Women’s Work Wear Drive draws broad support

‘Tis the season of giving, and the Office of Women’s Affairs under the Office of the Governor teamed up with generous donors to present the Women’s Work Wear Drive yesterday at the Pedro P. Tenorio Multi-Purpose Center in Susupe.

At the event, many of the female participants receives special pampering, had light make-up done for them, plus hair and nail services done for free by Northern Marianas Technical Institute, Beauty by Hannah, and Salt and Barber technicians.

At the clothing section, they could choose up to four work outfits, as well as accessories for free, as well as take pictures with FJ Photography, and the 360 camera from Boboles Novelties.

Miss Bikini Marianas was also present to give a mini fashion show to display work outfit styles and wardrobe coordination, and Kiki’s Boutique provided some stylish wallets, lipsticks, lashes and accessories for participants to take home.

The event held several rounds: One in the morning from 9am to 11am, and two in the afternoon from 12pm to 1pm, and 1pm to 2pm.

The event was a collaborative effort between the WAO and the Northern Marianas Technical Institute’s Cosmetology class, Miss Bikini Marianas, Kiki’s Boutique, Boboles Novelties, FJ Photography, Salt & Barber, and Beauty by Hannah, as well as the many generous donors who contributed over a thousand dollars’ worth of services and giveaways. Members of CNMI Youth Congress also volunteered. There was almost $10,000 worth of donations at the event.

WAO’s Joannie Laniyo said the event was initially supposed to be open to everyone, but the team decided to focus more on women who may really need it.

“We wanted to check first with the agencies that have folks who need the help,” she said.

Some of the event’s participants were from the Center for Living Independently, Karidat Social Services, and the Transitional Living Center.

The project has been two months in the making and Laniyo said that seeing it all come together was great. “We’ve had participants commenting, and thanking us for holding this for them,” she said.

WAO volunteer Hannah Blanco played a major role in the inspiration and coordination of the event. “We really wanted to give back to women in the community that might need work wear at the end of the year, especially during the holiday season.”

She said they have been collecting donations since October and she is grateful to all the anonymous donors who dropped off their donations in the drive, and all the businesses and organizations who donated.

“I’m just really happy and thankful that all of these businesses and organizations came together to host this. We really hope to do it again next year, and we hope to get more donations and more vendors that want to participate.”

Blanco is also a part of NMTech’s Cosmetology, and having them participate meant a lot to her.

NMTech donated nearly $2,000 worth of services to the event. NMTech outreach coordinator Ben Babauta said they brought the cosmetology class to showcase tips, tricks and easy techniques for women going into the workforce with things like nail, hair and skin care.

Laniyo said their goal was to empower women and, by working together, it seemed that that goal was reached.