Local families invited to Community Baby Shower

Raising a child can be hard. That’s something the members of Pahrump Mothers Corner understand all too well. In an effort to ease the challenges of parenthood, particularly for new and expecting families, this group of local moms banded together to host a Community Baby Shower and the event proved to be very popular, leading to its return for the third year running.

“This is all about the community and Pahrump’s parents coming together to create their village,” Pahrump Mother’s Corner member Mackayla Turley enthused. “This event provides a welcoming place for families to land. It’s an opportunity for new parents to meet peers, see local businesses specifically geared toward them and learn about all of the local resources available.

“Our theme this year is ‘Sweet as can Bee’,” Turley continued. “There will be vendors, a gathering of resources, a craft area for the kiddos with handprint keepsakes, parenting workshops and our quarterly clothing swap. With games and prizes, it’ll be lighthearted and fun and we have a free gift bag for the first 75 families through the door!”

In the run-up to the event, one of the most important preparations is the securing of sponsors, whose financial support help make the Community Baby Shower possible. Turley said the local business community has always been generous in their sponsorships and the group already has almost a dozen sponsors lined up but they have yet to reach their goal and could definitely use more businesses to bolster the event.

“The deadline to sponsor the event is Friday, May 3. We will continue seeking sponsors until we reach our goal of $5,000 or the deadline hits,” Turley said. “We are well on our way but still very shy of our goal so we’d appreciate any sponsors who want to help out.”

Volunteers are always needed as well, for both the day-of and the day before, to assist with set-up.

“Several of Pahrump Mother’s Corner’s 500-plus members are volunteering, so we’ll be out there with smiling faces as well as our own booth with our event calendar and lots of information on past events,” Turley detailed. “We have Ashley Welch from Events By Ashley handling our vendors this year and she always does such an amazing job. We’re excited to have her creativity and energy at our event. We are shooting for 16 vendors, all local businesses, and all specifically targeted toward products and services for parents and children. It’s sure to be a great place to find gifts and necessities for the new and expecting parents in your life, so we’re hoping to see tons of support for these local businesses. Everyone is encouraged to come down and check them out!”

In addition to vendors, there will be many resources participating in the event, including Readers in Training, Nevada WIC, Nevada Statewide Maternal and Child Health, Sunrise Children’s Foundation, the NyE Communities Coalition and Immunize Nevada, along with free diapers provided Baby’s Bounty.

The NyECC will be providing free car seats to those who sign up for the nonprofit’s car seat safety class, as well as a free Pack-n-Play for those who sign up for the NyECC’s safe sleep class.

“The Google form to participate in these classes can be found on our Facebook event page, ‘Pahrump Mother’s Corner’s 3rd Annual Community Baby Shower’. The QR code can also be found on our printed flyers. The deadline to sign up to receive either of these awesome items at our event is Saturday, May 4.”

The Community Baby Shower will also play host to the Pahrump Mother’s Corner Quarterly Clothing Swap, something Turley and her fellow group members are excited to involve the entire community it.

“So many parents rely on hand-me-downs to clothe their children - it’s a tradition that has taken place for ages. It’s also an amazing way to promote sustainability,” Turley remarked. “Pahrump Mother’s Corner hosts a quarterly clothing swap where parents can come to deliver their gently used clothing and other useful items, as well as take anything they need, no questions asked and free of charge. Families are encouraged to bring a bag or two to the Community Baby Shower and take any clothing or equipment they can use, at no charge.

“At the end of each swap, everything left is packaged up and donated to our local nonprofit Nevada Outreach Training Organization,” Turley added. “All of our donations stay right here in Pahrump, to be utilized locally. This has proven to be quite popular and the last clothing swap ended up filling the entire NyECC Activities Center! This swap, we will be limited on space so we are asking for donations to be kept to women’s and children’s clothing as well as baby equipment. Everything else, please donate to Nevada Outreach directly.”

The 3rd Annual Community Baby Shower is set for 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, May 18 at the NyECC Activities Center.

Potential sponsors and volunteers should contact PahrumpMothersCorner@runbox.com

For more information on vendor opportunities contact Welch at ArtFromTheHeartByAW@gmail.com

Contact reporter Robin Hebrock at rhebrock@pvtimes.com