As doll lovers, we are fortunate to be able to participate in our hobby by buying new dolls, accessories, and more. It’s important for us as a community to share our good fortune with others. Each year since the first Pullip and Dal Doll Lovers Event, we’ve made a donation to one or more worthy causes. We like to tie the organization to the theme in some way, and we often choose an organization with a local tie. A portion of the money raised through raffle and silent auction sales is donated to the organization on behalf of the Pullip and Dal Doll Lovers Event.

In 2023, we donated to the crisis in Turkey and Syria following the February earthquake.

In 2022 we donated to americares.org to support people affected by the Ukraine crisis. This organization is highly rated on Charity Navigator.     

In recognition of the difficult year the whole world suffered, the 2021 charity was Orphans of the Storm, an animal shelter in a Chicago suburb. We all feel like we’ve been through a storm, and like other shelters, they have been inundated with pets because of Covid-related unemployment and other factors.

Orphans of the Storm

The 2019 theme was The Clock Strikes Twelve, and the charity was makergirl. This small organization inspires girls in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) through 3D printing sessions.

The 2018 theme was The Spell of the Sea, and the charity was Alliance for the Great Lakes, rated four stars on Charity Navigator. The Alliance for the Great Lakes works to protect the Great Lakes for today and tomorrow and is headquartered in Chicago.

The 2017 theme was Tea Party, and we made contributions to two organizations. Everyone does not have a home to have a party in, or basic food to eat. And although the Mad Hatter is a comical character at Alice’s Tea Party, mental health issues often contribute to homelessness. The Chicago Coalition for the Homeless was one of our charity groups in 2017. The mission statement of the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless is “We organize and advocate to prevent and end homelessness, because we believe housing is a human right in a just society.” Our second charity group was The Black Doll Affair. Their mission is to “Change the way black girls are perceived and perceive themselves.”

http://www.chicagohomeless.org/

Our 2016 theme was Space, and we donated to the Chicago Bird Collision Monitors. The CBCM helps migrating songbirds, who have navigated by the light of the stars for millions of years but are now confused by manmade lights. Read more about the CBCM and the important work they do here: http://www.birdmonitors.net/.

In 2015 (and several other years), our charity group was the Willowbrook Wildlife Center, a wildlife and rehabilitation center in the Chicago suburbs. Since wild creatures often play a role in fairy tales, this seemed like an appropriate choice. We also purchased a commemorative brick for the butterfly garden.

Previous charity organizations have included the Save-A-Pet Animal Adoption Center, the Willowbrook Wildlife Center, the Louisiana Marine Mammal and Sea Turtle Rescue Program, the USO, Orphans of the Storm Animal Shelter, the Knox County Housing Authority After School program, and the Reading Rainbow.