Upcoming Dress A Girl Events

UPCOMING DRESS A GIRL EVENTS

Tuesday, February 26th from 3-8 pm at St. Cecilia's

AND

Saturday, March 2 from 9-2 at Browncroft Church

See you there!

 

BCC Pioneer Girls brought 548 Beanie Babies to the office~we just had to share! 

What awesome young girls they are!

 

Blessings to all!

 

Mary Jo

DAG Wish List

Help Us…

DRESS A GIRL AROUND THE WORLD

~Just imagine… if every girl had at least 1 dress~

HOW TO HELP?

Our Wish List:

-Pillowcases - Fabric - Bias Tape - Beanie Babies

-Scissors - Yarn

-Women and Girls who can sew & make dolls

For more info call: Angels of Mercy (New York State Rep for Dress A Girl)

585-730-4556

692 N Winton Rd

www.angelsofmercyny.org

Rochester, NY 14609

Here We GROW Again!

Angels of Mercy charity has grown far beyond founder’s expectations

Image Source

We were featured in the Irondequoit Post!

Since the Angels of Mercy opened a permanent storefront in northeast Rochester just over a year ago, “the door never stops (opening),” Mary Jo Colligan said.

The charity the Irondequoit resident started just two and a half years ago, to help women in need, has already outgrown the space.

“The phone rings all day long,” said dedicated volunteer and now Angels of Mercy vice president Josie Gangarossa of Webster.

The Angels may be best known for their Dress A Girl project — which provides dresses to girls around the world in the belief that every girl deserves the dignity of owning at least one dress. The project also helps discourage would-be predators by presenting the appearance that a girl wearing a new dress is well cared for.

Just in recent weeks, the Angels of Mercy has shipped dresses to Honduras, Panama, Haiti, Kenya, other parts of Africa and the Dominican Republic.

Its biggest shipment to date — 15,000 dresses — is on its way to Cambodia.

Yet, Angels of Mercy is more than Dress A Girl.

When the charity opened its storefront on Winton Road North, it also started what it calls its Butterfly Boutique, which provides (free) complete outfits of gently used clothing for women trying to move forward in life. Some are going on job interviews, Colligan said, others are just getting back into the work force, and still others may just have gotten out of prison.

“We tell them all, ‘you are special’,” Colligan said. “Every time a woman comes in, we see transformations take place right before our eyes.”

Appointments for the boutique are preferred, but just last year, the charity “dressed and blessed” 300 area women.

A lot of them are referred by social workers, friends and churches, Gangarossa said, explaining that they give each woman two to three outfits, including accessories and coats. They can come back every three months.

Angels of Mercy also holds an annual, month-long coat and clothing drive once a year, and this past year collected 700 bags of clothing that were distributed to victims of Hurricane Sandy, refugees, in the Rochester School District, to the homeless and to local shelters.

“City schools call us begging for coats,” Gangarossa said, and they try to accommodate them.

“We want the community to know what we’re doing and where our heart is,” added Gangarossa, who had her own business and now spends three days a week at Angels of Mercy. “I felt the bigger need was here,” she said.

“We (at Angels of Mercy) are a good team,” Colligan said. “We have great, faithful board members and volunteers and such support for one another.”

Colligan is now the Dress A Girl representative for all of New York and travels around the state, often with Gangarossa or board member Georgiana Bondi, on speaking engagements.

“This (Angels of Mercy) has grown beyond my expectations; it’s just amazing,” Colligan said.

Angels of Mercy in the Spotlight!

This is why you were saving those Beanie Babies

Posted by Missy Rosenberry - Webster • February 6, 2013 • 6:01 am
Article here

I got an email yesterday from a friend who’s working with a wonderful group of young ladies from the Browncroft Community Church, and asked that I pass along some information about their community service project.

This enterprising group of fourth graders has partnered with Dress a Girl, an international organization based on North Winton Road which provides dresses and small toys to girls living in extreme poverty all around the world.  They began the project by bringing in their own toys, and then asked friends and neighbors. Some of the girls have also talked with their principals and have organized collections in several Webster schools.  Now they’re reaching out to the greater community.

The girls are looking for Beanie Babies, small stuffed animals and fast food meal toys to donate to Dress a Girl.  I’ll bet everyone has at least a few of these hanging around the house; I know I have a boxful tucked away from when my kids were little.  So when you’re doing your spring cleaning in the next few weeks, throw some in a box, and drop them off at Browncroft Community Church’s ministry office, 2530 Browncroft Blvd., Penfield.

The girls’ goal is to collect 1,000 toys.  Let’s help them get there.

Dress a Girl is a part of Angels of Mercy, 692 N. Winton Road.  Click here for more information about this wonderful organization.

Browncroft Community Church's "Pioneer Girls" are shown presenting their first collection of 110 toys to a local Dress a Girl representative.