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Santa’s Helpers Gear up for 12 Days of Xmas Campaign

December 5, 2012 by

During the holiday season, one of my favorite parts is watching community come together to spread joy. One of the ways we do that is through our 12 Days of Xmas Campaign. Fashion Designer, Nancy Perreault designs a stocking. Community members sew and decorate them.

Some of our Santa’s Helpers collect donations to fill the stockings and help deliver them to women and youth in shelters, 1st and 2nd stage housing, drop in centres and hospitals. From December 12-24th, volunteers dressed as elves deliver stockings and Christmas cheer.

Volunteer Paris Mallin started volunteering for Beauty Night with her mother, Tamara three years ago. For the 2nd year, Paris has asked her classmates at Ecole Sherwood Park to help. On December 3rd, Paris and her grade 3 class decorated stockings that will be filled by volunteers this weekend.

We’ve had hundreds of volunteers help sew, decorate and fill the stockings. Some of the volunteers are from York House, Carson Graham Secondary, Bal Moral Secondary, churches, girl guides and corporations. Here are some of the snap shots of our elves at Ecole Sherwood Park and the stockings they have decorated.

Paris Mallin and her classmates at Ecole Sherwood Park hold up the stockings they have decorated.

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Celebrate Dignity: 12 Years; 26, 000 makeovers Thanks to 500+ Volunteers

November 26, 2012 by

On December 15th, 2000 (12 years ago), the first Beauty Night was held at WISH Drop in Centre in Vancouver’s DTES. A local actress and writer, Caroline MacGillivray started volunteering at WISH in the summer of 2000. She was researching a role for an upcoming film. One night, a woman came in who had had a bad day. She did not want to eat, speak or assistance with housing, bad date sheet or shelter for the night - she wanted to “feel clean.” After having a shower, the woman picked up a curling iron that had been donated to the centre. She was unable to bring her arms up to curl her hair. Caroline offered to do this for her. With simple kindness, friendship was born. The woman left walking taller and seemed to have an extra bounce in her step. After repeated requests for makeovers from other women, Caroline proposed a “beauty night”.

The organization has grown from it’s first Beauty Night (14 volunteers and served 73 women) to offer programs 4 nights a week (serving 200 each week). Thanks to 500+ volunteers, Beauty Night has given over 26, 000 makeovers in 12 years. The three streams of programming focus on wellness, life skills development and makeovers. The joy, friendship and laughter connects the community together.

When MacGillivray asked the women how they would like to celebrate Beauty Night’s 12th anniversary, many said they would like to support the organization that has had a positive impact on their lives. They wanted to have a fashion show. When the Hive Vancouver contacted MacGillivray to support this cause, she was delighted. “The Hive Vancouver wanted to bring the community together by holding an event to support our cause. When the possibility of a fashion show was mentioned, I was thrilled. It seemed like a great fit.”

On Saturday December 15th, Beauty Night celebrates it’s 12 year anniversary at the Celebrate Dignity Gala at the Hive Vancouver. Hosted by Jessica Holmes Canadian motivational speaker and comedian (Royal Canadian Air Farce) this eco fashion show will feature 10 of our Beauty Night ladies. We are excited to have 2013 Miss World Canada Finalist Kristiana Banden will be one of our speakers. Sponsored by Hive Vancouver, Lonsdale Event Rentals, MCNG Marketing, Pizzazz Modeling (Dale), Coleseum Medi Spa, and PiDGin Restaurant.

Tickets are $99. Event includes entertainment, fashion show, comedy, desert, raffle, silent auction and much more. To purchase tickets, please visit here. * For Beauty Night Supporters, you can get 50% off with this promo code bnsbffs

 

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12 Days of Xmas Campaign

November 19, 2012 by

Collecting Self Care Products to Fill 1500 Xmas Stockings

Every year fashion designer, Nancy Perreault designs a stocking. Volunteers elves (huge thank you to Sharon, Stephanie, Jenny, Simone, Darnelle, Gillian, Lisa, Wendy, Angela, Mallora, York House School students, Krista, Jana, Gary, Trilby, Dominique, Tracy and more) made sure the stockings were sewn and dropped off in time for our decorating elves to decorate (thank you to Stephanie & her church, Mallora, Tamara,Sandy, Monica,Blair, Carson Graham Students, York House Students, Alexandra Elementary School Students, Gary’s students, and many many more).

We are collecting goodies to fill the stockings. In the next few weeks During the holiday season, Santa’s elves (Team Beauty Night members) sew stockings, decorate stockings, collect and fill stockings with self-care products, and deliver them to women in need throughout the shelters in the lower mainland. From the 12th to the 24th in addition to our regular programming we will be handing out stockings.

 

We are collecting new items including:

Socks

Dental floss & tooth paste

Gloves

Journals & pens

Samples sizes for body care, hair care, nail care, skin care products

Jewelry (new - or current - bought in past 2 years)

 

Huge thank you to:

London Drugs for donating makeup and 1500 tooth brushes

Eminence Skin Care - face mask

 

Our Drop Off Locations BEFORE Dec 1

Gastown Physio & Pilates

306 -560 Beatty Street

Vital Health

1855 West 4th Avenue

Prettier in Green

3633 Main Street

Hive Vancouver

128 West Hastings #210

 

We will be filling stockings on December 8th OR 9th at the HIVE Vancouver. Dates & Times to be confirmed. Carrie Wheeler from Carrie Wheeler Entertainment Group will be helping coordinating volunteers & site management on day of. Once date & time is confirmed, we will open up volunteer sign ups. It will be a pot luck too - great way to connect with everyone.

* We are also looking for volunteers for our joint event on Dec 15th - fashion show at The Hive Vancouver details below in regards to event. Hair, Make up Team, dressers, etc.

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Give the Gift of Giving

December 23, 2011 by

When people ask how they can help, we encourage them to “spread the word, volunteer, or make a donation”. Our friend, Bradley Shende of Connected Life honoured us by including us in his segment about giving to communities on yesterday’s GlobalTV Morning News.

As Bradley suggests, if you are looking for gifts to give, please consider making a donation in someone’s name. We would be honoured if you wanted to invest in our cause.

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4th Day of Xmas

December 16, 2011 by

11 years ago yesterday,
our first Beauty Night was held.
At Wish Drop In Centre
73 participants thanks to 14 volunteers.
Hair, make up, nails, and massage
snacks, gift bags and laughter
filled the room
as we hustled and bustled.
Charlie Brown Christmas played
on the TV
Volunteers and Participants
danced the “Peanuts” dance.
Such fun we had
Everyone seemed so glad.
Participants made thank you cards
for volunteers and swung
by the nurses at health service
to show off hair cuts and painted nails
staying to get a check up.
There was so much love
we had to do it again and again.
11 years flew by
and 16 000 makeovers - oh my.
Thanks to 500 volunteers
Beauty Night has changed gears
wellness, life skills development and makeovers
to bring a hope, trust, dignity abundance takeover.

Last night dressed as elves,
we dropped by Wish, Serena’s place and Woodwards.
With gift bags and stockings
we handed out door to door.

My thought’s from the end of last night:
“Sad tales heard tonight
In some cases Xmas stockings
Brought great delight.
Joy to all of the women we saw tonight
Dealing with homelessness,
… Addiction, mental ill health
Poverty, violence and strife.
Glad we were able to share
A little Xmas delight.”

Happy 11 years to all of our supporters, participants, volunteers and corporate and community partners! Thanks for making it possible for 11 years, 16 000 makeovers!

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Beauty Night Turns 9!

December 5, 2009 by

“I think everyone wants to make a difference in someone’s life,” explains Beauty Night national executive director, Caroline MacGillivray, in her typical upbeat manner. Nine years ago, while volunteering at the WISH Drop In centre, Caroline dreamt up a unique way to make a difference in the lives of marginalized women in Vancouver’s eastside: Stage an event offering free makeovers for the holiday season.

A lofty plan with one major drawback. “I thought it would cost tons of money,” says MacGillivray. Never underestimate the power of the human spirit. Caroline put the word out to everyone on her email list. Volunteers began signing up—including students from Blanche Macdonald and the London School of Hairdressing and Aesthetics. Caroline’s home made posters advertised the event and within weeks, the first Beauty Night became a reality.

“The women were really excited,” says MacGillivray. What made Beauty Night an instant hit went far beyond haircuts, cosmetics and massages. The eastside women were given something they had rarely experienced—respect and dignity. “What we do is health care, fostering self-esteem,” explains MacGillivray. “When you believe in yourself, you’re more able to change.”

The women began asking for more Beauty Nights—and Caroline and the volunteers happily obliged. Beauty Night became a monthly event. MacGillivray created an eight week personal development program, including nutrition and fitness. Beauty Night started winning volunteer awards and now has weekly makeovers, fitness and yoga programs, and other events at the PHS Life Skills Centre. Since inception, the non-profit, volunteer run program has provided more than 11,000 makeovers to marginalized women in Vancouver, Victoria, and Toronto. Beauty Night is also creating more opportunities for the women to empower themselves. 20% of the Monday makeover clients have become Beauty Night volunteers.

On December 14th, Beauty Night turns 9, celebrating another noteworthy year. MacGillivray won the gold community spirit award at the Celebrating Women and the Spirit of the Cranes banquet. Katie Benjamin, a long-time Beauty Night volunteer, won a YWCA Young Woman of Distinction award for creating Womyns Gym, which are Beauty Night fitness programs sponsored through Telus.

December 14th is also the 7th anniversary of Beauty Night’s Stocking Drive. Spearheaded by Stocking Coordinator, Blair Lockhart, Product Coordinator, Revel Kunz, and Stockings Designer, Nancy Black, literally thousands of volunteers of all ages are involved. High School students from York House, Churchill Secondary, Prince of Wales, Van Tech and many more, local designers, and Kwantlen college fashion department students sew the stockings. Sparks, Brownies & Girl Guides decorate the stockings.

Thera Wise, BC Hydro, Carrie Wheeler Talent Management, and Blanche McDonald have been collecting donations of skin care, makeup, nail, dental, body, and hair care products to fill the stockings. Donations also include gloves and toques.

The December 14th festivities will also include Knit Fit, providing hand made scarves for Beauty Night clients. Founded six years ago by Laura Mah at the tender age of 11, Knit Fit volunteers include students from Chief Maquinna Elementary School, Templeton High School, Vancouver Technical Secondary School and Britannia Secondary School.

The stockings will be handed out to Beauty Night clients by some special holiday guests, Mrs. Claus and her elves. Laura and her KnitFit cohorts will also be making spirits bright by presenting scarves to the guests. Stockings will also be handed out at other events leading up to Christmas Eve.

Looking ahead, the New Year will ring in a brand new Beauty Night initiative. Inner Beauty Boot Camp will introduce self-care to Beauty Night clients and give them the the tools they need to continue their education, or find new employment opportunities. “It is amazing how far we have come,” says MacGillivray.

Beauty Night’s 7th annual stocking drive will be accepting donations, new hair, skincare, dental care, gloves and socks up until December 14th. For more information about donating product, snacks, money, or become a Beauty Night volunteer, please visit beautynight.org or contact Caroline MacGillivray at 778-885-4526.

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December 5, 2009 by

Beauty Night Turns 9!

Date: Monday, December 14, 2009, 6 – 8:30pm
Location: PHS Life Skills Centre at 412 East Cordova

“I think everyone wants to make a difference in someone’s life,” explains Beauty Night national executive director, Caroline MacGillivray, in her typical upbeat manner. Nine years ago, while volunteering at the WISH Drop In centre, Caroline dreamt up a unique way to make a difference in the lives of marginalized women in Vancouver’s eastside: Stage an event offering free makeovers for the holiday season.

A lofty plan with one major drawback. “I thought it would cost tons of money,” says MacGillivray. Never underestimate the power of the human spirit. Caroline put the word out to everyone on her email list. Volunteers began signing up—including students from Blanche Macdonald and the London School of Hairdressing and Aesthetics. Caroline’s home made posters advertised the event and within weeks, the first Beauty Night became a reality.

“The women were really excited,” says MacGillivray. What made Beauty Night an instant hit went far beyond haircuts, cosmetics and massages. The eastside women were given something they had rarely experienced—respect and dignity. “What we do is health care, fostering self-esteem,” explains MacGillivray. “When you believe in yourself, you’re more able to change.”

The women began asking for more Beauty Nights—and Caroline and the volunteers happily obliged. Beauty Night became a monthly event. MacGillivray created an eight week personal development program, including nutrition and fitness. Beauty Night started winning volunteer awards and now has weekly makeovers, fitness and yoga programs, and other events at the PHS Life Skills Centre. Since inception, the non-profit, volunteer run program has provided more than 11,000 makeovers to marginalized women in Vancouver, Victoria, and Toronto. Beauty Night is also creating more opportunities for the women to empower themselves. 20% of the Monday makeover clients have become Beauty Night volunteers.

On December 14th, Beauty Night turns 9, celebrating another noteworthy year. MacGillivray won the gold community spirit award at the Celebrating Women and the Spirit of the Cranes banquet. Katie Benjamin, a long-time Beauty Night volunteer, won a YWCA Young Woman of Distinction award for creating Womyns Gym, which are Beauty Night fitness programs sponsored through Telus.

December 14th is also the 7th anniversary of Beauty Night’s Stocking Drive. Spearheaded by Stocking Coordinator, Blair Lockhart, Product Coordinator, Revel Kunz, and Stockings Designer, Nancy Black, literally thousands of volunteers of all ages are involved. High School students from York House, Churchill Secondary, Prince of Wales, Van Tech and many more, local designers, and Kwantlen college fashion department students sew the stockings. Sparks, Brownies & Girl Guides decorate the stockings.

Thera Wise, BC Hydro, Carrie Wheeler Talent Management, and Blanche McDonald have been collecting donations of skin care, makeup, nail, dental, body, and hair care products to fill the stockings. Donations also include gloves and toques.

The December 14th festivities will also include Knit Fit, providing hand made scarves for Beauty Night clients. Founded six years ago by Laura Mah at the tender age of 11, Knit Fit volunteers include students from Chief Maquinna Elementary School, Templeton High School, Vancouver Technical Secondary School and Britannia Secondary School.

The stockings will be handed out to Beauty Night clients by some special holiday guests, Mrs. Claus and her elves. Laura and her KnitFit cohorts will also be making spirits bright by presenting scarves to the guests. Stockings will also be handed out at other events leading up to Christmas Eve.

Looking ahead, the New Year will ring in a brand new Beauty Night initiative. Inner Beauty Boot Camp will introduce self-care to Beauty Night clients and give them the the tools they need to continue their education, or find new employment opportunities. “It is amazing how far we have come,” says MacGillivray.

Beauty Night’s 7th annual stocking drive will be accepting donations, new hair, skincare, dental care, gloves and socks up until December 14th. For more information about donating product, snacks, money, or become a Beauty Night volunteer, please visit beautynight.org or contact Caroline MacGillivray at 778-885-4526.

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Kids + Adults = community

November 18, 2009 by

Last night I spoke with Knit Fit founder and program coordinator, Laura Mah. On Monday afternoon, Laura headed to White Rock Elementary to talk about how we can work together to make a difference in the lives of many. Ten year old, Katie Dalinghaus and her class spent the afternoon knitting scarves for Knit Fit. Several parents were on hand to help the kids knit the scarves that we will be handing out on December 14th and on Christmas Eve.

While she and Jenny Tran embarked on the process of wrapping 300 hand made scarves, I asked Laura to fill me in on how many people have been involved in the Knit Fit portion of our annual Xmas Stocking Drive.

This morning, Jenna sent the following update to post:

Knit Fit has been busy getting out the word for why Knit Fit was established. In the past 2 weeks, Knit Fit has already visited 3 different schools to teach students how to knit and show them the importance of giving back. So far, Knit Fit has met Lord Beaconsfield Elementary, Lord Strathcona Elementary, and Chief Maquinna Elementary.

At Lord Beaconsfield, Knit Fit spoke with 2 different classes, and again will be visiting Wednesday to teach the kids how to knit.
At Lord Strathcona, Knit Fit organized a club for students who were interested in knitting. These meeting are held each Monday at lunch. At these meeting students will come together and knit, while enjoying their lunches and having good conversation.

At Chief Maquinna, Knit Fit attended their Peace Concert held in respect for Remembrance Day. Here Knit Fit talked about the background of Knit Fit in front of the Maquinna neighbourhood community, while also sharing some personal stories of how Knit Fit has affected them.

When I did the math, I realized Knit Fit is actively involving hundreds of kids, youth, parents and teachers. When you combine those volunteer efforts with the volunteers that have been sewing and decorating the 600 Xmas stockings, we have a community effort that not only impacts the Beauty Night Society participants who receive the warm scarves and stockings, it also affects all of the people who contributed their time, energy, skills and money to make this project happen.

When I was interviewed by Telus Television last Monday, I was asked how many volunteers do we have and what the demographic of our volunteers are. I realized we have thousands of volunteers. Some who work directly with our participants. Others who constantly fundraise and create events to raise awareness and contributions so we can continue to provide tools for disenfranchised women and children to make positive life style choices and heal themselves and the community. Many who mentor the children in our community who teach them leadership and how they can impact someone’s life with their actions. The children and youth who believe if we give from our hearts, we can heal the world. When all of us work together, we change lives.

In regards to working together, it is important to recognize that we learn things from everyone. Through laughter and love, we can combine the leadership development and contributions to change the world. When women wrap the warm scarves around their neck or when their eyes light up as they open up the stocking decorated especially for them, I believe it does the human spirit a great deal of good.

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All I Want for Xmas Silent Auction

November 12, 2009 by

Dear Friends,
On December 3rd, 2009 Beauty Night Society is having its annual “All I want for Christmas” Fashion show featuring pin-up designs by Nancy Black. This is an invitation for you to participate in the fantabulous event. “Be a part of the cause, not a part of the problem”
“All I want for Christmas” brings forward collaboration between art, imagination and originality. The anticipated 200+ guests will experience an exquisite evening showcasing some of Vancouver’s most talented individuals. Guests get to check out pin-up fashions by Nancy Black, performances by Luscious Dance and Sexy in Vancity dancers, whilst raising funds for Beauty Night Society’s makeover and development programs for women and youth in the community. The main sources of income for the evening will be: ticket sales, silent auction items, raffle tickets, photos with Santa and corporate sponsors.
Have you been good or bad this year? By helping Beauty Night Society you will definitely be good! We are looking for help in three areas: 1) Sponsorship, 2) Silent auction items and 3) Monetary donations. 100% of the proceeds will go to Beauty Night Society. Beauty Night Society works with under-privileged women and children on the Downtown Eastside and other troubled areas across Canada. It was founded in 2000 by Caroline McGillivray, and recently celebrated its 10,000th makeover. Beauty Night Society provides women and children with the tools to make positive lifestyle changes. Your generous contribution will give back to those who need it the most.
The event details: Date: Thursday, December 3, 2009 | Time: doors at 7:30pm, show 8pm Tickets: $10 advance, $15 at door | Dress code: Naughty or nice Location: Bar None, 1222 Hamilton Street, Yale Town Event Contact: Caroline McGillivray 778.885.4526 More info? Go to www.beautynight.org

Please let me know if you are able to donate a silent auction item, or be a sponsor of the event. I look forward to hearing from you at 778.885.4526 or [email protected] . Have a great day!
Sincerely,

Beauty Night Society’s “All I want for Christmas” Committee

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Xmas Stocking Drive

October 30, 2009 by

At Beauty Night, we have been thinking about Christmas since July! During the warm summer months, many a afternoon was spent in brain storm sessions with Laura Mah, Blair Lockhart, Nancy Black, Revel Kunz, Christie Gray and Tiffany Telford. The questions we kept asking were:

We have been doing the annual Xmas stocking drive for 8 years, what is working well?

What do we want to change?

How can we get more community members involved?

How do we get the message out?

How do we know if we meet the needs of the community?

What worked well was the dynamic community response to the Xmas Drive. Seniors, industry professionals, parents, children, youth and tweens wanted to contribute their time, energy, money and resources. Through word of mouth and positive media coverage this event has more volunteers wanting to get involved.

To increase word of mouth, Christie and I spent several afternoons with Knit Fit volunteers. Our training sessions included:

  • Social media training. How to use facebook, twitter and word press to share their stories of volunteering
  • Christie Gray created accounts for the volunteers who were interested in blogging. They have been contributing their stories on this blog about the Knit Fit and Stocking Drive.
  • Board member, Bill Nevison created a video of last year’s Xmas Stocking Drive celebration and posted it on You Tube. We encouraged the volunteers to use the video to show people what we do. People get 90% of their information from what they see and 10% from what they hear. Sometimes pictures work well - especially seeing the distribution of the stockings and scarves.
  • Public Speaking. I have heard that some people fear having to speak in front of people more than death. The volunteers prepared a speech about Knit Fit and Stocking Drive. Like monologues, we worked through the speeches. We worked on the key messaging, breath work, completing the thought and the writing. We work-shopped the speeches to make sure each speech felt like it sounded like the person who was delivering the speech.
  • Policy & Procedures. Together we discussed leadership techniques and guidelines for working with children and peers. We discussed how to create a safe and enjoyable space for volunteers to feel empowered and become actively engaged in the projects we are creating. Working together, we came up with some fantastic ideas and put them into motion.

What we are doing is working. Last weekend when Beauty Night Society volunteer, Denise Von Gorkum and I took several Beauty Night participants to the Models of Inspiration Filmathon, we ran into one of the parents of our Knit Fit volunteers. She thanked me for being a good role model for her daughters and their friends. She asked if we needed more volunteers for our Kids Club program. She offered to drive the girls who wished to volunteer to and from our location.

I am thrilled that people want to get more involved with the programming. This week we have been having meetings with volunteers and community members who want to offer other programs for our participants. Digital story telling, inner beauty boot camp, blogging, yoga classes and nutrition classes are some of the program options we are considering. While we continue to create opportunities for our participants, we keep the line of communication open with our participants and community partners. We want to make sure what we are offering is what the women want and that starts with asking for feed back.

Thanks to DJ Joe, our participant facilitator we have been able to ask for feed back from our participants. The general consensus is positive. Thanks to DJ’s constant queries, we are making some adjustments in our times and days for programming to make sure we are giving the women what they want.

The participants love the concept of joy and celebration. We have managed to include that in our regular programming. This past week’s programming included Beautilicious Halloween Celebration, Mom & Tot pumpkin carving sessions and pumpkin fitness classes. Through innovation and constant feedback, we continue to evolve our programming as we work together with our contributors, volunteers and participants.

As for our Xmas Activities, the women love the stockings and the Knit Fit scarves. What they would like to see is a way they can help with the planning. We have started inviting participants to our stocking cutting sessions. Although the participants have not attended these sessions, they seem to enjoy being asked.

Volunteers from York House School, Churchill Secondary, Kwatlan College - Fashion Design Program, Van Tech Secondary, Little Flower Academy, and individual sewers have stitched up stockings. Stocking Coordinator, Blair Lockhart has been collecting the sewn stockings and dropping them off to groups of children to decorate them. Sparks (5-7 year olds - before Brownies), Brownies and Girl Guides are getting together to decorate and in some cases fill the stockings.

Last year Revel Kunz opened up her home to the Rangers (one of groups of children who sewed and decorated stockings). The Rangers spent one Monday evening filling 130 stockings! By encouraging children and youth to get involved, I believe it helps them understand that we can impact someone’s life. When we work together, we can change the world.

I hope you enjoy the Halloween festivities. Stay tuned for our Xmas Wish List for our 8th Annual Xmas Stocking Drive.

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