Close your eyes and let me take you back to your 12th Grade Prom Night. Do you remember the months preparing for this moment – everything from deciding on a dress and a tux, to envisioning how you want your hair and makeup and then finding a date, and at last dancing the night away with your closest and dearest.
Fantasizing about prom night might be superficial to say the least but to some, being able to attend prom itself is but a fantasy on its own.
The team behind Children of the Street Society (COS) have one goal in their hearts this year and that is to honour their supporters and to make prom something that can be experienced by all youth as a significant part of growing up. Everything from buying a dress, to getting to prom isn’t affordable to all youth and this year, The Children of the Street Society want YOUR help to pass on an act of kindness so that underprivileged youth within Vancouver and the Tri-Cities area can also experience a night of wonder.
If you haven’t heard of COS, here are a few things you should know!
Children of the Street Society takes a collaborative and comprehensive approach to preventing the sexual exploitation of children and youth. They offer a variety of preventative programs which engage individuals and groups. Amongst what they do is education and awareness workshops to children and youth across BC through a program called TCO2; they deliver over 600 of these workshops to over 25,000 participants annually, in approximately 30 B.C. communities! COS has facilitated over 500 workshops, in approximately 30 B.C. communities, with more than 25,000 participants annually!
Children of the Street Society was founded in 1995 by a group of concerned parents whose children were affected by sexual exploitation; one of them being the organisation’s Executive Director – Diane Sowden whose daughter was human trafficked and then recruited into the sex trade by an older boyfriend at the age of 13 years old and she did not have the chance to attend her prom. As a result Diane was instrumental in getting the Age of Sexual Consent raised from 14 to 16 years of age in 2008.
How can you help?
With Fashion.
#FillTheRackChallenge
What is Fill The Rack?
You can help #FillTheRack for underprivileged teens by donating your men’s formal suiting and prom wear to help support @childrenofthestreet.
There is a rack set up on the second floor of Blanche Macdonald Robson Campus collecting donations!
Address: 460 Robson Street Vancouver, BC
Let reception know you are dropping off for Mel Watts between Mon-Fri 10-5pm
Proceeds go towards helping a select group of underprivileged youth in Vancouver and the Tri-Cities area receive dresses and tuxedos donated by the community along with professional hair and makeup for their 2016 prom.
Celebration of Success Gala Night + Fashion Show
This year COS will be hosting a fashion show by producer and creative director Siobhan Nicole for the 5th Annual Celebration of Success Gala to celebrate the success over the years and to thank all the support received!
The fashion show will feature 2 Fashion Show sponsors: Menswear clothing is by Maison Dasorine and the women’s wear is from My Sisters Closet
Official media sponsor: Vancity Buzz
Prize sponsor : WestJet
With each ticket purchased, you will be entered into a Raffle to win flights to anywhere that WestJet flies to!
Date: Wednesday, March 9, 2016
Time: 6 pm – 10 pm
Venue: Diamond Ballroom and Catering, 1495 West 8th Ave, Vancouver, BC.
To find out more about the event and/or to buy tickets, follow the links below:
Facebook Organization Page- Children of the Street Society
I look forward to seeing you there! 😉
