Decorate-A-Pot Highland Park Family Fundraiser A Huge Success

In the spirit of healing and action, a group of Highland Park residents came together on Saturday, May 10, to host a community fundraiser supporting Sandy Hook Promise, a nonprofit dedicated to preventing gun violence. The event, held at the West Ridge Center, offered families a creative and joyful way to participate in change — by decorating flower pots for Mother's Day.
Titled Decorate-A-Pot, the family-friendly fundraiser welcomed children and parents to design flowerpots and plant blooms to take home as thoughtful gifts. Laughter and creativity filled the room as families gathered not just to craft, but to honor lives lost and to advocate for a safer future.
The inspiration behind the event stems from a deeply personal experience. The organizing group, composed of local women, were among those attending the Highland Park Fourth of July parade in 2022 — a day marked by tragedy when a mass shooting shook the community. Since then, they’ve committed to taking action to help prevent such violence from ever happening again.
This year, they raised more than $10,000 to support Sandy Hook Promise's mission: to honor victims of gun violence by transforming tragedy into meaningful change and protecting children through education, advocacy, and intervention programs.
“We will not forget,” one organizer shared. “And we will keep working to make sure this never happens again.”
The event was a powerful reminder that change begins with community — and that even in the face of grief, there is room for hope, action, and togetherness.