Encore Bridal Supports Children in Haiti in May

If you’ve ever visited our showroom, you’ve probably met Rachel.  Beside having an eye for fashion (a FIDM graduate) and a love for wedding dresses, she is caring and compassionate.  This is evident in how she interacts with EB’s brides, but also what she does outside of her work here.  At the end of May, Rachel is going to Haiti.  She will be volunteering at Maison de Lumiere – a home orphaned and at-risk children in Port au Prince.  Maison de Lumiere is just one of the programs supported by financial donations given to Child Hope International – a non-profit organization committed to providing a loving, nurturing, and safe environment to Haitian children.

Why Haiti?  Because it is there that you find 450,000 orphans and 300,000 children in slavery.

Child Hope International is the sole supporter of Maison de Lumiere, but also funds other programs including medical relief and feeding the homeless.  After the earthquake in January 2010 Child Hope used earthquake donation  funds to help people get out of tents and back into homes. They formed construction crews comprised of previously unemployed Haitians to assist in the effort.   Over the last year, they have issued grants to people to cover one year’s rent, repaired over 75 homes, built numerous pre-fab wooden homes and assisted with moving expenses for those who wanted to move out of Port-au-Prince and back to their villages.

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A Word from Rachel:

What inspired you to volunteer in Haiti and with this organization?

“For years I have had a heart for missions and working with children around the world, and when I heard about this opportunity to go to Haiti I could feel God leading me there. After reading about Child Hope and speaking with people who have served there in the past, I had completely fallen in love with the children and story of the Massaserro family who gave up everything to follow God and serve the people of Haiti. Even before the 2010 major earthquake, Haiti was a broken,  poverty stricken, malnourished, and violent nation in need of love and attention by the world and people around them. My heart aches for the Haitian people and the devastation and suffering they endure in their lives. Child Hope has been a beacon of light for Haiti and its children through all of the programs, services, and love they provide. These children at the orphanage will the the future leaders of their nation. For all of these reasons, I am inspired and blessed to be able to go and serve God, Child Hope, and the people of Haiti.”

What do you hope to accomplish?

“The greatest things the Haitian people and these children need is to be loved…not only that we love them, but to be shown that God unconditionally loves them. I am going over there with an open and serving heart for these kids and for what God wants to do through me. Its not a matter of what I want to accomplish, but rather what God’s will is for our team going and the people of Haiti. I have two hands  and one big heart, so whatever the orphanage needs done or however God wants  to use me, I’m in and ready.”

In support of Rachel’s big heart and the work she will be doing in Haiti, Encore Bridal will be donating 5% of our profit from each gown sold in May, to Child Hope International.  We thank you for helping us make this possible.

Want to make a personal donation?  Donate Online

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Want to know more about Child hope and planning your wedding.  Katie Tiffany, former volunteer at Maison de Lumiere,  and wedding planner extraordinaire will be our Sunday Style Salon special guest, May 15th.  Have questions about  venues?  Want some planning tips?  Want to know more about Child Hope International?  Katie will be there to answer  your most burning questions.

Tags: charitable donations, Child Hope, haiti, Maison de Lumiere, non-profit organization, orphanages

Encore Bridal Celebrates Earth Day all Month Long

Encore Bridal is committed to green business practices.  As a company that sells “upcycled couture” we are inherently “green”, but we go many steps further — from using and re-using 70% post consumer waste shipping supplies, to cleaning our gowns with a cleaner who uses non-toxic cleaning agents and a wet-cleaning process.  In our efforts to raise awareness and give back to the community, we will be celebrating Earth Day (April 22nd) all month long.

To celebrate I wanted to do something tangible to help our local neighborhoods and also get my hands dirty — literally.   So, this year, in honor of earth day, I will be volunteering one hour with Heal The Bay for every dress sold in April.  Why Heal The Bay?  If you live in LA and have been to the beaches or ridden your bike along the coastal strand, no doubt you have seen the plethora of debris that lines the beaches and coastal waterways.

Photo courtesy of Heal The Bay

“Every day, rain or shine, enormous quantities of potentially toxic wastes, from human sewage to garden pesticides to metals that flake off roofs and car brake pads, are washed from streets and yards onto the beaches Southern Californians cherish…. Lighter than salt water, the waste doesn’t simply vanish in the deep blue sea. It lingers. Hugging the coastline and floating atop the ocean, the layer of contaminated water in Santa Monica Bay is typically 15 feet thick after rainstorms. During some savage storms, the polluted runoff from Los Angeles County unfolds like a gigantic fan, nearly reaching Santa Catalina Island, 26 miles offshore, and contaminates the shoreline from Point Dume in Malibu to Seal Beach in Orange County.” Los Angeles Times, Sept 6, 1999

Heal the Bay is a nonprofit environmental organization dedicated to making Southern California coastal waters and watersheds, including Santa Monica Bay, safe, healthy and clean.  They do this through reasearch, education, and community action (which includes coastal clean-up days).  Every month they offer several volunteer opportunities including:  beach clean-up days (3rd Saturday of every month), Stream Team Creek restorations (3rd Sunday of every month), educational speaking opportunities and others.

I hope you’ll join me and volunteer with Heal The Bay this year.  But, if you don’t have the time and/or don’t live in the Los Angeles area, I will volunteer for you!  Purchase a discounted designer wedding dress at www.EncoreBridal.com in the month of April and I will donate an hour of our time to Heal The Bay.

Tags: Earth Day, Heal The Bay, Volunteer

Brides Tell Brides About Cervical Cancer

January is Cervical Cancer Awareness Month

Did you know…

The American Cancer Society estimates that in 2009:

• about 11,270 new cases of invasive cervical cancer will be diagnosed.
• about 4,070 women will die from cervical cancer.
• non-invasive cervical cancer (carcinoma in situ) is about 4 times more common than invasive cervical cancer.

In addition:

• 1 in 145 women will be diagnosed with cancer of the cervix uteri during their lifetime.
• 99% of cervical cancers are caused by a high-risk HPV strain.  For more information about HPV, read http://www.tamikaandfriends.org/hpv-cervical-cancer/hpv

Cervical Cancer is Preventable!  Regular pap and HPV testing has significantly reduced the incidence of cervical cancer.  In addition we now have a vaccine that prevents the types of genital human papillomavirus (HPV) that cause most cases of cervical cancer.

In honor of Cervical Cancer Month we are urging brides to make an appointment for your next pap and HPV test.  While you’re there, talk to your doctor about the HPV vaccination. There is nothing more important than your health!

What is Encore Bridal Doing? Encore Bridal LLC not only wants to help women find the wedding gown of their dreams, we want to help all women live happier, healthier lives.  In the month of January we are donating $50 to the National Cervical Cancer Coalition for every gown sold.

For more information about Cervical Cancer and HPV visit:

Tamika and Friends Inc., www.TamikaandFriends.org

The National Cancer Institute, www.cancer.gov

The Center for Disease Control, www.cdc.gov

Tags: Add new tag, bridal event, cervical cancer, cervical cancer awareness month

Brides Against Cervical Cancer

Did you know….Every hour a woman is diagnosed with cervical cancer and every 2.5 hours a woman will die from cervical cancer, a preventable disease.  Join Tamika and Friends Inc this Saturday, May 16th in Washington D.C as they walk with women in an effort to beat this clock.  Register Today!

Registration for the May 16, 2009 D.C. Walk to Beat the Clock taking place at Walter Pierce Park is FREE this year. However, we ask you to pledge to bring at least TWO women with you – a woman who has had her HPV screenings or has been vaccinated against HPV and a woman who has not. We want to continue this year after year, until every woman has had her HPV screening or been vaccinated against HPV.

Register today as an individual, start a new team or join an existing team. Make a general donation to the cause, contribute to a team or sign up as a volunteer.

All proceeds to benefit Tamika and Friends, Inc. and the education and awareness of cervical cancer and its link to the human papillomavirus (HPV).

For more information, please contact us at info@tamikaandfriends.org or (866) 595-5448.

Encore Bridal LLC supports women and our community.  We’ve made our donation to Tamika and Friends and urge you to consider a donation to this very worthy cause. 

Tags: cervical cancer, charity walk

Calling All LA Brides–Volunteer and Make Dreams Come True

Attention Ladies “Brides Against Breast Cancer” needs your help this weekend! This is a fantastic organization that is making wishes come true for women with terminal breast cancer. I volunteered at their Century City event last September and met fabulous women while having a great time. This is a way for you to give a nod to all of your blessings during this happy time of your life by giving back to other women. Here are the details:

When:
Thursday, August 21, Setup beginning at 10 am
Friday, August 22, 9 am – 8 pm
Saturday,August 23, 9 am – 4 pm

Where: San Ramon Marriott, 2600 Bishop Dr., San Ramon, CA 94583.

What: They are looking for individuals who are willing to help with set-up, tear-down and to help brides-to-be find the gown of their dreams. Even if you are a few hours away, why not make it a fun and rewarding group activity, invite your co-workers, club, family and friends to commit with you in supporting this worthy cause. This sale promises to be an extraordinary win, win for everyone! It’s a “green” option for wedding dresses, saves brides hundreds, if not thousands of dollars, promotes breast cancer awareness and gives breast cancer patients an opportunity to make lasting memories for their loved ones.

For another opportunity to make your wedding day more than a memorable day but also a day that helps make memories, you are invited to join our Pink Envelope Project (PEP).

Join the Pink Envelope Project today and help make wishes come true! To learn more visit www.PinkEnvelopeProject.org.