Paparazzi Accessories donated $150,000 to the Washington County School District Foundation, which benefits the students and schools in the community near the company’s headquarters.
The donation, which is the largest single contribution in the foundation’s history, will be put toward teacher grants that will alleviate the burden on educators and improve student learning and engagement. The district’s communications director Steven Dunham says educators often spend their own money to provide these tools for students.
Paparazzi Accessories Co-founder Misty Kirby saw the foundation as a way to make a direct impact on the community.
“Our goal is to let the kids know, to let the teachers know, the administration know, that as community members we appreciate them,” Kirby says. “We love what they’re doing, and this is a way we can be supportive. In all fairness and not in a cheesy way, they are educating the future of America. And right now, we need strong, vibrant, happy positive kids who can conquer anything.”
The foundation’s purpose aligned well with the Paparazzi Accessories mission statement of bringing “strength, independence and empowerment to individuals and their family” through affordable fashion.
“If you believe truly in empowerment, the reason you do good in the world, the reason you serve, the reason that you’re willing to donate, the reason you’re willing to give of your time should be an intrinsic response,” Kirby says.
