A day of wonder and fun
Local businesses come together for the Holiday Extravaganza Boutique
Several small businesses joined together for the Holiday Extravaganza Boutique to have fun, interact with the community and raise money for the ONEMORE Foster Care Initiative at Wolf Creek Brewery on Saturday.
Spearheaded by organizers Katherine Beaumont and Kaitlin Pappas, guests could grab some food, have a drink and do some Christmas shopping while also helping the cause. After looking for other venues to raise money, Beaumont and Pappas made a final decision less than a month ago.
“We figured, ‘Hey, let’s do our own (boutique), and on top of it, let’s separate ourselves and let’s do something better for the community instead of just going to an event,’” Pappas said.
Sponsored by Wolf Creek, a portion of the proceeds from several of the 24 vendors would go to the ONEMORE Foster Care Initiative, a nonprofit organization that functions out of Real Life Church to help with necessary supplies for foster children such as diapers, shoes or backpacks for school. They also incorporated a raffle and toy drive to win gift baskets while the collection of toys will go to the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services.
Each business worked in tandem with each other, Beaumont said, out of support and love without creating a hierarchy.
“It’s a great community we created,” she said.
Businesses included Scentsy, SCV Warehouse, Fired Up Chef Services, Pacific Princess Parties and FIT4MOM. Dani Cohen, FIT4MOM’s owner, joined after one of her instructors connected her with Beaumont.
“I always love meeting new people,” Cohen said, “and it seems like most of the vendors here have a common demographic. So it’s nice because we get to meet people who can relate to all of us, I think, as vendors and as shoppers.”
Beaumont and Pappas said this type of fundraiser is intended for families, even those who could not attend but still wanted to donate money or a toy. Moving forward, their goal is to continue holding boutiques in the spring and fall and hopefully work with other organizations such as Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.