Meet Ann:
In her own words -
"I started in the toy industry over 24 years ago. After college, I took at job at the toy company BRIO mostly because you were able to wear whatever you wanted and at 22 that seemed like a really nice perk! In my early years at BRIO, we would present our retailers "Good Toy Workshops" trainings about the importance of play in a child's development...& I was hooked.
Knowing the difference that play makes in all aspects of a child's development transformed my view of the industry and my place in it. For many years I worked behind the scenes in the industry until in 2010 I started *play as a way to bring my years of experience to my own neighborhood. To create a fun, community-minded shop for the whole family and a place where all children can come inside and feel at home. Since then, we've expanded to make sure that we're spreading the gospel of play throughout the city.
A few years ago I started thinking of all of Chicago's families that didn't have access to toys and books and how I had access to provide these playthings. From this, *play Every Day, our charitable arm, was born in 2019. Since then we've donated almost 500 playthings to children across Chicago.
My passion is the power of play. My mission is to spread this message to parents and caregivers. My vision is a more playful world."
*** Please follow along on instagram as well and learn more about Ann. 52 Phenomenal Women is now in its second year! This is week 43 of 52.2
Participants in this project will be supporting the efforts of Dress for Success Worldwide – Central. We are all stronger together and it is my sincere hope that we will be inspired by each other’s stories. Now is the time to celebrate as well as encourage one another. Tell your story!