It is that time of the year again; the Jazzy’s Children Fund Holiday Pop-Up Shop has opened. The idea for the store came from Kim Cole, a friend of the organization who wanted to help fundraise for JCF. Kim Cole shared: “I wanted to get other crafters together and sell their items in a store and give 20% of all their sales to [the] Jazzy’s Children Fund!”
The Jazzy Shop has been open for four years, and this is their fifth year having the store open. Their business model is different from most stores. They solicit crafters who buy display spaces in the shop, and the crafters come in and set up their merchandise. In order to prepare for the season, they take four days before the store opens to make sure it’s perfect. This is a joint effort between all of the crafters and the Jazzy’s board members. The revenue collected from the crafters helps pay for the store’s operating expenses.
Jazzy’s Children Fund was started because Jasmine (Jazzy) Paye, a former BMU student, was diagnosed with cancer and unfortunately died from it. Before Jazzy passed, she and Dawn Lazzara, a friend of the family, discussed what they could do to help support other sick children. Jazzy came up with the idea to call it “Paye It Forward.” After she passed, Lazzara and her mother decided to start the organization in Jazzy’s memory.
Jazzy’s Children Fund is a non profit organization; all of the money they receive from donations or fundraisers goes to help local children with life threatening conditions. All of the people who help out are volunteers. Long time volunteer Dawn Lazzara expresses, “What I love about volunteering and running the popup shop is; I get to work with some very talented people who all come together to not only sell their items, but also raise money for the kids that we help through JCF. What we do is all about the kids. Another reason I volunteer with JCF is because of the love I have for Jasmine Paye. I miss her dearly and always want to make sure she is never forgotten.”
This year, the store opened on November 2nd and will close on December 28th. All of the crafters, board members, and other volunteers will work the shop between those dates. The store is open on Monday-Saturday from 10-6 and Sunday 10-3. They are closed for Thanksgiving and Christmas.
