It is hard to believe that our last in-person event for Hearts of Hope Stratford was in February of 2020. We did 4 in-person events that month: Service Saturday at Sterling House, our regular Paint with a Purpose at the Riverview Bistro, an event with Boy Scout Pac 272, and an event with the Wallingford Community Women.
And then everything changed... the world shut down due to Covid-19. 
For a person who feels that they have been put on this earth to make a difference, it has been a long and stressful 19 months of being shut down, of feeling purposeless. I tried to keep myself busy making Angel of Hope ornaments in my basement, looking forward to the day when the world would reopen and I could begin to fire them...but you can only make so many of those (473 to be precise with the amount of clay I had at home, 😂).
And once you are out of clay, what do you do then?
So I am ever grateful for the scientists and reseachers who have created a vaccine that has allowed us to get back to some assemblance of normal, and has allowed us to reopen for in-person events again.
We now have a new home, Sterling House Community Center, and I am more grateful to them than words could ever express. Back in 2016, when we were just starting up as a chapter, they generously gave us a room on the third floor to use as our chapter headquarters. We have used it to make our hearts, meet with volunteers on various projects, and meet with scout troops for painting events. And now, they are letting us have our in-person Paint with a Purpose events there on the second Thursday of the month. We are so blessed and so grateful for their generosity of spirit and support.
So here we are, our first event in 19 months! Terrified that no one would remember us, that no one would come to a new location and a new time.
We changed the time to 6:30, but we were ready early, which was a good thing, because people were arriving at 6 pm. I was thrilled to see them come through the elevator doors! By 6:45 we were packed! It was so great to see our old friends, but there were so many new faces too! It was great having the time to explain to them what Hearts of Hope was, how it was started in response to 9-11, to get to show them where we make the hearts, show them the cookie cutters we use...and just between you and me, it was great not having to pack my car full of all the supplies and cart them to a different venue for set up.
Well, enough of my musings... here are the photos from our FIRST IN-PERSON EVENT IN 19 MONTHS! Painting for Breast Cancer Survivors and WarriorsTonight's hearts will going to Seymour Pink.
(Click on a photo and it will take you to a larger view of it.)
Lily and Lucy are volunteering with us again on nights when they don't have practice. I can't believe how much they have grown up in 19 months!
a new friend
Michael is running check-in, having everyone fill in our Covid Contact Tracing form before entering. 
Lily and Michael signing in our guests.
It was great to see CJ again! He always knows how to brighten up a room.
Marianne, Pam, and Linda
It was great to see Valerie again!
A room full of new faces!
We set up a photo booth for the hearts so the participants could take a quality photo of their heart before sending it out into the world to do good.
Join us on October 14th when we paint for Health Care Heroes!
So here we are, our first event in 19 months! Terrified that no one would remember us, that no one would come to a new location and a new time.
We changed the time to 6:30, but we were ready early, which was a good thing, because people were arriving at 6 pm. I was thrilled to see them come through the elevator doors! By 6:45 we were packed! It was so great to see our old friends, but there were so many new faces too! It was great having the time to explain to them what Hearts of Hope was, how it was started in response to 9-11, to get to show them where we make the hearts, show them the cookie cutters we use...and just between you and me, it was great not having to pack my car full of all the supplies and cart them to a different venue for set up.
Well, enough of my musings... here are the photos from our FIRST IN-PERSON EVENT IN 19 MONTHS!
Painting for Breast Cancer Survivors and Warriors
Tonight's hearts will going to Seymour Pink.
(Click on a photo and it will take you to a larger view of it.)
Lily and Lucy are volunteering with us again on nights when they don't have practice. I can't believe how much they have grown up in 19 months!
a new friend
Michael is running check-in, having everyone fill in our Covid Contact Tracing form before entering.
Lily and Michael signing in our guests.
It was great to see CJ again! He always knows how to brighten up a room.
Marianne, Pam, and Linda
It was great to see Valerie again!
A room full of new faces!
We set up a photo booth for the hearts so the participants could take a quality photo of their heart before sending it out into the world to do good.
Join us on October 14th when we paint for Health Care Heroes!
