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Entertaining Angels
WE SUPPORT THESE ORGANIZATIONS:
Metropolitan School District of Washington Township Schools
The MSD Washington Township Advancement Center
Indy Fire and Rescue
Peyton Manning Children's Hospital
Little Red Door Cancer Society
St. Vincent/Ascension Healthcare
Girl Scouts of Central Indiana
Indianapolis Humane Society
The Indianapolis Public Library System
The Julian Center
The Care Center
Child Advocates Inc.
Prevail Inc.
Life.Church
Grace Church
Mercy Road Church
Nexus Impact Center
Project Play
Isaiah 117 House
PathWays Together
HOW WE GOT STARTED
Barbie dolls were a huge part of my playtime as a child. It's how I developed a deep appreciation for girl power, beauty and fashion (though I’m sad to say neither of those traits rubbed off on me!!), and storytelling. Acting out life through my dolls was a therapeutic way for me to work through things I had going on, and so it was natural for me to take my entire collection of dolls on vacation when my parents and I went overseas to visit family in 1987.
While there, I befriended a neighbor's daughter with a mental disability and a distant cousin with a broken home life. Both girls had never seen Barbie dolls before. I gifted them each with one of my dolls, and their reactions to that unexpected gesture stuck with me, teaching me a lesson about sharing, blessing others and receiving a blessing in return, and having compassion.
Fast forward to 2011, when my daughter was the prime age for playing with Barbie dolls - but lacked any of same experiences I'd had with gifting them to anyone. And so we spent that Christmas gifting some of our dolls to girls in need right in her own school. That was a pivotal moment in both our lives, because it set the tone for many other opportunities to donate, but also collect, a variety of dolls, toys, and accessories.
Most often, the dolls are gently used, having been someone's cherished collection from childhood. People have said to us time and again, "I just want someone to be able to play with them again!" And we are happy to accept their donations, along with any new dolls, and pass them on to girls in need. These have included families in crisis centers and shelters, schools, foster homes, and churches. To-date, we have donated over 1,000 dolls.