Two months ago, nine-year-old Nicollette Perazzo had an
epiphany: She wanted to start her own
”
business.
”
But not selling lemonade, not mowing lawns and not walking the
neighbors’ dogs. Nicollette wanted to start a business that wasn’t
going to help her piggy bank.
Hollister – Two months ago, nine-year-old Nicollette Perazzo had an epiphany: She wanted to start her own “business.” But not selling lemonade, not mowing lawns and not walking the neighbors’ dogs. Nicollette wanted to start a business that wasn’t going to help her piggy bank.
While helping to decorate the Emmaus House, a battered-women’s shelter, before its open house, Nicollette noticed there was something missing.
“I was at the Emmaus House and I realized there weren’t very many babies (dolls),” Nicollette said as she fixed the edges of a baby doll blanket she had made.
“She came running up to me and asked if she could donate some of her own dolls,” Nicollette’s mom Diana Perazzo recalled. “I said ‘of course,’ and then she asked me if she could start a business fixing up dolls for little girls who didn’t have as much as she did.”
Since then Nicollette, who has always wanted to be a baby doctor, has begun calling her business an “organization.” Which she can’t always remember exactly how to say, but knows it means she’s working for charity and not money. The operation, Angel Babies, has taken off – with a little help from her friends, her mom and of course the big man in red.
“Santa brought her a sewing machine for Christmas,” Diana Perazzo said. “She hasn’t made any doll clothes yet – we’re working our way up to that – but she makes blankets, and every doll gets a blanket.”
When they’re not sewing blankets, Nicollette and her mom are collecting dolls from friends, hunting at garage sales for dolls and clothes, running the dolls through the washing machine and touching them up with Clorox. And Nicollette’s sure to have her hands full now that she and her mom are putting collection boxes at the Presbyterian preschool and church, Kelly’s Gift Place, Attitudes and Images salon and Tres Pinos School, where Nicollette is a fourth-grader.
Today, Nicollette is donating her first batch of nine dolls to Chamberlain’s Children Center, which provides emergency and residential shelter and other services for children.
“She knew that Emmaus House wasn’t open yet, so she asked if she could donate some to Chamberlain’s now,” Diana Perazzo said.
The rest of the 25 dolls Nicollette has already restored will go to Emmaus House when it opens.
Now, Perazzo added, Chamberlain’s 24-hour emergency shelter even wants to put Nicollette on-call.
“If they know there’s a family coming in with five little girls, they’ll call Nicollette and tell her they need five dolls,” she said.
Nicollette said she’s excited for today’s donation, when she’ll be handing the dolls to the center’s little girls face-to-face, something she thought was very important. Also key are her friends, at least one of whom she’s inspired to join her with Angel Babies. And she’s even got her four-year old brother in on the act. He says he wants to collect “choo-choo trains” for the little boys at Chamberlain’s who might not be quite so thrilled with dolls.
“It’s important I think for people to know that there are kids who care about other people,” Diana Perazzo said.
Anyone who wants to donate dolls or help Angel Babies can E-mail Nicollette and her mom at pe****@sb*******.com.
Jessica Quandt covers politics for the Free Lance. Reach her at 831-637-5566 ext. 330 or at jq*****@fr***********.com.
