When taking on an internship with VenturaVie, I wanted to be able to use my academic interest, public relations, to further the mission of fashion, compassion, community. In meetings with Victoria Zitrin, founder of VenturaVie, we tossed around the idea of doing some kind of event to introduce young creatives to our non-profit. Victoria, being very invested in and trusting of me, allowed this to be my job and we decided it would be the perfect capstone for my internship.
In recent years I have become fascinated with storytelling. I started my own podcast extraordinary ordinaries last year with the idea that whether or not a person has a platform, they still have a story because everyone has something to share. With this idea, I have spent the last year interviewing people about their individual stories and turning them into podcast episodes. It has introduced me to people all over the world and shown me that there is value in the stories of our neighbors.
Keeping that in mind I pitched the idea of a live storytelling event to Victoria and we decided this would be very on-brand since people are always telling her stories when they come into V Boutique. And thus Sunset Stories was born. I spent the summer designing content, planning with board members, sending invitations, and brainstorming how to make this event a success, and in the end, it was just that. On September 29th, We gathered in V boutique with existing members of the VenturaVie community, as well as some fresh new faces and we shared stories, poems, and thoughts relating to our theme of connection.
This event couldn’t have gone better because we accomplished what we set out to do; bring people together. We were able to cultivate a space where total strangers could be vulnerable. We had people telling stories about their ancestors, opening up about their mental health, and familial intricacies. It only reinforced the idea that connection is the key.
We originally picked connection as our theme because it is my number one value in life. I feel the most happy, safe, and fulfilled when connected to a place, person, or idea. But this event became so much more than my own personal values. As I said at the end of the event, connection is the special sauce in life. Think about it like this: have you ever had an outstanding meal and you just can’t put your finger on what was in the special sauce? Think about life as the meal and connection as that special ingredient. Connection is the special sauce in all of our lives.
As we are planning to do more of these Live Storytelling events, I hope to meet you in the hiVe. Come with an open mind and a kind ear, I can’t wait to hear your story and introduce you to VenturaVie!
**** Another way to give is to list VenturaVie as your charity on AmazonSmile. Every time you shop through AmazonSmile, Amazon donates to your charity. Every penny counts and is appreciated!