By Kit Moore
Habitat for Humanity of Greater Newburgh held its second annual “Building Fashion to Build Community” fashion show Saturday, March 21, in the Aquinas Hall Theater at Mount Saint Mary College. In the lobby, Habitat held a raffle with prizes including gift cards to local restaurants and Habitat for Humanity merchandise. Charities and businesses set up information tables, and volunteers from Habitat and other organizations served food.
The show is the brainchild of Nyla Pichardo, Habitat Newburgh’s resource development manager. The purpose of the show is to bring the community together, highlight the creativity and talent of the models and raise money for Habitat Newburgh.
Robert Vite, development director for Habitat Newburgh, said the event was especially helpful for getting young people involved with Habitat for Humanity.
“What’s really great about this event particularly is that it brings in the youth,” Vite said. “Lots of times our events have a lot of different generations, but the youth is the one that’s hard to get the support, and that’s kind of across all nonprofits.”
The show, with music provided by local DJ K. Blaze, began at 6:25 p.m. Models walked across the stage in outfits designed by the models and volunteers, including a few donated by Forever Situated, a high-end streetwear brand.
Many of the models were students from Mount Saint Mary College and the Newburgh Free Academy barbering program, or volunteers from Habitat for Humanity.
Danielle Crinieri, the NFA barbering teacher, said Pichardo’s connection to the school made the collaboration a natural fit.
“Nyla is a former student at NFA, and she reached out to my program because she knows that we love to do a lot of volunteer work,” Crinieri said. “We were happy to help her out and do some modeling tonight.”
Some models and attendees were returning from the previous year. Jalissa Miller, the female model featured on Habitat’s promotional posters, was back for a second year.
“The atmosphere felt pretty fun and pretty warming, so me as a shy person I was able to open up more,” Miller said.
The show concluded with a dance performance from a trio of Mount Saint Mary students.
Vite said Habitat plans to continue the tradition next year. Miller said she hopes the event becomes a lasting fixture.
“I hope that Nyla continues this tradition for many years to come because it’s pretty fun and it’s good to see everyone come together,” she said.