Suit Drive Down Memory Lane

Escoe Bliss is proud to include Working Wardrobes in our Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) plan and support their mission to empower men, women, and young adults overcoming difficult challenges to confidently enter the workforce and achieve self-sufficiency.  

Our Annual Suit Drive begins April 16th and as we prepare for this special time of year at Escoe Bliss we can't help taking a short trip down memory lane. Many friends, colleagues, clients, and industry partners have contributed to and participated in our suit drives making our events more and more successful every year! The same support and generosity we see as we go down memory lane, is the same energy that drives Working Wardrobes and our community into the fast lane to success. 


Please join with us this year and donate your gently-worn professional clothing! (See below for giving guidelines.)

Escoe Bliss Annual Suit Drive for Working Wardrobes

April 16th - April 20th

8 AM - 5 PM

16520 Bake Pkwy., Suite 155

Irvine, CA 92618

Our journey down Memory Lane began in 2008...

...And continues today!

Thank you to all those who have joined us and donated along the way! We look forward to seeing you again in just a couple of weeks. For more Suit Drive updates, details, and photos 'Like' Escoe Bliss on Facebook.

GIVING GUIDELINES

§  All sizes of men’s and women’s clothing

§  Plus sizes are especially needed

§  Must be clean and on a hanger

§  Clothes should be in good condition: No tears, holes, broken zippers, etc.

ACCESSORIES

§  Purses and shoes

§  Ties, belts, scarves, and costume jewelry

§  Men’s shoes and women’s purses are in short supply and most needed


Questions or concerns? Please contact Regina Gormanly, Suit Drive Coordinator.

Joy to the World!

Over the weekend I watched a movie on the ABC Family channel that seemed to be another updated version of the movie "A Christmas Carol." Although the main character is a young successful woman in the entertainment industry versus the one we all know, Ebenezer Scrooge, the message was the same. Every holiday season starting with Thanksgiving seems to be all hustle and bustle. Gratitude is always brighter at this time of year a.k.a. the "spirit of the season." Have you stopped to take it all in and remember the reasons of the season? We challenge ourselves and you to make everyday a gratitude day - pay it forward in anyway you can. Not only monetarily; you can give the give of time, the gift of a smile, the gift of a thank you, the gift of a referral, the gift of a compliment, or many more.

At the end of each year the team at Escoe Bliss reflects on our accomplishments and those that include the extended Escoe Bliss family (our subcontractors and consultants). The year of 2010 has been a year of recovery for most individuals, small and large businesses, and the nation in general. We feel blessed to have another year of business (celebrating 17 years in 2011) and a network of clients, consultants, vendors and partners that bring so much joy to all of us. For this, we say THANK YOU!!

If you can and would like to contribute your time or make a donation for the holiday season (and throughout the new year,) here are a list of some of our favorite local charities & non-profits that could use your support.

- Working Wardrobes
- Families Forward
- Pediatric Cancer Research Foundation
- The Let it Be Foundation
- Susan G. Komen for the Cure
- Alzheimer's Association

Please feel free to post comments with your charity of choice to share with others and what the holidays mean to you!

Wishing you Happy Holidays and may they bring you much joy!

Changing lives in our community

In our previous blogs leading up to the Escoe Bliss Suit Drive benefiting Working Wardrobes we played up the hero bit by describing what you would normally see on TV or in the movies; a character wearing a mask and cape with super human powers. We got your attention right? In actuality the definition of hero is:

1. a man of distinguished courage or ability, admired for his brave deeds and noble qualities.
2.a person who, in the opinion of others, has heroic qualities or has performed a heroic act and is regarded as a model or ideal

These definitions describe all of you! Thank you to all in the Orange County community who donated gently used professional clothing, shoes, ties, belts, purses and even jewelry for men and women in crisis and in need of securing a new career and starting a new chapter in life. Our goal was to collect 500 items and because of your kindness and support we far exceeded our goal, just in time for the Women's Day of Self Esteem on Sunday, May 16th! See our blog on why and how Jerri Rosen, Founder and CEO created her first event.

Please help us in giving a special THANK YOU to the following partners who hosted suit drives on location, donated lunch, and raffle prizes to make this event such a success.

KPMG, Cypress
Wachovia, Irvine
BJ's Restaurant, Irvine Marketplace
BJ's Restaurant, Huntington Beach
Parkville Insurance, Whittier
Administaff, Irvine
ASTD OC, Irvine

For more information on Escoe Bliss' charity of choice and how you can get involved, please visit Working Wardrobes. We also see ourselves as Working Wardrobes ambassadors, so please feel free to contact us for partnership opportunities or upcoming events.

Again, we could not have made this happen without all of your generosity and donations. It takes many to make a village and in one week, we built an entire city! (Gotham?? - okay one last hero reference.)

Check out our photo album of some pictures of the week's events. Enjoy!

A REAL Orange County Superhero!

This is your week to grab your mask, cape, and tights and become a superhero! Whether your power is time travel, super human strength or flying you can SAVE THE DAY by joining us at the Escoe Bliss Suit Drive benefiting Working Wardrobes this Wednesday, 4/21 from 11:30am-1:00pm for donating, lunch and mingling with your community. For the first time, our Suit Drive will be hosted at the amazing Working Wardrobes facility. What a great opportunity to see the organization in action!

One of our personal heroes is Jerri Rosen, CEO and founder of Working Wardrobes. We asked Jerri why and how she started Working Wardrobes. This is what she had to say.

"I had been on another board that had a belief that volunteers would get their acknowledgement when they got to heaven – and after 4 years of hard work, my friends and I decided to do something else. We did enjoy volunteering and wanted to do something that made an impact. We were all entrepreneurs and one gave me a story about a women in North Carolina who had a retail store. She saved outfits that didn’t sell for women who were victims of domestic violence who needed something nice to wear to a court appearance or hopefully a job interview.

Got us thinking (20 years ago) of how nobody talked about domestic violence and the impact it had on women. We wanted to do something that would help the women get into the workforce. While we didn’t have a store, we felt we could focus on getting the women job ready.

I wrote a marketing plan for the original Day of Self-Esteem (hair and make up styling, wardrobing, skill set workshop), began recruiting friends and we took nearly a year to plan the event. We knew nothing!! But it was spectacular to serve 67 women from 6 safe shelters. We had only intended to host the event once but after a celebration party, it was clear the volunteers loved it. And the rest is history!"

This year Working Wardrobes is celebrating their 20th anniversary and serving over 5,000 clients (men and women) in Orange County from a wide spectrum of backgrounds, including Welfare-to-Work, alcohol & substance abuse, domestic violence, transitional homelessness, catastrophic illness and other life crises.

For more details on donating and to RSVP, please visit our previous "Superhero" blog.

Not sure you can can attend? We are accepting donations at our Irvine office this week until Friday, 4/23, please call to advise of a time you will be dropping by at 949-336-6444.

If you don't have a suit in your closet you can still donate. Click here for more information on what kinds of professional clothing is accepted.

Thank you for your support and we look forward to seeing you at Wednesday's event!

Building Up Your Community: A Building Block for Your Career

Community - noun

1. a social group of any size whose members reside in a specific locality, share government, and often have a common cultural and historical heritage.
2. a locality inhabited by such a group.
3. a social, religious, occupational, or other group sharing common characteristics or interests and perceived or perceiving itself as distinct in some respect from the larger society within which it exists (usually prec. by the): the business community; the community of scholars.
4. a group of associated nations sharing common interests or a common heritage: the community of Western Europe.

No matter how you describe it, define it, or say it, we all are part of one, a community. Whether you're employed or in search of your new career, becoming part of community is a great way to learn from others, establish new relationships, and give to or for others. In a previous blog on defining a job search strategy, http://bit.ly/9TVa0y, we noted the importance of not only social networking but actual face to face networking. SO if you are going to network, why not choose a group or cause that you are passionate about and have an opportunity to give back to your local community?

Last week, I had the opportunity to do just that! Escoe Bliss is a member of the California Staffing Professionals (CSP) http://www.cspnet.org/, a non-profit membership organization which provides products and services to its members within the staffing services industry. CSP successfully influenced the passage of several state assembly bills that deregulated employer-paid agencies to the less restrictive control of local statutes, eliminating the Bureau of Employment Agencies. It fought oppressive I-9 requirements. It confronted the Legislature, protesting unfair competition by a publicly funded entity. On a turnaround trip with my CSP community from all over including, Orange County, Los Angeles, San Diego, and areas of Northern California, I had the pleasure of going to the state capitol to discuss with our legislators how we can and need to get the unemployed in California back to work. It was most impressive the way the legislators and staff set aside time to listen to our concerns and ideas. They even took time for a quick photo opp! (see photo below with Assemblyman Chris Norby)

Another stellar example: I recently learned of a story about an unemployed office administrator who is currently offering freelancing services and time for a veterinary office. I was so moved when she shared the reason behind it. This kind-hearted vet was by her side when her 14 year old border collie was having health challenges and even made house calls. When the office administrator was given the opportunity to return the favor, she didn't even blink and jumped at the chance.

Just to demonstrate how volunteering can not only fulfill a giant need in your community but lead to a personal story in your job search strategy, we have another example for you. Escoe Bliss' Regina Gormanly was a personal shopper at the Men's Day of Self Esteem for Working Wardrobes last fall. On this day she was partnered with another energetic volunteer. After getting to know each other, they were both in awe that Escoe Bliss' capabilities and her skill set were a match! She was a freelance Instructional Designer looking for a new contract. Regina introduced her to me and the rest is history! The Instructional Design consultant is now on a 12 month contract with our client.

Whether it is my recent experience to Sacramento, a personal experience of your own, or story shared about a perfect stranger helping someone they never met, hopefully you will be inspired. There is so much value and importance in finding a network and engaging in an activity that cannot only bring you and others joy, but be a step in the right direction of finding a new career or contract.

We are always looking for ways to build our community and volunteer. If you have an organization that you are passionate about please feel free to share in the comments section below.