100 Dresses Activity

This was the greatest activity EVER!!! It started out by just asking the ladies of my church to read this great story about friendship and judging, and I asked each person to bring a dress so we could donate them to a local shelter. My goal was to acquire 100 dresses but we ended up gathering way more than that! I was soo excited. The outline for the program was to first have dinner of course. We had chicken salad croissants and salads. With cake and icecream for dessert. After dinner we had a little skit about judging and fitting in, pretty much reinacting how the book portrays friendship.
Following that we had a sweet sister give a summary of the book and turned it into a discussion. I didn't think people would be affected by this book as much as they were. They were truly touched by it and it brought back memories of their childhood days and some were the bullies and some were the ones that were picked on. It became a very emotional evening. It was so great to hear all they had to say. We then sang a beautiful Childrens Song called "I'll Walk With You". There wasn't a dry eye in the room.
We ended the evening by learning about the Erin Kimball Foundation, which is the place we will be donating these dresses to. It was great to see a survivor of this foundation and to know that these ladies and children will all need these dresses. We all walked away feeling uplifted and I know I walked away wanting to be a better friend.
A great book that everyone should read. Even my son really liked it (even if it was about girls and dresses). It is a book that everyone can relate to at some level.

These were the invitations we made. I just googled Paper Doll dresses and found this one at Milliande.com. We then put lace on the bottom to dress it up a little bit. The bow gave the finishing touch.

Our great group of women!

We used porcelin dolls and antique hats and gloves for the centerpieces.

We used different china for each table setting. It gave it a "teaparty" touch.

It was a great evening that I will never forget. It is moments like these that make you want to be a better person and to realize how blessed I am with my life.