MAYFIELD HOPE BLOOMS: NOTE: Due to expected high winds, the Hope Blooms project will be delayed until March 27th.
Beginning Saturday, March 27-April 1, Hope Blooms will pop up on the Mayfield High School campus in front of the Mayfield Innovation Center and MHS main entrance. Our Wildcat Community is encouraged to stop by, snap a photo and spread the hope @HopeBloomsOhioProject.
Hope Blooms Ohio is a creative marketing campaign developed by the Excel TECC Beachwood High School Marketing/Junior Achievement students to inspire hope and uplift our local and global communities through a pop art installation featuring five 20-30’ inflatable flowers.
The Marketing/Junior Achievement program inspires and prepares young people to succeed in a global economy, and, each year, creates an out-of-the-box, nationally recognized program that provides students with real-world business experiences and draws in the community with its experiential events.
The challenge for the class this year was to come up with a program that could safely be planned and implemented, keeping social distancing and at-home learning in mind.
The marketing students worked with David Scherba, the owner of Inflatable Images. Located in Brunswick, Ohio, Inflatable Images designed and manufactured the flowers. The name of each flower represents the mission of Hope Blooms Ohio: Unity, Love, Health, Blossom, Inspire, and Joy. Hope Blooms Ohio is a visually exciting and unexpected display that encourages visitors to walk through the inflatable garden.
Given the global pandemic, the students wanted their business to reflect optimism, as well as raise awareness of food insecurity, and build a sense of unity in a time of prolonged division and hardship.
The goal is to raise $40,000 for the Greater Cleveland Food Bank. Donations can be made at hopebloomsohio.com/home/donate. Hope Blooms Ohio apparel, merchandise and masks are for sale at hopebloomsohio.com/home/shop and a portion of the proceeds will benefit the Greater Cleveland Food Bank.
“Massive change can start with one step in the right direction,” said Elana Rubanenko, one of four program CEOs. “With one seed, or one idea, we have the ability and willpower to enact change. This project’s initial seed was to work toward ending food insecurity in Northeast Ohio. Our goal of raising $40,000 for the Cleveland Food Bank, enough to provide 160,000 meals, is our first step toward making this change. I hope that our global garden grows to include many seeds, many ideas of how to bring about positive change, and that we grow our ideas to impact more than just the people we see in our everyday lives."
Hope Blooms Ohio is a visually exciting and unexpected display that encourages visitors to walk through the inflatable garden.
In addition to the inflatable flowers, a 10'H x 15'W inflatable backdrop provides a colorful backdrop for photographs. Visitors are encouraged to take the yard signs home with them to continue to spread HOPE.