Hi everyone! Let me first introduce myself before getting down to business.
My name is Akshata Nayak and I moved to VT last year with my husband. Here we started two businesses –
- The Orange Owl (www.theorangeowlshop.com) based in Grand Isle which offers 100% handmade, all-natural, ecofriendly and socially conscious skincare products
We are very excited that through both these ventures we get to help people achieve the level of wellness they have always desired in their lives.
What we have realized over the past year is that small businesses are the lifeline of Vermont. The little Mom-and-Pop shops you see downtown, the uniqueness and artistic quality of products, the appreciation and respect for nature, the rustic environment, baled hay in the fields, wildlife, farmers markets, giant farm tractors in the middle of the road, a feeling of community – this is what Vermont is all about.
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| Route 4 in Mendon, VT. Courtesy The Daily Herald |
Approximately two weeks ago, everybody was glued to their television sets or computers frantically trying to track a rough hurricane that was threatening to make its way up the east coast. Large areas were evacuated and emergency protocols were put into place.
When the time came, however, the now infamous Irene changed her track and moved inland hitting Vermont harder than ever expected. Whole roads were destroyed, bridges washed away, towns found themselves choked with mud and people were left stranded without any access to food, water and basic amenities.
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| House destroyed south of Pittsfield, VT. Courtesy The Rutland Herald |
Times like these can bring out the worst or the best in people and Vermonters proudly put their best foot forward. Town-wide barbecues were planned in places cut off from the rest of the state, strangers helped each other out, fundraisers were organized and people worked tirelessly to reinstate access to all the affected towns. At the moment, the vibe in the air is nothing short of inspirational and infectious.
We know how lucky we are that we were spared in this devastation, while merely an hour away the destruction is unbelievable. It is imperative, therefore, that however small, we do our best to make a difference.
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| Time to help your neighbors out! Brattleboro, VT. Courtesy Burlington Free Press |
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In my efforts to find an organization or fund that I could work with, I found
Vermont Irene Flood Relief Fund. Based out of Montpelier, this organization has been working nonstop to help small businesses, just like us, get back on their feet. Since this is the world I know best, I decided this is what I wanted to assist with.
So, here we are! The ideas, numbers, details and exhaustive directions -
o $1500.00 for Vermont Irene Flood Relief Fund. This is a random amount and I would be DELIGHTED to increase it - we can do it!
o Contact me at theowl(at)theorangeowlshop(dot)com or send me a direct message on Twitter (TheOrangeOwl1) or find The Orange Owl on Facebook to donate handmade items as prizes (DON’T say you didn’t know how to get in touch with me!)
o Over the next week, I will be contacting/nagging various friends/crafters/artists to get details about their donations (you DO NOT have to ship these items to me, I just need pictures, descriptions etc). We have already received great handmade donations from
Made In Lowell,
Gather Here,
Designs By Anna,
Sampler Village,
Town of Beadrock,
The Orange Owl and various just-starting-to-craft crafters. I know we can gather much more!
o I will post a blog on September 12
th, 2011 with all the information about the luxurious goods you can win
- For people who want to participate in the raffle:
o For every $10 donated, you get one entry into our raffle
o I will need you to return and provide three things in the comments section below (just one comment even if you have made a very generous donation, please!)
§ email ID used while making the donation (for example theowl(at)theorangeowlshop(dot)com)
§ donation amount (for example $30.00 which entitles you to 3 entries into our raffle)
§ receipt number given to you in the EMAIL that Paypal will send in response to your donation (for example 0303-6900-2502-1793 at the END of the email)
o DO NOT FORGET this step, otherwise we will have no way to keep track of your generosity for the raffle drawing
o On October 2nd, winners will be chosen for the prizes using an online random number generator
o If you win any of the above mentioned crafty-genius-items, I will contact you via the email you provided and request that you forward me the confirmation email sent to you by Paypal post your donation (so SAVE THAT EMAIL!)
o It is then my responsibility to communicate with the crafters/artists and provide them the contact information of the winners so they can ship out their individual prizes directly.
It is very simple - you get to win awesomeness and Vermont Irene Flood Relief Fund gets to help more people out – definitely a WIN! WIN! situation.
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| National Guard preparing food to airlift into towns. Courtesy Associated Press |
Who WOULD NOT want to participate?! So, let’s get started! PLEASE Facebook, Tweet, email, blog, text, call and whatever-else-it-is-that-kids-do-these-days about this raffle and get as many people involved as possible. Follow TheOrangeOwl1 on Twitter or Facebook to stay updated.
Thank you so much for your time and generosity!
