C-Si's Bowtique
Thursday night I was part of the dinner prep crew for the community cookout in Cincinnati. My group had already previously spent a couple hours setting up tables and chairs in order to move the cookout inside to avoid the rainy, gloomy weather that was heading that way. I was half expecting the locals to not show up since the change was so last minute, but the room was still filled with those hungry to eat and ready to talk to us. I was in charge of adding some of the salad toppings to those who chose to eat it until I was relieved of my duty from my sister Keri. This break allowed me to get in line, and I sat down for a bit before I started to walk around to take pictures of all the youth interacting with new people. The first thing that caught my eye was the youth who were walking around, many of them had bows in their hair, regardless of gender. My initial reaction was, "Did I miss something?" Here are some examples below:
I noticed quickly there were three little children sitting at the end of one of the long, white tables with plastic bags filled with an assortment of hair bows. A crowd had started to form around their little corner, and everyone was practically flinging money at them. Briefly I sat back and watched them making sales, and afterwards I asked them how much a bow would cost. "50¢ for one, $1.00 for two." One of them told me. "I'll be right back, I need to go grab my money, don't leave!" I said. At such an affordable price, I HAD to support these little girls! I rushed downstairs, grabbed $3.00, and sprinted back afraid that they might've already left before I could get anything.
They let me pick 6 from the bag to buy with my $3.00. My heart melted when I saw these small children selling the bows that they had made, and then I learned even more about them and couldn't help but feel my heart break for them. I noticed an older women with them, and I started to listen in on what she was talking about to some of the other youth around me. Numerous family members on their dad's side of the family had happened just within the past year, and the grandmother was taking care of the children until their mom could get a permanent job and home during their time of grieving. Another one just passed away in the past couple of days, too, but she didn't want to make them even more upset. She said that her and her granddaughters sell the bows to help make ends meet, and they had virtually no money left after the last payment the grandmother made on the house they lived in.
Word was spreading quickly; Josh, the youth director of the Texas group, was directing every person over to where they were selling them and basically forced us all to buy at least one. All of the youth groups pitched in and made it possible for these girls to raise over 90$ just by being there that one night during the cookout. They sold every single last bow and even plan on coming back to the cookout each week to try to sell more. When someone asked what they would do with the money, one of them responded, "We're gonna buy more supplies!" Another said, "We can buy food!" They were overflowing with excitement, and they tried to call their mom multiple times to tell her the good news. I took this video as one of them celebrated:
And here are some of the pictures of them with their plastic bags filled with money:
I will never forget these beautiful, smiling faces. I will never forget the enthusiasm they had towards the business they were running at such a young age. Despite their circumstances, we were informed that each morning they wake up at seven and start selling the bows wherever they can. The grandmother hopes that this will instill in them valuable skills that will carry them further in life. They will grow up to be entrepreneurs one day. As someone who has lost a loved so close to me, their story really hit home. I aspire to have the confidence, strength, and perseverance they showed. Pictured underneath are 4/6 bows I purchased!
How You Can Support Them:
Love always,
Allison
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