On March 9th, I had the privilege of volunteering with Terry Grahl of Enchanted Makeovers at an event for NewHouse Women’s Shelter.  Enchanted Makeovers is a wonderful nonprofit organization dedicated to transforming shelters for women and children into places of peace and possibilities—not just where basic needs are met, but also spiritual needs for hope and beauty.

They sponsored an event here in Kansas City to benefit the women of NewHouse Shelter - a shelter for victims of domestic violence.  The event, called Recipes of Hope, involved cooking at Function Junction with the 30 women who live at Newhouse and sitting down to the meal at nearby Gifted Hands (www.giftedhandskc.com) while sharing laughter, tears and fellowship.

Terry & our team helped to  set a beautiful table (see the pictures of the neat vintage box centerpieces) and made it a day to remember.  The raffle prizes and gift bags were all handcrafted with a special touch of love.  A beautiful quilt created by Debbie Maddy (www.calicocarriage.com) was awarded in a drawing. Each participant also received a full-filled gift bag that included beauty items like makeup, personal items, a pillowcase (donated as part of the Harper’s Fabrics participation in the 1 Million Pillowcase Challenge) plus each received a handmade apron to use in the cooking class with Rachel Gaffney (www.rachelgaffneys.com).

It was such fun to mingle and fellowship with this courageous group of women and see how our community came together to help brighten their lives.  I encourage everyone to be a part of something in your community that helps spread the joy through crafting, sewing or just sharing your joy and love of life. Enchanted Makeovers is looking to build a partner network nationwide. Please visit Terry’s website www.enchantedmakeovers.com to learn more about this wonderful charity.