You know how hard it is to keep a secret, right?
Well, all we can say is that we are relieved and thrilled to be able to finally share one we’ve been keeping for months!
Our “babies”, Green Halloween® and National Costume Swap Day™ will now operate under the nationally recognized organization, Green America!
So what does this mean to you?
If you’re a fan, friend, or supporter of Green Halloween and/or National Costume Swap Day, hold onto your hats! There are going to be a lot more ways to engage with the initiative under Green America’s wing.
(Be sure to sign up for Green Halloween’s newsletter to keep up-to-speed with the newest announcements regarding events, contests, tips, recipes and more).
So that’s the news. We can’t tell you how excited we are with what lies ahead. Please continue to follow Green Halloween and National Costume Swap Day via social media (/GreenHalloween and /CostumeSwapDay), and join us in celebrating this leap into the future.
But we can’t celebrate this moment without first recognizing the incredible generosity of all of the people who have made Green Halloween and National Costume Swap Day possible. After all, while we gave birth to the ideas, it takes a village to raise a revolution.
With gratitude
We have more story to tell (see below for the deets on how the Green Halloween/Green America partnership came about). But first, our sincere thanks…
Our deepest gratitude is extended to the dozens of Green Halloween community leaders across the U.S., many of whom will be in year five of hosting events. Old or new, we recognize your vision, commitment and involvement. To the many volunteers, collaborators, brand partners and organizations who have helped us at the local and national levels, we’re also forever grateful.
To EcoMom® Alliance , founder Kimberly Pinkson, and members such as Heather Keane, we simply wouldn’t be here without your stewardship and look forward to continuing the partnership. Your sisterhood is a precious gift.
Thanks also to Karissa Liloc, web guru; Holli Dunn, photographer extraordinaire; Monica Fields, lifesaver and to the hundreds of green/mom bloggers who have spread serious buzz over the years – you are an unbelievably powerful and collaborative network and we’re proud to know each one of you.
And to everyone who has been a part of growing the revolution; you have created meaningful change and your passion and interest has inspired others. Thank you for being a part of this journey with us.
Together we are changing the world.
Warmly,
Lynn & Corey
Here’s more information about how this great partnership came about:
History
In 2007, when Green Halloween was first born, we had no way of knowing what it would become. Like most parents, we had big dreams, big plans. But we really didn’t know if we had a junior high drop-out or a Harvard-bound phenom on our hands. After all, people were greening their every-day lives, but no one had really touched the holidays.
Remember, this was 2007. The economy had yet to crash and Michelle Obama had not taken on the fight against childhood obesity. Stats were just emerging regarding diabetes in today’s kids (1 in 3 are expected to develop it). Few knew about the prevalence of child-slavery in the chocolate industry. And forget artificial ingredients, heavy metals in face paints and pumpkins rotting in landfills impacting climate change; these topics were yet to hit the mainstream. We could have chosen any holiday or celebration but Halloween was the poster child of holidays needing an overhaul. A makeover, so to speak.
But would anyone else care?
It didn’t take long to realize that a lot of others did care. From day one, we were flooded with inquiries from parents, teachers, community leaders, the press and organizations big and small. Green Halloween had been born at exactly the right moment.
Growth
In 2008, we officially took the model nationwide. By 2009, we were making news with partners like Dr. Oz’s HealthCorps as growth continued at warp-speed.
In 2010, Corey hatched another idea: National Costume Swap Day. For about one-second we wondered if it would stick. Cue the call from Good Morning America.
In 2011, in collaboration with EcoMom® Alliance, we had our biggest year yet:
Enter Green America
We were beginning to understand the full potential of what we had gestated. Our babies were getting a little too big for our beds. We could hold tight and hang on for dear life, or we could let them go and watch them soar.
We knew it was time to look for a new home. A home with infrastructure. Where the programs could continue to snowball.
Enter Green America.
Green America (formerly Co-op America) is a national non-profit membership organization that works to grow the green economy, and the nation’s leading green educator for consumers. They work for a world where all people have enough, where all communities are healthy and safe, and where the resources of the Earth are preserved for all the generations to come.
In Green America’s words, “Green Halloween truly embodies what Green America stands for, and vice versa. Green America has a strong presence in the Green and Fair Trade worlds, and we have the capacity to grow Green Halloween and increase public participation. We are honored that Green America will carry on this great program.”
Of course, we’re honored too.
So where do we go from here?
What does that mean for us? We’re thrilled to remain part of the team, with Green America as the new Mom. We’ll provide support in areas like strategy, partnerships and media, but Green America will take the lead.
We are totally confident in Green America’s ability and willingness to shepherd Green Halloween and National Costume Swap Day and in their stewardship of what we’ve built over the last six years.
See the news release announcing the Green America partnership here.
Lynn Colwell and Corey Colwell-Lipson are mother and daughter and authors of Celebrate Green! Creating Eco-Savvy Holidays, Celebrations and Traditions for the Whole Family, and founders of Green Halloween® and National Costume Swap Day™.
