Giving Back: Merideth Mehlberg Organizes Third Annual Holiday Pajama Drive

Holiday Pajama Drive: Benefit for Alameda Midway Shelter

Lorie Curtis, Development Coordinator of Building Futures with Women and Children, along side Merideth Mehlberg, founder of the Holiday Pajama Drive.


 

Three years ago, I was invited to photograph what was to become Merideth Mehlberg’s first annual Holiday Pajama Drive. The event serves to benefit the Midway Shelter, supporting women and children at a time of undeniable need through the donation of funds and basic necessities.

I first met Merideth when she came to me for new marketing imagery for her executive coaching and consulting firm based in Alameda. As our kinship grew, Merideth brought me onto her team to provide headshots to her clients. Throughout my time working with her, I have been endlessly impressed by her positivity, motivation, and ever-generous spirit. She is truly an inspiration!

The Holiday Pajama Drive began with a simple idea. With so much focus on receiving during the holiday season, Merideth wanted to give her kids the opportunity to experience the joy of giving. She had a strong memory of her parents helping a family in need when she was young, and she wanted to continue the family tradition of giving back. She soon learned that the sentiment resonated with others in her community and the wheels began to turn.

Rather than simply gifting checks, guests are encouraged to pick a specific family, who remains anonymous, to shop for each holiday season. Beyond building a spirit of generosity, Merideth’s event creates a feeling of community — with each family who shopped for a family coming to bring their gifts and enjoy an evening together, all in the spirit of giving.

Holiday Pajama Drive: Benefit for Alameda Midway Shelter

Three years from its start, this year’s event raised $1,100 and clothed 115 people, women and their children, across three shelters with fresh new jammies and other comfy clothes. The event featured a delicious spread from Lainie Acacio of Gather & Grub, a performance by the amazingly talented Barefoot Quales family bluegrass band, and a fun Zumba dance session for the kids led by Denise Lum.

This is beautiful event full of kids and parents coming together to care for other kids and mothers in their community. Thank you, Merideth, for continually inspiring us to be our best selves and showing the next generation what it means to be a good neighbor and a good human being!

-Nancy

Merideth Mehlberg is an executive coach based in Alameda. You can find more information on her firm, the Holiday Pajama Drive, and notifications for next year’s drive on her website.

Midway Shelter‘s mission is to advocate for homeless women and their children, assuring their right to live free of domestic violence in a safe and supportive environment. The Network strives to secure adequate funding to keep the Midway Shelter operating 24 hours a day while raising the consciousness of our community. Even though this year’s Pajama Drive is over, you can still help!

Holiday Pajama Drive: Benefit for Alameda Midway Shelter(Top to bottom) Merideth Mehlberg presents a check to Lorie Curtis of Building Futures with Women and Children; proud gift giver poses with this year’s presents.

877-881-7221 | nancyrothstein.comnancy@nancyrothstein.com

Finalist for Best of Oakland 2015!!

best of oakland

I am grateful and humbled to be a finalist in the Commercial Photographer category of Oakland Magazine’s 2015 Best of Oakland and East Bay contest!

This truly brightens my day!  Thank you to my clients and colleagues, who are friends and neighbors, for your help getting me to the finals!

It would mean the world to me if you would cast your final vote for me in the last stage of the contest.  It’s super fast and easy to VOTE HERE; no login required!  There are two stages of voting; so if you voted in the first stage, please vote again for the finals.  Voting ends May 31st.

This is a great opportunity to support your other local favorites.  The contest allows one vote per per IP address and you can use any device.

Thank you in advance with all my heart!

-Nancy

877-881-7221 | nancyrothstein.comnancy@nancyrothstein.com

Howtobeselfemployed.com Interview!

I recently photographed the first QB Self-Employed Community Meetup at Impact Hub Oakland. I’m excited and honored that the folks at the QB Self-Employed community decided to include an interview with me on their site as a resource for other businesses. It’s amazing to me to be able to offer a perspective on social media, since it was something I struggled with as a business owner when I was starting out. Figuring out where and how to engage, how to manage the time online, and finding the value in social media platforms were all questions I had to answer for myself. Our interview about my approach to social media is featured in the “Getting Customers” section of the site here; check it out!

interviewBeing a social business in today’s world is more important than ever. There’s no denying that we’re connected to our devices 24/7, whether we’re at work or at play. Even though ways of connecting with each other have changed throughout the years with technology, our need stay in touch remains the same. My clients are authors, entrepreneurs and industry leaders who have very active social profiles. Staying in touch with them and remaining active online is paramount to my business and personal success.

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Part of being a photographer is sharing your point of view with the world. I am lucky because I get to connect with people and businesses in person every day. Continuing to cultivate those relationships on social media is a great way to stay connected, share our adventures, and celebrate each other’s successes. What do you do in your business that allows you to remain social? I would love to hear from you!

-Nancy

 

877-881-7221 | nancyrothstein.comnancy@nancyrothstein.com