Time for this year’s Annual Tiara Dinner in review! Can I just share with y’all how awesome my
friends are? Thank you. I think I will. My friends are amazing! Ok, that’s enough exclamation marks for a
minute. This year’s dinner was just over
the top amazing. Seriously, every year
gets a little bigger. Here’s how it went
down.
Several months ago, I polled my friends casually and asked
for opinions about what the theme should be this year. The consensus was overwhelmingly in favor of
“Super Hero Princess.” Each person was
challenged to create a costume for the party.
Creativity and thriftiness are encouraged. Silliness ensued online as some people
refused to reveal a secret identity.
Others did shared so as to encourage and inspire.
Location is very important.
The location often establishes who will be able to attend, and it also
determines how visible the party goers are to the public. A friend pointed out that our 2014 location
was not as public as previous years. I
needed to select a place that was more public because one purpose of dressing
up and going out like this is to share about our purpose: to share Christ in a
non-threatening way and to educate others about the problem of human
trafficking. My favorite Mexican
restaurant won the toss-up. It is
located on a major highway in a shopping area filled with parking lots, trees,
and a playground for kids. I knew it
would provide multiple opportunities to share with people about what we were
doing.
After the determination of the theme and location, the
fundraising talk began. Being a princess
and a super hero is fun but with that distinction comes a great amount of
responsibility. I was excited about the super
hero aspect to the party this year because our goal was to raise enough money
to rescue at least one lady from a trafficking situation. Last year, I think I was told that the
initial cost to rescue someone was around $800.
At least that number got stuck in my head, so that was the goal that I
set. We met that goal last year. This year we raised over $1000! I asked my friends, “What can you do to stop
human trafficking?” The emphasis was on
the “can.” Some people held garage sales
or cleaned out their closets. Some
people rinsed out a can after dinner one night and started collecting change in
the can. Yes, my friends brought me tin
cans of change. Some friends wrote a
small check or sent me a $10 bill. I
asked my friends what they were able to do, and they did it. Some friends came and participated in the
evening without a donation. That was
fine too because with a bigger crowd, we got the attention. With that attention, we could tell people
about the injustice of human trafficking.
On the night of the event, the Super Hero League of
Princesses descended in the parking lot of my favorite Mexican restaurant. My mom and sister came for the first time
this year. Another mom brought her 15
year old daughter and a friend. Friends
from my childhood, past teaching experiences, current job connections, and
several different churches were all there.
New neighbors, old neighbors, and friends of friends were there. Cat woman, Super Nona, Super Teacher, Wonder
Woman, Super Confused, Super Soccer Mom, Ursula, Elasta Girl, and other supers
came! We were a sight to be seen with
women from 15 to 60-something dressed up in self-assured crazy costumes!
Immediately, a little girl spotted us and wanted to take a
picture. A super hero princess always
makes time for little admirers. Then we
set out for more pictures in a scavenger hunt.
This took all of us all over the shopping center, play ground, local
stores, and restaurants to take pictures doing silly super hero poses. The list of challenges also included taking
pictures with people we didn’t know.
Doing the scavenger hunt gave us some great pictures from the
evening. One team met a biker who works
with another organization to fight trafficking.
Another team got a $5 donation.
After working up an appetite, the SHLP from this year’s ATD
flew in to the designated restaurant for tacos, burritos, fajitas, and
nachos. Our waiters were lots of fun and
even tried on a tutu and tiara! This
year I made a little speech about the purpose of the event and then awarded the
tip can to the waiters. Every year, I
decorate a tip jar to pass around. We
all stuff it full of cash to hand off to the waiter as a symbol of who we are and
not just the service we receive. (We
don’t always get good service.) This
year it was a large tin can because I had asked my friends, “What can you do?” We were all very excited to give the
decorated tin can to the guys this year.
They were fantastic.
The night ended with a trip to an ice cream icon. 20 Super Hero Princesses filled up that ice
cream parlor! I got free ice cream
because it was my birthday. And do you
know what I gave in return? A big
tip!
Until next year, my dear crazy friends! Until next year . . .
If you are reading this for the first time, you need to
understand why we wear tiaras. We are
not spoiled ladies who like lots of bling.
Some of us don’t even like bling to begin with. We wear tiaras occasionally, but we are royal
all the time. We are adopted into the
family of the Heavenly King of Kings.
And I want you to know that you can be royal too. Romans 10:9 says that if you confess and
believe in Christ, you will be saved.
That means that your soul will be saved for a better eternity than this
world has to offer. If you have any
questions about this, find a local church or let me know. I’d be tickled pink to help you!
Learn more about human trafficking:
http://redeemedministries.com/austin/
https://secure.enditmovement.com/
http://www.a21.org/index.php
https://www.ijm.org/
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