Have a Good Time for a Good Cause

So, you bought a costume for the office Halloween party and maybe you’re looking for more opportunities to wear the thing.  Or, maybe you’re just looking for something fun and different to do this weekend.  Well, if you live in the Houston or Katy area, you are in luck. The rockin’ist Halloween party in town is the 4^th Annual Charity Boo Bash, this Saturday, October 24, at 6:00pm.  The location is the Mason Creek Community Center at 20201 Kingsland Blvd in Katy.  Tickets for the Boo Bash are $75 if purchased in advance and $100 at the door. Register online at www.mikshiddenhearts.org.  All proceeds benefit Mik’s Hidden Hearts Alliance (MHHA) for teens with Dysautonomia and other Hidden Illnesses (more about that later).

I’ve been to the Boo Bash the last couple of years and, let me tell you, it is an amazingly fun party. The costumes are top-notch so be prepared to dress up. There’s even a costume contest with some pretty awesome prizes so make an effort – or don’t – you’ll still have fun.  My Honey Bunch always wears a suit.  Last year he “stabbed” a box of Frosted Flakes with a huge plastic knife and went as a Cereal Killer….  get it?  But I’ve seen it all at the Boo Bash, witches, ghosts, zombies and then there’s the non-traditional but very creative costumes, such as Fred and Wilma Flintstone, superheroes, Beetlejuice, or even a Refrigerator.

The Boo Bash is an exciting evening for adults, with a delectable dinner from the Saltgrass Steak House, yummy deserts provided by an award winning baker, beer and wine and some fantastic prizes.  DJ Johnny Bravo will be there, so you can dance the night away.  There’s even going to be a totally awesome band, 80 Proof, so we can rock out to the hits of the 80s!

 And then, there’s the PRIZES!!  I’ve never been to a charity event with so many ways to score fabulous prizes. There’s a silent auction, a live auction, a raffle, a prize pull (ahem, wine pull), a 50/50 cash give-away, and the aforementioned costume contest.  You could walk away with more swag than you can fit in your car.  Last year the Honey Bunch and I almost won the bidding for a week’s stay in a swanky condo in Destin Florida.  Almost.  We did, however, get a lot of our Christmas shopping out of the way with some of the gorgeous silent auction items – jewelry, Aggie memorabilia, and some top-of-the-line bath products. This year, there are even more fantastic prizes at the Boo Bash including, the getaway in Destin, a Messina Hof wine tour, a tricked-out barbecue grill, a craft beer kit, a year of coffee (that one's mine), a year of date-nights, a family membership to the Houston Museum of Natural Science and a gift basket from the No Label Brewery. There's a lot more that I don't have room to mention. Checks and credit cards are accepted.

All of this is for Mik’s Hidden Hearts Alliance, a charity I feel strongly about. MHHA is a non-profit organization that reaches out to homebound and hospitalized teens with dysautonomia and other hidden, life changing illnesses. It was founded in 2011 by a remarkable teenager, Mikaela Aschoff. She fell ill with dysautonomia in her freshman year of high school and her life has never been the same. You can read her incredible story at the website above. MHHA provides gifts, hope kits, and monthly socials for these chronically ill young people as well as the annual Anti-PROM, a formal dinner and casino-night party for teens affected by hidden illnesses. These kids often don’t have the chance to get-together with friends and just hang-out and be a teenager. The social events and the Anti-Prom provide a much needed break from doctors, treatments and hospital visits. The smiles I’ve seen on these kids at the Anti-PROM are so joyful.

MHHA also works to spread awareness of Dysautonomia, which is considered a “hidden illness” because the sufferers often look healthy to the casual observer. It’s a complex condition caused by a dysfunction of the autonomic nervous system and can affect the cardiovascular, endocrine, metabolic and gastrointestinal systems. Dysautonomia can cause very painful and debilitating symptoms.

I hope you’ll join me at this year’s Boo Bash. It’s the most fun you’ll have in a costume this year.