What a fun day! On Sunday, April 10, the Wilmington Delaware Support Group hosted the first “Have a Ball and Bowl” fundraiser in Wilmington, DE.

It was an afternoon full of fun and entertainment for the whole family! Besides bowling for about two hours, people also enjoyed good pizza, yummy cake, silent auction, and most importantly mingling with other families also impacted by Alopecia Areata.

About 130 people came to our event, including our dear Miss Delaware, Kayla Martell. Kayla and her family presence was a real treat to all and kids loved learning about her experience with Alopecia Areata and how it has not prevented her from achieving her goals. Thanks Kayla!

The idea to run a bowling event started somehow small, with the Pellicano family trying to gather some friends to create awareness for Alopecia Areata. In the meantime, the Wilmington Delaware Support Group was founded by Elizabeth DeCarlo and when we ran the idea by the group, everybody loved it and started to contribute with ideas. It seemed that group members knew each other for years, but, yet, we were only in our second meeting!

We not only had fun at the event, but preparing for it was also very exciting. We met to prepare the gift baskets and silent action items and counted on the help of two special helpers: Mackenzie Frail and Laura Pellicano, two of our inspirations to run this event.  We also sent letters to local business, friends and families about the event and shared our own experience with Alopecia Areata. This turned out to be a create opportunity to create awareness for Alopecia Areata and how people can help us raise funds for research.

So, if you are willing to run an event to benefit NAAF, but not sure how to start, maybe this small example can inspire you. If you need more information on how to run a Have a Ball and Bowl in your area, please let us know. You will see that even with little time to commit you can create a big impact!

Big thanks to all our sponsors, donors, volunteers, family and friends for all their help and support in making this event a success. With their help, we were able to raise close to $9,000 for Alopecia Areata research projects.

Given the positive feedback we received this year, the goal is make this an annual event. Maybe you can join us next year!

                                                                                                            Debora Pellicano