We Care

Myself and my colleagues (because I still have to have a full-time job) participated in an event put on by Herman Miller called "We Care".  What happens is they invite children from different areas in the city to make crafty gifts for their families. The challenge was to come up with something that can be made in less than 5 minutes by a minimum of 200 children aged 5-12 (I believe). First thing we thought was well, we have to have an assembly line, no hot glue or dangerous objects, and easy to explain and make, but also beautiful and exciting to children. So, what better idea but to have an Photo-Op station with Polaroid photos and handmade picture frames! We had kids dress up with hats, ears, or glasses and took pictures of each child. Some of them were so energetic and others shy, some asked to have their best friend next to them, some needed a booster seat. It was adorable and a hit. It was also a lot of work on our end, collecting paint chips from interior reps (for the picture frames), pre-cutting frames, and sticking double sided tape on all the paint chips in our lunch hours. It was also an extremely rewarding experience that I would recommend to any designers who have the opportunity to do it. It's from the heart, and you see the children's smiles and excitement which really pays off. It's a great start to the Christmas season, and it makes you feel like a kid again (my personal favourite feeling as I hope I'm Peter Pan). Thanks so much to my office HDR | CEI for the opportunity and Herman Miller for putting on the event throughout the continent! 

For more information or if you wish to participate, visit the event page here.