Community Corner

American Girl Fashion Show Benefits Ministry

Do you have an American Girls doll fan in your family? Then you might want to attend or take part in a fundraiser this fall for an area ministry.

The Butterfly Ministry for Girls provides girls in the foster care system with special dolls they can call their own, according to Sandra Hubbard with the ministry. Sandra is also known as “Mother Hubbard.”

The Butterfly Ministry for Girls has contracted with American Girls to bring an American Girls Fashion Show to Greenville in October.

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“The Greenville show is one of only 34 shows in the United States,” she said.

The shows will be held at the Hyatt in downtown Greenville October 5-6.

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“We’ll have two shows on Saturday and two shows on Sunday,” Hubbard said. “The shows are at 12pm and 4pm.”

Tickets are $34 each.

Admission gets attendees a seat at the fashion show as well as a meal.

“It’s a sit-down, kid-friendly meal, but adults will like it too,” Hubbard said.

The show will feature commentators describing each outfit. 

Each show will last two and a half hours, including intermission and time for shopping.

No tickets will be sold at the door, so order your tickets soon by visiting www.AGFASHIONSHOWSC.COM  

They’re planning for 360 attendees at each show and hoping to fill all the shows.

“Get your tickets early,” Hubbard said.  “Once they’re sold out, they’re sold out.”

Buying a ticket automatically enters you in a contest for a chance to win a “Doll of the Year.”

One doll will be given away at each of the four shows. 

Girls should bring their American Girl dolls with them. Stylists from Great Clips will be onhand to do the dolls’ hair for just $10 extra.

A photographer will be present to take pictures of the girls and their dolls.

A Souvenir Shop will be set up, offering a chance to buy American Girl items that are only available at the fashion shows.

“That money will help our ministry as well,” Hubbard said.

Barnes and Noble will be at the show as well, selling all the American Girl Doll books and other items.

“It’s going to be a pretty big event,” Hubbard said.

American Girl has provided the ministry with some special prizes.

A $5 ticket purchase gets you a chance to win one of the prizes.

“We have six different prizes available,” Hubbard said. “They are things that cost about $200. They are really, really great prizes.”

Ministry officials are also working on prizes for the adults in the audience, including a possible trip to the Atlanta American Girl store with overnight accommodations for four.

Adults can purchase tickets for those prizes for $25.

Sponsorships are available, with packages starting at $500. Sponsor information is available at the website.

The ministry currently serves 17 foster homes in seven counties in the Upstate and Hubbard wants all the little girls the ministry serves to have a chance to attend the fashion shows.

To that end, the ministry is offering chances to sponsor a little girl for $50.

The $50 donation provides the girl’s ticket, $5 towards the cost of her chaperone’s ticket and gives the girl $10 to spend that day.

“That will help our ministry and also give those little girls an opportunity to do something they might not otherwise get to do,” Hubbard said.  “It gives them a chance to be just like any other little girl.”

All attendees are encouraged to dress up, if they’d like.

The ministry is also holding auditions for little girls who might want to be in the show as models for the American Girl clothing. 

“We’ll have one tryout in July and another one in August,” Hubbard said.

The July tryout will be held 10am- 2pm July 20 at Club Tabby at the Haywood Mall.

The show needs girls who can wear size 6 or size 10 clothes.

Hubbard hopes the show will become a yearly event. The ministry will have the first chance of rebooking the fashion each year.

Volunteers are also needed to assist with the shows. Hubbard estimates they’ll need 40-50 people per show to work behind the scenes.

In an earlier interview with Easley Patch, Hubbard said that often when children are removed from their homes, they don't get to take much of their belongings with them.

“They usually have seven minutes to pick out things to take where they're going,” Hubbard said. “If the're taken from school, they have no time at all, they just have the clothes on their back.

“Imagine being a little child, being grabbed out of your home and having nothing that's yours,” she continued. “We can give these little girls these dolls. Why should they not enjoy what ever other little girl gets to enjoy?”

The dolls also help the children understand their situation.

“They think, “These people are taking care of me, now I've this little baby I've got to take care of,'” Hubbard said. “We tell the girls, 'If you're having a bad day, maybe your doll is having a bad day too, talk to her about it.'”

The dolls are something the girls can take with them wherever they go, she said.

“They talk about 'forever homes' for these children, 'I'm looking for a forever home,'” Hubbard said. “These dolls are theirs forever. They can take it with them, if they go back to their home, to a forever home or to a relative's home, they have something that is totally theirs.”

 



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