Today is a bittersweet day in Newtown, Connecticut. There are red balloons all over town and people gathering to honor little James Mattioli on this, his 7th birthday. Although he is not on this earth to celebrate, his memory is being honored by friends and family in Newtown and by myself, you (readers and friends) and the Etsy community.
I cannot express how honored I feel to be a part of something so personal to so many people who have been on my heart and in my thoughts and prayers for months now. I can't think of anything more rewarding. Here is how it all began :)
Weeks ago I got a repeat order from a customer who was buying something for her daughter's teacher. I ALWAYS glance at the address/location of the order to see if it might be Carmel, Indiana (where I am from), St. Louis, MO (where I live) or somewhere tropical/a dream destination. I have racked up offers of places to stay in Portugal, Australia AND England already! This time around however I couldn't help but notice that Kristen was from Newtown, CT. I would have seen this on her first order but it would not have grabbed my attention then as I had never heard of it. I reached out to express sympathy only to discover she was closer to the tragedy than I hoped or expected :( One thing led to another and some weeks later, she has handed out 100 of these prints to her connections to 12.14.12 be they victim's families, friends and teachers. She decided on "Love always wins" (the town's mantra on the road to healing) and we hope that the message can bring peace and happiness to everyone! The names of each victim borders the quote and the credit for the concept of this design goes to Kristen herself!!
While the print is meant to honor all of the victims and their families, we would like to especially dedicate it to little James, Kristen and her family's personal connection to 12.14.12. In Kristen's words: "James was one of my son Christopher’s dearest friends, a boy who loved life, his family, baseball, Treadwell’s pool, and all things fun. His smile will forever be etched into our hearts, and he is dearly missed by our family."
Half of the proceeds of this print will go to his memorial fund. If you would like to make a donation in lieu of purchasing a print, please make a check out to:
James R. Mattioli Memorial Fund
c/o Newtown Savings Bank
39 Main Street, Newtown, CT 06470
To learn more about James and to see his adorable face, please go here:
To purchase a print which will serve as a reminder that LOVE ALWAYS WINS, please visit my etsy shop here!: https://www.etsy.com/listing/127201130/love-always-wins-half-of-proceeds-to-be?ref=shop_home_active
Thank you for reading this post! I am not the best blogger in the world but then I have never had something SO important to write about! Please share with family, friends and anyone you think would like to make a difference in the future of James' memory.
xoxoxo
Colleen
SIDE NOTE & FAVOR!!! Kristen has reached out to many places requesting donations for frames to give to those who received a print already so they may hang it in their home. If you have any ideas or connections for frames please reach out to me: cocostinedesigns@etsy.com - THANK YOU!!
