer is all about baseball. I love the work this organization does for children in need within Southern California. I also love the fact that the Dodger RBI Program is dedicated to using baseball as a way to engage and increase access to education, health, wellness and recreational resources to underserved communities. To learn more about their efforts and how you can get involved, go HERE. 

You can check the hashtag #BBBSummerKickoff to see the fun. Below are a few photos of my family enjoying time together and kicking off Summer in the best way possible!

Photos By - Annie Vovan Photography & Rebecca Walker