By AML Publisher
Photos courtesy of Paul Loftland

Lovely ladies from 6ABC dressed the part for the Red Ball last year. L to R: producers Mara Webb and Kristie Gonzalez, health reporter Ali Gorman and anchor Monica Malpass.

Main Liners can eat, drink, and be charitable at the Red Cross’ annual red-tie celebration featuring dozens of Philly’s top chefs! The American Red Cross Southeastern Pennsylvania (SEPA) Chapter will host the 11th Annual Red Ball on Saturday, March 6, 2010 from 8 p.m. to 12 midnight at the Please Touch Museum at Memorial Hall in Fairmount Park. One of Philadelphia’s most popular winter galas is in its second year at the children’s museum, which makes for a lively setting. Julie Appolloni, Red Cross senior director of financial development, oversees every aspect of the event each year with her organization’s team. “It is like no other event in the city. The Please Touch is such a perfect backdrop too. It keeps the event light and festive and gives everyone the chance to dictate their night since it is not a structured party. And, undoubtedly, we always attract Philadelphia’s finest so expect the gala to sell out again—which it inevitably does each year,” enthused Appolloni.

VIP ticket holders will enjoy one amazing all-access evening, beginning at 8 p.m. in the exclusive VIP Lounge, featuring renowned caterer Max & Me Catering. Other amenities include VIP express entry, private top-shelf open bar, cigar bar, separate coat check and a special VIP gift.
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By AML Publisher
Photos courtesy of Courtney Apple Photography

Be Mine on the Main Line is Thursday, Feb 4th at Spamps Restaurant in Conshohocken. RSVP is highly recommended so we can plan accordingly.

Be Mine on the Main Line, AroundMainLine.com’s annual winter fundraiser, is back! In its second year, Be Mine focuses on bringing hundreds of Main Liners and animal lovers together from across the Delaware Valley to raise money and awareness for a local animal charity. On Thursday, February 4th, Conshohocken’s hottest restaurant Spamps will play host to hundreds of locals for a festive and sophisticated Valentine’s-themed party. AML will have the entire spacious restaurant dedicated to Be Mine—to welcome the Main Line and region’s finest for an important night of awareness and fundraising.

This year’s beneficiary of the proceeds of Be Mine on the Main Line II is Philadoptables (philadoptables.org). A brand new nonprofit that was formed over the past few months to address the overwhelming needs of Philadelphia Animal Control, also known as ACCT, Philadoptables’ goal is to bring awareness and funding for the 34,000 animals a year who are brought through the doors of ACCT. A visit to Philadelphia’s animal control a few weeks ago with Philadoptables board of directors’ member Kim Wolf really drove home the overwhelming need of what Wolf describes as “Philadelphia’s best and worst kept secret.” Cage after cage of hundreds of fabulous faces and furry friends were staring back at us as we walked the aisles—a shelter that is clearly overwhelmed with the city’s stray animals, abused dogs, and pets that owners have surrendered to ACCT due to personal or financial hardships.
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By AML Publisher
Photos Courtesy of Jubilee Photography

The Camphill Special School nurtures the minds, bodies and spirits of children with intellectual and developmental disabilities through education and therapy in an extended family living environment.

Driving down an excluded remote road in picturesque Chester County horse country, you may pass by the small, garnet sign with gold lettering without much pause. It is the entrance to the Camphill Special School. The nondescript wooded drive that leads to the school’s campus wouldn’t necessarily catch your eye. But, the incredible work and environment of this community of children and on campus caretakers and professionals is most noteworthy. Camphill is reshaping the lives of families across the Delaware Valley, and the country, who have challenged children.

Dr. Karl Koenig, an Austrian pediatrician who fled the Nazis and settled in Scotland in 1939, founded what is known across the world today as the “Camphill Movement.” Camphill is based on the principles of anthroposophy, the philosophy of Rudolf Steiner that seeks to integrate spirit, body, and soul. Steiner formulated the concept of curative education, which includes the arts as healing and educational forces, and his influence is felt in Camphill Special School’s adapted Waldorf curriculum.
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By AML Publisher
Photos courtesy of Stacey Granger/Life Art Imaging

Emma Shapiro, 12, founder of The Halloween Helpers.

Every mother asks their child to clean up their room. But, not every child who takes to the task comes up with an entrepreneurial, charitable vision in the process. Not the case with Wynnewood’s Emma Shapiro. Last fall the 12-year-old, a seventh grader at Bala Cynwyd Middle School, was cleaning out her closest and came across ten old Halloween costumes which she had outgrown-Cinderella, Hannah Montana, a witch costume, and more. Emma asked her mother, Ilyse, what she should do because she felt throwing out her once-worn outfits seemed wasteful. Ilyse challenged her daughter to think of an idea. And, thus, The Halloween Helpers was born.

This year will be the first run at a collection for The Halloween Helpers and the Shapiros are counting on community support across the Philadelphia region to reach their goals. The concept is simple, yet the impact is life-changing: Recycle once-worn costumes to pass along to a neighborhood in need where families do not have the financial means or resources to purchase their own Halloween costumes.
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By AML Publisher
Photos by Bernadette Uzcategui

Jen McGowan of Wayne’s Jackie’s Hat Box models one of her elegant creations. McGowan is spearheading the 2009 Ladies’ Day Hat Contest at the Devon Horse Show and Country Fair.

It’s one of the great traditions of the Devon Horse Show and Country Fair—and now show organizers, with the assistance of AroundMainLine.com, are bringing the annual Ladies’ Day at Devon Hat Contest to another level!Lovely ladies (young, old and every age in between) can show off their fun, personable and eclectic style at the Main Line hat event of the year on Wednesday May 27th from 1-3pm on the Horse Show grounds. From Center City fashionistas (SJP fan alert!) to ‘rad’ Radnor Hunt fans, fashion forward Main Line moms and their teenage daughters, and everyone in between-all are encouraged to sashay out to Devon for some serious hat fashion competition.

Jen McGowan, CEO of Jackie’s Hat Box and PR director of this year’s hat contest, recommends bringing the ‘hat courage’ to all the ladies who will be showcasing their best. “Ladies’ Day at Devon is just great; I absolutely love this event and always thought it brought out part of the great intrigue and culture that just makes Devon so very special. Carson Kressley will be a judge, Dawn Timmeney from NBC10 and Caroline O’ Halloran from Main Line Suburban News. We’ve had the hat competition for over five years and I was so excited to spearhead it this year because I really feel it’s due time to take it up a notch,” enthused McGowan.
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By AML Publisher
Photos courtesy of April Ziegler Photography

The pattern dubbed ‘Quiet Birds Homecoming’ is Scherzer’s best selling collar.

Burberry meets houndstooth, a row of powder pink owls pair up with a robin’s egg blue background, comical turtles with silly expressions dance on a crisp white fabric. Sounds like a sampling from a chic Main Line baby boutique-but in actuality its part of the preppy, fashion forward selection of dog collars from Big Doggy Bling. A Medford, New Jersey based online company, Pam Scherzer’s dog leashes are catching on as one the hottest pet products on the East Coast-and throughout the country. “I received a tweet the other day from a producer from the Oprah Winfrey show; she ordered some collars from me. That was pretty cool! I love my patterns and selection and I work really hard with the line so it was very exciting for me. Of course, when I shipped out the order I put a few extra collars in the mix for Oprah to check out. So, we shall see,” enthused Scherzer.

A very exciting ‘tweet’ considering Big Doggy Bling (www.bigdoggybling.com) has been hand sewing super sophisticated dog leashes, collars and harnesses for just over two years. In an extremely competitive industry of pet products, Scherzer decided to start offering collars for bigger dogs because of a void in the market. “I’m a crafty person naturally and I just decided to make custom collars for my own dogs because I could not find anything I really liked. And, what was out there was way too cutesy and they all fit the tiny, lap dogs. There are plenty of companies producing for those breeds but not too many catering to Bulldogs and the larger guys and gals,” explained Scherzer.
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By AML Publisher
Photography courtesy of Bernadette Uzcategui Photography

The brains and beauty behind a brilliant business model are Main Line moms and Tymel co-principals Melissa Parker (left) and Tyra Hodges (right).

If there are two idioms that ring true when describing a successful entrepreneurial business model in 2009 it is the following: 1) Necessity is the mother of invention. 2) Timing is everything. With so many Americans astutely aware of reducing their carbon footprint, the green industry is thriving with creative concepts that speak to the nation’s environmentally-cautious consumer. Despite a down economy, all signs point positively towards a growing demand for socially responsible business models.

In the case of Main Line entrepreneurs Tyra Hodges, 45, and Melissa Parker, 40, their invention-fashion forward reusable bags made from recycled materials-was inspired by some timely conversations they had with their children. Hodges was unpacking her groceries one evening in her kitchen last spring when her (then 11-year-old) daughter, Natalie, commented on the amount of plastic and paper she was wasting. Parker had received similar feedback from one of her daughters a few weeks earlier after she completed a school project on the importance of recycling.
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By AML Publisher
Photos courtesy of Bernadette Uzcategui

My Fair Lady
Owner and Milliner Jen McGowan of Jackie’s Hat Box

In the American classic Gone with The Wind, Scarlett O’Hara briskly tied the green ribbon of her oversized Parisian bonnet as she scurried off to the big summer picnic at the Wilkes plantation, Twelve Oaks, for her chance meeting with a dashing Rhett Butler. Former first lady and international style icon Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis made the pillbox hat one of the most fashionable style trends of the ‘60s. And, most recently, singer Aretha Franklin created a flurry of media attention when she wowed the nation with a customized grey felt hat, complete with Swarovski crystals, at the Obama inauguration. The running count on the Facebook fan page for Franklin’s hat is now over 100,000.

From first ladies to classic movie scenes to royal weddings, hats have been a key part of women’s fashion for hundreds of years. Now, a Main Line milliner is making a name for her stylish, custom-made hats. Jackie’s Hat Box is giving everyday social butterflies an opportunity to make a dramatic grand entrance at an upcoming cocktail party, spring fundraiser or, most importantly, the upcoming Devon Horse Show.
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By AML Publisher
Photos courtesy of Kevin E. McPherson
Drawings published with permission of The Rosenbach Museum, Philadelphia

A total of over 300 original watercolors, pen-and-ink sketches, doodles, manuscripts, books, and dummy books from the 1950s to today are displayed at The Rosenbach. Visitors can access new interviews with Maurice Sendak through digital touchscreens throughout the galleries.

Most people recognize famed illustrator and author Maurice Sendak for his work in Where the Wild Things Are, In The Night Kitchen and Chicken Soup. But Sendak’s amazing talents have graced the pages of 105 additional books besides the famed trio. This week the year long exhibit of Sendak’s work at Philly’s Rosenbach Museum has its final curtain call. There’s a Mystery There: Sendak on Sendak is a retrospective that encompasses four comprehensive galleries in the museum. Director Spike Jonze will be releasing his version of Where the Wild Things Are in an upcoming 2009 fall film adaptation of the same name. The film is written by Jonze and Dave Eggers.

There’s a Mystery There focuses on Sendak’s personality as a storyteller engaging with difficult and mysterious themes and memories in his work. It explores Sendak’s prolific imagination through the characters, influences, and settings of his books, as well as Sendak’s quest to illustrate what he calls “the Other Story,” the hidden meanings of a text that haunt and enrich his illustrations.
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By AML Publisher
Photos courtesy of April Ziegler

The Mid-Atlantic Bullyfest has attracted national attention and sparked popularity in events that raise money for rescue efforts throughout the country. Pictured is Manny, a bulldog currently up for adoption through HeavenSent.

A sunny and sensationally warm April 18th set the stage for the seventh annual Mid-Atlantic Bullyfest, hosted by Medford’s HeavenSent Bulldog Rescue. Families from across the tri-state region, and from all walks of life, gathered together for a spring barbeque and festival—all proudly showing off their most beloved furry family members. Brindled and solid brown, white and speckled grey—from newborns to ten-year-olds and every age in between, hundreds of the region’s English bulldogs barreled, sunned and snorted around the grounds of the Hugo residence on Taunton Lake road in Evesham, New Jersey. It was the first toasty afternoon of the spring, reminiscent of the dog days of summer, so many of the guests settled comfortably in the shade with their water bowls while families and friends participated in a silent auction, mingled with the vendors or cheered on the rescue parade.
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