Bliss Nine’s Charity Birthday Wishes: Interview of Executive Director Lisa Vasiloff

September 7th, 2009 | Charities | No Comments |

I interviewed Lisa Vasiloff, the Executive Director of Birthday Wishes.  Birthday Wishes is a charitable organization, which brings homeless children birthday parties.  It’s a charity that Bliss Nine is proud to be a partner with and I am so glad it can contribute a portion of its profits to such a special organization which makes so many children happy.  Some may think that there are more important needs that need to be met “during these tough times”.  Earlier this year, I remember seeing a documentary about a homeless family and a 12 year old boy, who had his birthday coming up.  All the boy’s mother wanted was for her son to have a birthday cake on his birthday and to not think about their predicament for one day.  This is what Birthday Wishes helps families and homeless children do – allow them to forget what they don’t have for just a few hours on their special day and to celebrate life.

The Birthday Wishes Mission: “To bring birthday parties to homeless children. Birthday Wishes recognizes the importance of a birthday in a child’s life and believes that the gift of a birthday celebration provides normalcy, joy and hope in these children’s otherwise unsettled lives.”

Check out the Birthday Wishes site for all the details of their mission and wish lists and upcoming parties.  Below are just a few questions we asked Ms. Vasiloff regarding the organization.

Where do you operate?

We currently only throw birthday parties in shelters in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Long Island, NY.  We hope someday to expand the model so that homeless children across the country can experience the joy of a birthday party

What is your goal?

Our goal is to work with every family shelter in the states where we operate.  Either we approach shelters, or more recently, shelters will approach us.  We have about 90% of the shelters in Massachusetts covered.  Once we begin working with a shelter, we will provide a birthday party for every child who lives there. We do this by throwing one party per month at each shelter, for all the kids who have birthdays in that month.  There is no age restriction, and we have thrown parties for children ranging in age from 1 to 19.

How do people donate actual items?

People can donate birthday party items by dropping them off at one of our 4 offices, or mailing them to us.  We get boxes of goody bags, party supplies, and gifts, from families all over the country. Many kids now have “Birthday Wishes birthday parties” where they ask their guests to bring a donation (in-kind or monetary) in lieu of a gift for themselves.  Many kids also do supply drives and goody bag stuffings as part of community service projects for their churches, temples, or schools.

How many parties do you throw a month?

We currently throw approximately 30 parties each month, and deliver dozens of Birthday Boxes to our transitional shelter facilities each month.

What if someone in San Diego is interested in throwing a party for a homeless child with Birthday Wishes?

If someone in San Diego is interested in doing Birthday Wishes parties at a local shelter, they would need to contact me to discuss.  They would definitely need to identify a shelter to work with and be willing to commit to throwing monthly parties at that shelter on an ongoing basis.

Has there been a growing request for birthday parties since the economic downturn?

There has been a significant rise in requests for birthday parties. Not only are our shelters full to the brim, but we are getting calls directly from families who are homeless but cannot find space in a shelter and have been placed in motels.  We recently started working with 4 area motels which are housing the overflow of homeless families and we are delivering birthday boxes to them, as we cannot throw parties in the motel rooms.

Week 2 Giveaway: Adam’s Blankie Bib Giveaway For Your Super Star!

July 8th, 2009 | Charities, Gifts, Giveaways, Safety | 2 Comments |

The story of Adam’s Blankie is a beautiful and and uplifting one.  The company began with the love of stay-at-home mother, Kari.  She wanted some bedding and clothing with a modern design ethic for her son Adam.  With her mother, she came up with some great products and named the business after her son – Adam’s Blankie was born!   In 2008, Kari’s family nearly lost Adam to a drowning incident.  Believing in the love of God and healing qualities of the blanket she created for Adam, he survived and is now a healthy two year old boy! 

 
We are happy to say that Adam’s Blankie contributes 5% of its profits to a Drowning Prevention Coalition of Arizona. Drowning is the leading cause of death in children in Arizona, ages 1 – 4 years old.  The organization has been very active nationally to provide public awareness about tragedies and preventative measures.  Kari wants to share that there are 3 parts to drowning prevention called the ABC’s – Adult Supervision, Barriers, and Classes.  With the heat racking up, swimming in pools is a popular pastime for many families.  It doesn’t take a pool for a child to drown – children can also drown in toilets, bathtubs, & buckets of water! A tip we learned from our local YMCA is that floaties can prevent lifeguards from seeing below the water, which is important because they need to see anyone who may be below another person.  Also, floaties don’t support babies/children necks or backs.  As advised by the Y, go with a life jacket.

Okay and now for the rockinest and cutest bib your boy or girl would ever want to wear!  The motto the business follows is “Creative, Comfy and Cute”.  Retailing at $14.50, it is an adorable bib with a classic rocker vibe.  We love the colors, the guitar print and the soft terry cloth.  The pearl snap closure is also baby tamper proof and won’t fall apart like the Velcro stickers do.  Like other items on the Adam’s Blankie site, the bib has been pre-shrunk in baby detergent.  Check out their Etsy site for details on these handmade products.  Adam’s Blankie also welcome’s custom orders – so if you see a print you like, feel free to mix and match.  Get it for your little one or as a gift for another lucky super star!

To win the bib STEP 1: please comment on our blog as to what your favorite item from the Adam’s Blankie site.  STEP 2: Visit the Adam’s Blankie blog and comment.  Adam’s Blankie and Bliss Nine will put our heads together regarding our favorite comments and declare a winner on July 15, 2009.

UPDATE: Winner is Megan R. – CONGRATS!

Bliss Nine at New Mom Expo on June 14th at 11:30 a.m.

June 10th, 2009 | Charities, Eco-friendly, Events | 1 Comment |

Bliss Nine is excited to speak at the upcoming New Mom Expo this Sunday at 11:30 a.m. about Creating an Eco-Friendly Nursery.   We will discuss a range of topics from flooring options to toys.  I will have great products to show you and samples of Dapple Baby products to hand out to the first 30 people.  Even if you can’t make it at that time, please check out the expo at the Anaheim Convention Center.  New Mom Expo is going on both Saturday and Sunday between 10 – 5 p.m.  5% of all ticket sales go to the Casa Teresa Charity.   In the upcoming weeks, I will blog about the products you saw at my talk in better detail.

USO San Diego charity basket items to be silently auctioned on May 30, 2009

May 14th, 2009 | Charities, Events, Gifts, Health, Uncategorized, products | No Comments |

The San Diego USO Charity Ball will be held on May 30, 2009.  There are hundreds of items being auctioned off in a silent auction and we are so excited to be amongst the high caliber of items being auctioned for such a great cause.  Please check out our earlier blog entry describing the USO. Below is an alphabetical list of the donated items being submitted to the silent auction.  Bliss Nine would like to thank the generous vendors who took the time and heart to donate:

Aquario Studio Photography: Award winning and nationally recognized wedding photography studio, Aquario Studio offers a gift card toward a maternity, newborn, family or graduate portrait session at the beach of in the studio.  Also a gift card for one photo session in studio or on-location with a print credit.

Bliss Nine: As a San Diego based concierge and baby planning service, Bliss Nine will ensure the mother-to-be’s needs and wants are met for the arrival of her bundle of joy.   The winner can either use Bliss Nine as an hourly concierge service or redeem the gift certificate for the Baby Prepare & Care Luxe package.  Gift certificate for a package of baby planning services.

Boon Bug Pod:  Boon Inc. creates innovative and stylish children’s products that help make parents’ lives easier.  The newest member of the Boon family, the Bug Pod joins the Frog Pod to help with children’s bath time clean-up, providing a drainable scoop for collecting and rinsing toys and a wall-mounted base for storing bath products. It attaches to the bathtub wall with either super-strong adhesive strips or screws, makes bath time clean and easy, reduces mold and mildew, stores and organizes accessories.

Cuddle Up Blankets: “Made In America” hand-made baby blanket by Cuddle Up.  A beautiful, high quality 100% cotton flannel cream colored fabric paired with cream minky dot fabric measuring 30” x 35”.  This local designer and creator has a background in art from SDSU.  This great blanket is a patriotic way wrap baby up in warmth.

Hot Mama Gowns: Stylish and comfortable hospital gown, which is made of soft organic cotton and dyed using only 100% natural dyes or low-impact dyes that greatly reduce the harmful effects to the environment.  You can look and feel great about what you are wearing.  The gown is short sleeves for blood pressure checks and IVS and a snap open back for epidurals/spinals, while being fully covered in the front.   There are built in panels built in for easy access to nurse the baby and you don’t need to remove your arm from the gown to access your breast.

Modern Baby Company: The Modern Baby Company has donated a 28 x 35” blanket with terry cloth backing. Soft plush microfiber pairs with stylish designer cotton prints to make the perfect modern baby blanket.  The Modern Baby Company believes in the beauty and sophistication of clean, simple lines and minimalist design.  By combining modern designer textiles, creativity, and thoughtfulness, we offer quality products for today’s style conscious families.  The Modern Baby Co. LLC products are manufactured in the USA.

Shishu Home and Baby: Shishu has donated two blankets, which are both soft, luxurious, hand-woven blankets and throws made from bamboo.  They are free of unnatural and chemically treated fibers.  The large home throw is sized as a 50” by 60” blanket.  The celadon baby blanket is 30” x 40” in size.

Sundin Photography: Local photographer specializes in candid portrait photography.  This gift certificate offers a lifestyle photography portrait session for maternity, newborn, toddler, family or engagement photographs which includes a 1-2 hour photo session of 1-5 people and at least 25 edited images available for viewing and purchase in a private online gallery.  The gift package also includes a CD of all of the images from your photography session.

Tiny Prints: Tiny Prints was created in 2004 by three friends who shared a love for giving and receiving good paper.  Tiny Prints has grown quickly from a baby company to a preferred destination for everyday stationery.  This quality stationery is sure to provide eye-catching baby announcements and thank you cards. Two gift cards, sample packs and thank you cards.

The USO San Diego

March 31st, 2009 | Charities, Events | 2 Comments |

Bliss Nine is contributing a basket of baby goodies, from generous vendors in the industry (list of goodies coming in a future blog entry), for the silent auction at the upcoming “Stars and Stripes” charity ball for the USO San Diego, being held on May 30, 2009. Offering help and hope, the USO San Diego has been providing a welcoming “Home Away From Home” to all Armed Forces personnel and their families stationed or passing through San Diego.

USO San Diego is unique among all USO’s in that they are host to the largest concentration of active duty military in the world. Patrons utilize the 18,000 square foot Downtown Center and the 6,500 square foot Neil Ash Airport Center 365 days each year. Also, USO San Diego provides just under $1 million dollars of in-kind services through a wide variety of programs including:

• Host to more than 150,000 visitors at our two facilities annually
• Host to 31,000 new Marine recruits at our Neil Ash Airport Center
• Free Tuesday Night Dinner served 50-52 Tuesdays each year
• Distribution of USO Care Packages to deploying units in San Diego County
• Free Thanksgiving Dinner and special holiday events for the families throughout the year
• Comfortable living room atmospheres to kick back and relax… and so much more

Each year USO San Diego touches the lives of more than 150,000 active duty military, National Guard, reserve service members and their families throughout the San Diego County region. Most of the patrons are junior enlisted personnel living on very low incomes and in some cases below the poverty line.

The USO does not receive federal funding and no operational revenue for local activities from its parent organization. As a 501(C)(3) chartered council, they rely solely on the generosity of local San Diego contributors within the local Geographical Service Area (GSA). All donations serve the local military community. Monetary donations to the USO are tax deductible to the full extent of the law.

Just as important are donations of your time and talent. USO San Diego boasts over 12,000 volunteer hours annually by more than 150 volunteers. Whether they are helping with connecting flights, serving free meals or helping spouses and children keep in touch with a loved one overseas, they are the heart of USO San Diego. To make a donation or volunteer please visit ww.usosandiego.org or contact us at (619) 235-6503.

Birthday Wishes for Homeless Children

February 8th, 2009 | Charities | No Comments |

Birthday Wishes Charity

Birthday Wishes Charity

December 20th, 2008 | Charities | No Comments |

Bliss Nine’s first charity we will be donating to is the wonderful organization called Birthday Wishes. They bring birthday parties to homeless children. During these difficult times, children in poverty and bad circumstances should at least have a bright day in their year, their birthdays. Some of these children have never had a birthday party. Please visit Birthday Wishes for more information.

If you use Bliss Nine and have a charity in mind, we will donate a portion of our profits to your charity of choice.