I mentioned
in a previous post that I would share the details of my very first Face
Painting event!! Well, here it is!
**** Cole's Fundraiser ****
At the end
of December, my dear cousin, Leatha, gave birth to their beautiful son, Cole
Joseph. Cole decided to show up a
little early… about 3 months early, that is.
And because he was born so early, he suffered some complications, such
as a grade 4 brain bleed, which resulted in Cerebral Palsy. He stayed in the hospital until
February. He was finally able to join
his family later that month, much to the joy of Leatha and her husband, Jon,
who have 4 other children at home. It
was a real struggle for this family trying to balance work schedules while
caring for their 4 older children (by the way, each of those 4 children has a
special need of their own; 2 with autism and 2 with cystic fibrosis), and
trying to be with Cole while in the hospital.
I admire my
cousin’s strength so much. I really don’t
know how she does it. Praise God that He
knew the needs each child would have, and that He knew Leatha and Jon were the
right parents for the job!! I can’t
imagine having to watch my children do test after test and suffer sickness
after sickness. I thank God that He
gives them strength for each new day and each new challenge that is laid before
this family. I pray that they are
looking to Him for wisdom and guidance.
Well, as you
can imagine, along with baby Cole’s special needs, he requires some special equipment. A friend of my cousin’s, whom I am very
thankful for!!, put together a vendor
fair fundraiser in honor of Cole to raise money needed to purchase some of
this very costly equipment.
The fair was
made up of all different kinds of individuals that sell a product, whether it
be those at-home parties you see advertised (like Tupperware, Scentsy, etc.) or
someone who makes crafts or products and sells them. Leatha had asked me early on if I would be
interested in selling some of the things I make. I wasn’t prepared in that aspect, but as I am
just starting this face painting business , I thought that would be
perfect! I knew there would be lots of
children at the event.
 |
| A frog, my first face painting attempt. |
So, I
ordered my paint kit. I decided to start
with a small palette which was considerably cheaper than buying each individual
color cake. Anyway.. enough “face
painting jargon”… I got the paint in the
mail and started practicing on Roen. My
first attempt was pretty humbling. I
thought it would just magically look awesome like the examples you see
online! It was ok.. but I was thinking…
would I as a parent pay to have this done?
Probably not. Unless it was like
a dollar. But I kept watching videos on
YouTube to learn different techniques and looking at examples online and
practicing on my son. My faces started
to get better and better. I got more
brushes and sponges and some other different tools and was learning what worked
best for me and what didn’t. As we
started to get closer and closer to the fundraiser, I started to get really
nervous. Up to that point my face
painting attempts weren’t where I wanted them to be. I was really lacking confidence.
One day I
asked my mother-in-law if her two youngest daughters could come over so I could
practice on them. That day turned the
tide for me!! Even Derek’s brother Noah
got his face painted and it turned out awesome!
This day really gave me a boost!
After that I was excited for the event and not so much nervous!
The day of
the fundraiser arrived. We arrived at
the venue and I got all set up. It
started at noon and I was busy, busy, busy until it ended at 4pm. Actually, the children wouldn’t stop
coming! I continued to paint faces while
all the vendors around me were packing up their booths and leaving!! I just couldn’t tell the children no. They had waited on me a long time! My dad had a great idea and started handing
out my business cards with a number written on the back. When it was the next child’s turn, I called
out their number. This way the kids
could run around and look at things and not get antsy while waiting in
line. It worked out great! I think there was only one moment in that 4
hour period where I got to stand up and take a breather before the kids started
coming again. It was way fun
though! And I got the experience to
paint children’s faces with different needs, like children with Autism and one
with Down’s Syndrome. It was a great
learning experience for me. One little
boy with Autism was so sweet. I kept
telling him what I was going to do before I touched his face, etc. because he
would jump every time I touched him or he would cringe. He kept telling me, “You’re doing a good job.” What a sweetie!!
Normally I
would have a set rate per face but for this event, I prayed about it and Derek
and I decided I would only accept free will donations and all the proceeds
would go to Cole. The event organizer
asked if each vendor would donate at least 15% of their profit and provide a
prize for a raffle drawing. I did get to
use my paper cutting skills for the prize.
This was done in a larger frame.
I was pleased with how it turned out.
I’m not sure who won it, but I hope they liked it! I attached one of my business cards to the
back.
Anyway…the
results of the fundraiser!! Because I
was so busy, I didn’t get a chance to really even look around and see what
others were selling. I know there was a
Vault Denim rep, someone who made handmade scarves, Scentsy, Usborne Books,
Damsels in Defense (their stuff was awesome!!
Derek wanted to buy me a taser!! Haha!)
Someone making homemade dog treats…I’m not sure what else. All together Leatha and Jon earned enough
money to buy two very special chairs for Cole that will aid in transporting him
much more safely! Praise God!! :D
I have to
give out two very big thank yous. First,
to a very special someone who made a very, very generous donation for their
child’s face painting. You know who you
are! I’ll probably NEVER make that much
on a single face painting again!! God
bless you! :-D
Secondly, to
my husband, Derek. He was so awesome!! He watched all three children for me during
the entire event. He purchased all the
materials I wanted/needed (mostly just wanted).
He helped me set up and tear down my booth…He believed in me and supported
me without one complaint. I love him so
much. He’s my best friend ever.
*** Photos from the Event!! ***
I would like
to ask everyone to please continue to pray for baby Cole and his family. He has quite a road ahead of him, and it will
not be easy. He’s constantly being
tested and scanned and therapy and this and that. Currently, he is having seizures and a part
of his brain is not functioning as fully as it should be. The doctors do not know what he will or will
not be able to do as he grows. But God
knows. God knew before he was even born
all of these things this sweet little boy would go through. He (God) didn’t make Cole this way to be
cruel. He did it out of love. My cousin is learning this and I praise God
for that. She is seeing now that God is
teaching her patience and many other things.
She now has the ability to love her children and appreciate them in a way
most of us will never know. Every little
milestone that Cole reaches is a time to rejoice, and she does! It should be that way for every parent, for
every child, but we (myself especially) tend to take the little every day
things for granted.
I pray that
my cousin, her husband, and all of their children will continue to be open to
God and the things He is teaching them.
I pray that they will look to Him for their strength and wisdom to
parent Cole. He is such a sweet
gift. Many people look on a child with
disabilities and think, “oh, how tragic.
That poor child will never have a fulfilling life.” Wanna bet?
Ask my cousin, or any parent of a child with disabilities, how fulfilled
their life has become by having a special needs child in it, and you will be
surprised at their response. Cole has
great worth in the eyes of his parents and in the eyes of God. Lord, help each one of us to see that worth
and to praise You for it!!! :-D
