Bring Sunshine: Lotus House Craft PartIES

Lotus House – Although it’s based in our hometown, Lotus house is the largest woman’s shelter in the country – so we decided to count it as our National goal.  Lotus house has sheltered over 10,000 women and children since its inception over 17 years ago.  Lotus House has the capacity to shelter over 500 women and children on a nightly basis, nearly half of whom are children.  Lotus House is more than a shelter, it is a sanctuary that helps women and children heal, learn, grow and thrive on every level.  This special place is more than a meal, a bed and a shower.  Lotus house provides holistic, empowering and uplifting supportive services that put children first. 

On our first tour of Lotus House, we were mesmerized by the community and how they seemed to have everything covered.  From their incredible hydroponic garden, healthy meals and hair salon – we had no idea how we could add anything to this special place.  So, we asked the question, “what can we do to help?”  The answer was simple and perfect – we were told that we could bring joy.  That was the magical charge!!  

We brainstormed, we debated, we made lists and we crossed things off the list.  The one thing we could agree on was that some of our favorite memories were from the birthday parties that we have hosted and the ones that we have been invited to.  We cherished the special crafts that we made and we wanted to bring that joy to Lotus House.  So, this is how we started our journey. 

The critical feature of our craft parties at Lotus house are: 

• The crafts that the children make need to be durable, high quality and something that they can be very proud of.  Storage of personal belongings at Lotus House is limited.  Whatever the children make needs to be worth taking up that precious space and it needs to last. 
• The activities should be one where moms and kids can spend time together having fun.  This could be customizing a hydroflask or designing a wearable blanket.  The guests of Lotus House should be able to have a fun afternoon bonding – mom and kids. 
• We want to play too!!  Our favorite part after we set up is enjoying the activity with the guests.  We have made so many new friends and enjoyed their laughter and joy. 
• Finally, we need to be consistent – when we started this, we knew the best part would be if we could real connections with the guests.  The only real way to do that is to show up.  We host events consistently throughout the year.  Each time we leave, we let the guests know about the next event.  Something for all of us to look forward to!