Whether jewelry, clothing or unique items are on shoppers’ holiday lists, the Prom Plus Holiday Boutique offers something for everyone.

By Mary O’KEEFE

Shoppers can get a jump on their holiday shopping on Saturday at the Prom Plus Boutique. This annual event is one of the largest fundraisers for the non-profit organization.

This year, the Prom Plus Boutique will be held at Crescenta Valley Park in its community room and patio, located near the CV Dog Park. Traditionally, the boutique was held at St. Luke’s of the Mountains in Sadler Hall, but when scheduling issues arose, the Los Angeles County Parks and Recreation Dept. stepped up to support Prom Plus.

Organizing a boutique with over 30 merchants is not easy. It requires knowledge of vendors and boutique etiquette, and for that Prom Plus reached out to Diana Tyson.

Tyson’s professional career is varied. She has taught music, was a corporate administrator and human resources professional, then a consultant in training and development and finally a salesperson. She attends eight to 10 vendor events each year. In addition, she is a real estate agent and is presently working with three singing groups.

“Over 13 years ago, I began as as a representative for a jewelry company, at which time I started attending boutiques around the area. It wasn’t long before I discovered the Prom Plus Boutique and became a vendor,” she said.

Tyson is not certain when she went from being a vendor at the Prom Plus Boutique to being the organizer but thinks it was over six years ago. Organizing the event does take a lot of time and a lot of planning.

“I have a tremendous amount of help organizing the event. The Prom Plus [board and boutique] committee and Prom Plus Club take care of things like arranging for the venue, collecting amazing [opportunity drawing] prizes, getting coffee and bake sale [items], finding sponsors and marketing and advertising,” she said. “The work that goes into creating the actual boutique takes several months.”

Tyson first contacts vendors from years past; they get the first right of refusal to be represented at the Prom Plus Boutique. She also makes certain there is a good mix of vendors.

“So there are a lot of different types of products and price points available for our shoppers,” Tyson said.

She is in constant communication with those vendors, assisting them in filling out the application, collecting fees and doing everything that will make their experience with the Prom Plus Boutique a positive event. She must also plan the layout of the vendors. She wants to create an easy flow for customers and an appealing appearance when visitors enter the boutique. She also wants to make sure the vendors are comfortable.

“On the day before and the day of the event there is a lot of set-up, and coordination and communication between vendors and volunteers,” she said.

Tyson said she looks for vendors who are easy to work with, have high quality and unique products and bring a mix of social selling/direct selling products and handcrafted items.

“I like to have a high percentage of vendors from the local area,” she said.

The change of venue to CV Park was a little concerning at first because Prom Plus had partnered with St. Luke’s of the Mountains for so many years, but Tyson has found some real positives in the move.

“We have a lot of parking and there is only really one entrance to the event,” she said.

It is also one level with no stairs. There will be booths set up inside and out and there will be the same number of vendors this year as last.

Tyson said the best thing about working the Prom Plus Boutique is “the community.”

“And the mission of Prom Plus. I love that this is an event that serves the people of Crescenta Valley High School, and specifically Prom Plus, which provides such a meaningful contribution to the school and the communities of La Crescenta, [far north] Glendale and Montrose,” she said. “The people I meet at this event are the best.”

Each vendor who is part of the Prom Plus Boutique “generously donates a percentage of every dollar they earn back to Prom Plus,” she added. “And they do so willingly because they too believe in the goodness of this community and the organization.”

The boutique is on Nov. 11, Veterans Day, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Prom Plus will recognize and honor veterans with a presentation by the CVHS JROTC color guard and a performance of patriotic songs at 9:45 a.m.

CV Community Park is located at 3901 Dunsmore Ave. The boutique will be held at the park’s community room, which is located to the south of the parking lot, near the CV Dog Park.

Prom Plus is a grass roots organization that began over 20 years ago as a way to give Crescenta Valley High School students a safe place to go to after prom. It was in 1991 when Berlyn Cosman, then a CVHS senior, was fatally shot while she slept in an Anaheim hotel room during an unsupervised after-prom party.

After this tragic loss, a group of parents and community members organized Prom Plus to create a safe place for CVHS high school seniors and their guests to attend after the prom between midnight and 5 a.m. Typically Prom Plus offers a climbing wall, bungee jump, bungee run, zipline, laser tag and casino, as well as other games. Prom Plus is held at the Crescenta Cañada YMCA and costs nothing for prom goers to attend. The organization is powered by volunteers who fundraise throughout the year to help raise about $25,000, the amount it costs to put on the event.

To see a complete list of this year’s vendors at the Prom Plus Boutique, visit www.cvweekly.com/NEWS.

  Mary Okeefe