Save Rose Costumes
Donation protected
Dear friends, we need your help!
Rose Costumes shut the doors in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. When the state began to reopen, we remained closed to protect our customers and staff. The close physical proximity required for costuming does not allow for safe fittings during a pandemic, and my employees’ health will always come before profit, especially with many of them considered high-risk if they were to contract the virus.
Recognizing our unique skill set and the desperate need for PPE, we founded Project Mask Makers, a not-for-profit, volunteer organization that creates and donates face masks to vulnerable communities. We have donated over 15,000 masks all over the country and have amassed hundreds of volunteers who have helped in this endeavor, all without any income to the store. Besides assisting thousands of people across the country, it allowed me to keep my employees and prevent them from having to seek unemployment or unsafe employment during a pandemic. After all, this was supposed to only last a few months…remember?
At the beginning of 2020, we were on track to have our biggest season yet, something I’ve been working towards for 10 years with the help of my amazing employees. The pandemic has forced us to lose it all. EVERYTHING was cancelled. The One Act Plays, the Easter Bunnies, the Spring musicals, the Summer musicals, Halloween, now the Fall musicals and holiday rentals, followed by conceivably another lost show season.
One of the happiest days of my life was when Judy allowed me to take the reins of her incredible legacy …to trust me with her baby. With the promise that I would do everything in my power to grow it to its full potential, but most importantly…that I would protect it.
Here we are on December 1st. It has been a brutal 9 months. We have worked hard to adapt. To make the big move to the online world from our brick and mortar wonderland. We built a beautiful ecommerce website, a photo studio and gathered the necessary equipment and education to take professional photos of the costumes. And the hardest part of all…the harrowing decision to sell the collection that Judy Smith started 44 years ago. We’ve had numerous 50% off sales…having to part with beautiful, sentimental creations for far less than they are worth out of desperation. We sincerely appreciate our loyal customers who have made purchases, but it unfortunately just hasn’t been enough.
I have exhausted any possible opportunity to receive financial support to little avail. With zero income, I have been paying my employees out of my own savings. They are my family, and I will always do what is best for them. But my reserves have run out. I can no longer continue this way without endangering myself and my son.
We are in the final hour. We are at the breaking point. If we do not receive help, our doors will close forever. Please help us to continue our legacy of creativity, love, passion, and service. Rose Costumes is a place where people come to find themselves, where lives are changed, and where dreams can become reality. Rose Costumes is where people who have never fit in can feel like they belong.
Please help us. We have given so much to Denton as well as the nation through Project Mask Makers, and we need our community to help us now more than ever. This is our final leap of faith; we trust that the good we have given to the world will be given back to us in our darkest hour. Please help if you can.
Thank you for your time, generosity, and compassion.
Sincerely,
Annemarie Aldrich
Owner
Rose Costumes
Rose Costumes shut the doors in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. When the state began to reopen, we remained closed to protect our customers and staff. The close physical proximity required for costuming does not allow for safe fittings during a pandemic, and my employees’ health will always come before profit, especially with many of them considered high-risk if they were to contract the virus.
Recognizing our unique skill set and the desperate need for PPE, we founded Project Mask Makers, a not-for-profit, volunteer organization that creates and donates face masks to vulnerable communities. We have donated over 15,000 masks all over the country and have amassed hundreds of volunteers who have helped in this endeavor, all without any income to the store. Besides assisting thousands of people across the country, it allowed me to keep my employees and prevent them from having to seek unemployment or unsafe employment during a pandemic. After all, this was supposed to only last a few months…remember?
At the beginning of 2020, we were on track to have our biggest season yet, something I’ve been working towards for 10 years with the help of my amazing employees. The pandemic has forced us to lose it all. EVERYTHING was cancelled. The One Act Plays, the Easter Bunnies, the Spring musicals, the Summer musicals, Halloween, now the Fall musicals and holiday rentals, followed by conceivably another lost show season.
One of the happiest days of my life was when Judy allowed me to take the reins of her incredible legacy …to trust me with her baby. With the promise that I would do everything in my power to grow it to its full potential, but most importantly…that I would protect it.
Here we are on December 1st. It has been a brutal 9 months. We have worked hard to adapt. To make the big move to the online world from our brick and mortar wonderland. We built a beautiful ecommerce website, a photo studio and gathered the necessary equipment and education to take professional photos of the costumes. And the hardest part of all…the harrowing decision to sell the collection that Judy Smith started 44 years ago. We’ve had numerous 50% off sales…having to part with beautiful, sentimental creations for far less than they are worth out of desperation. We sincerely appreciate our loyal customers who have made purchases, but it unfortunately just hasn’t been enough.
I have exhausted any possible opportunity to receive financial support to little avail. With zero income, I have been paying my employees out of my own savings. They are my family, and I will always do what is best for them. But my reserves have run out. I can no longer continue this way without endangering myself and my son.
We are in the final hour. We are at the breaking point. If we do not receive help, our doors will close forever. Please help us to continue our legacy of creativity, love, passion, and service. Rose Costumes is a place where people come to find themselves, where lives are changed, and where dreams can become reality. Rose Costumes is where people who have never fit in can feel like they belong.
Please help us. We have given so much to Denton as well as the nation through Project Mask Makers, and we need our community to help us now more than ever. This is our final leap of faith; we trust that the good we have given to the world will be given back to us in our darkest hour. Please help if you can.
Thank you for your time, generosity, and compassion.
Sincerely,
Annemarie Aldrich
Owner
Rose Costumes
Fundraising team (2)
Annemarie Aldrich
Organiser
Denton, TX
Kayly Nesser
Team member
