PROJECTS

Two Sisters, Six Kids Project

Sisters Ruth and Mary are the adoptive parents of three children and the foster parents to three other children, all suffering from chronic illness. Each child needed a room that showcased their personality and uniqueness while meeting their medical needs. With the help of 40 volunteers from Caturano and Company who donated more than 200 hours over three days, we were able to create five fantasy bedrooms. While we worked closely with all six children as much as possible, Ruth and Mary did a terrific job at communicating their specific needs.

Designed By

Erin Cummings & Judy Harrington

Laurel provided a lot of input into her room and wanted the ultimate girl room complete with pink, frills, a touch of “High School Musical” and puppies and kittens. The biggest challenge of the room was trying to make the most of a small space. Our solution was to provide Laurel with furniture that had built in storage and clean lines to keep the room looking as large as possible and clutter-free. A hand-made canopy over her bed and sheer curtains completed this girly haven.

The mission for Nicole’s room was to find a way to make all the medical equipment disappear. Cubbies with brightly colored baskets were used to camouflage the medical equipment and allow for easy access. Nicole asked for a purple room with butterflies. The butterfly finials on lamps and butterfly lights strung on her closet gave Nicole a butterfly sanctuary.

Daniel wanted a “Star Wars” theme room with a touch orange in the color scheme. The challenge of this room was giving Daniel his dream room, but also a room that would grow with him into his teens. We provided Daniel with more contemporary furniture, including a new desk and a fold-out futon for overnight guests. Bright orange throw pillows and some basketball décor were the perfect orange accent pieces and we hung several of Daniel’s Star Wars models from the ceiling.

For JJ the challenge again was to make the most out of a small space while keeping things simple and maneuverable for caregivers. We chose a pale yellow for the walls that brightened the room and created an open and airy effect. We framed out the dinosaur mural that had been painted by a caregiver, giving it definition and focus and stenciled a bright red “JJ” over his bed to add some punch to the color scheme.

Aidyn and Nyilson share a room and both use hospital beds. We rearranged the furniture to get the beds and bureaus to coordinate better, and, as with Nicole’s room, worked on finding storage for medical equipment. We wanted to address the sensory issues for both these children. The walls were painted a pale green with a coordinating darker shade for a “focus” wall. Additionally, we chose bright blues and greens for the comforters, hung a light from the ceiling that made patterns on the wall, gave them a sound machine and added decorations over their beds that could be touched such as ultra soft throw pillows.

A big thank you to Caturano and Company for sponsoring this project and making this incredible make-over possible.

Special Thanks

We would like to thank all of the volunteers as well as the donors below for being a part of this Dream Team!

Caturano & Company

Shawmut

Babels Paint & Decorating

Standolyn Robertson at Things In Place

Shawmut

40 volunteers from Caturano and Company