OUR COMMITMENT TO

CHILDHOOD

Great Pretenders CEO Joyce Keelan presents cheque to Ronald McDonald House Director, Heather Hoare

Great Pretenders CEO, Joyce Keelan presents a $9,656 cheque to Ronald McDonald House Director, Heather Hoare.

 

Sarnia-born toy company, Great Pretenders donates $9,656 for the Ronald McDonald House Charity.  

"I was in the early stages of starting my own business while raising 3 children, when my eldest, Kate, fell ill with a brain tumor. You can imagine the life-altering moment when I received the news. Being able to stay nearby Kate during the early days of her diagnosis and treatment was one less thing for me to stress about back then," said Great Pretenders CEO, Joyce Keelan.

"My daughter recovered from her brain tumor, and now proudly stands beside me as we continue to grow the Great Pretenders brand. As we were reflecting on her childhood, the Ronald McDonald House quickly came to mind as a wonderful charity to sponsor this holiday season."

Great Pretenders employees serving dinner to the guests at the Ronald McDonald House

Jen Seabrook and Lindsay Eve, Great Pretenders employees proudly serving lasagna and spaghetti dinner.

The Ronald McDonald House provides hospitality to families with seriously ill children as they undergo treatment at partnering hospitals. The RMD team put a lot of thought and care into so many aspects of the facility; from treasure rooms and balanced home-cooked meals to adventures, the supportive atmosphere has touched the families of multiple employees at Great Pretenders and beyond.

“I was surprised and touched at the response of so many employees ready to volunteer their time, especially this close to Christmas!” shares Katie Mazur, Marketing Manager responsible for coordinating the event. “I had no idea so many of my coworkers had also benefitted from this wonderful facility.”

Along with a monetary donation, the Great Pretenders team spent the evening of December 11, 2022 cooking dinner for the guests at the Ronald McDonald House. A second team of employees will return December 21st. They even brought along a special Ice Princess to visit the children!

"How can you own a kid's costume company and not bring a princess to visit the children?" Says Joyce Keelan. "We just couldn't resist! Our production team made this dress in less than two days".

Ice Princess in front of Christmas tree with children

 

Ice Princess (Madison Miller) shared Great Pretenders gifts with Stella & her sister, two guests staying at the Ronald McDonald House.

One thing is for sure, an Ice Princess and homecooked Italian food sure does seem a surefire way to help Let it Go with regard to stress, and with holidays around the corner, there was never a better time to bring extra smiles to sick children and their loved ones.

Learn about the Ronald MacDonald House Charity Here: https://rmhc.org/our-core-programs/ronald-mcdonald-house-programs

Dress-up is so much more than just putting on a costume!

Most studied in pedagogical development agree on at least one thing: through pretend play kids develop their imagination & build creative thinking skills. But we at Great Pretenders believe the benefits are even more far-reaching; pretend play develops communication skills and allows for a new outlet to express feelings and fears, as well as allows children to walk through new milestones while feeling secure. Through dressing up, kids improve their problem solving skills and test out new ideas in a safe environment. Experts at thegeniusofplay.org are quick to parrot these benefits, also speaking to the independence dress-up adds to kids via lessons in self-care and patience.

Given the numerous benefits, the team at Great Pretenders consciously design while in mind the difficulties disabled children may face when finding dress up and strive to design products for all children to explore their individuality, and unleash their imagination.

Accessibility in our Designs

Great Pretenders considers all children in the design of our costumes. Our SNAP (Special Needs Adaptable Product) designation was earned by our tunic constructions - a fan favorite among our dress-up range proudly produced in Canada. Our capes & tunics are great options for children who use wheelchairs or gait trainers!

Brooke Lax is a 17 year old female entrepreneur that we are so thrilled to work with! Brooke Founded her non-profit Packing a Smile with the mission to collect games, toys, stuffed animals and activities to deliver to sick children in the hospital in hopes of putting a smile on children’s faces.

For the month of June 2023, Great Pretenders will be donating a $20 gift for every purchase made on our website to Brooke's non-profit organization!

In December of 2022, our team wanted to give back! We partnered with our friends at the Ronald McDonald House in London Ontario.

We raised $9,656 for the Ronald McDonald House Charity. Along with a monetary donation, our team spent the evening of December 11, 2022 cooking dinner for the guests at the Ronald McDonald House. A second team of employees will return December 21st. We even brought along a special Ice Princess to visit the children!

We are proud to partner with Toys for the North during 2022 Holiday Season! Their mission to deliver children's toy to some of Canada’s most remote communities, to families that cannot afford or access children's toys, so they receive toys for the Holiday Season.

Great Pretenders is proud to make a contribuable donation and support the Toys for the North. They collected & distributed a record-breaking $470,000 in toys to children across Canada's North this year!