For Charmaine and Marcus Oladell, serving as Co-Chairs for Monster Mash Halloween Bash, the Well Community’s annual fundraising event, is a way to give to the community that has given to them.
“Charmaine and I generally look for opportunities to participate and be a part of the community. Oak Cliff has given us quite a bit in our lives, so it’s always nice to be able to help out,” Marcus shares. “We’ve been going [to Monster Mash] for a few years, and it’s kind of an annual tradition to go. And those things don’t tend to happen magically, you know. People have to work to do it. … This seems like a good thing for us to do since we’ve been enjoying attending it for so long, and it’s such a good organization.”
The couple first heard about the Well Community through their friends Jennifer and Andrew Snow, longtime volunteers, and attended their first Monster Mash at the Snows’ invitation. When Andrew asked them to consider serving as Co-Chairs for this year’s event, they were a little hesitant at first. But they saw how the connections they’ve built over the 17 years they’ve lived in the community had equipped them to get others involved in and excited about Monster Mash—and they believed in the cause behind it.
“It’s a no brainer in that it’s a fabulous organization that does a lot. It is just so in line with where we would like to spend our time and our money,” Charmaine explains. “It does nothing but good, and it uses its funds in such a good way. … It’s important to us to support nonprofits that are actually doing things … where you can see where the efforts go, see where the money goes, but also the ones that are in our community.”
The Oladells’ primary roles as Co-Chairs include encouraging people from the community to attend, as well as finding sponsors and underwriters to cover the costs of various aspects of the event, from entertainment to decorations. Their work to make the evening a success does far more than provide attendees with an evening of spooky fun. It raises awareness of the needs of people living with serious mental illnesses and helps the Well Community provide support and resources all year long.
Charmaine, who works in the medical field, has seen firsthand the lack of resources for mental health needs. “Mental health is so underserved. So, it’s really nice when attention is turned in a direction where it needs it so much.”
So, promoting an event that shines a spotlight both on the need and on the Well’s role in meeting it is a natural fit. Charmaine tells others, “There’s this organization in our neighborhood that provides a community of acceptance. … [Members] go there, they love it, they feel comfortable there. Over time, it becomes their family.” She then shares how Monster Mash helps the Well Community fulfil its mission, as well as raise awareness of the needs of those living with serious mental illnesses and get people from the community involved in volunteering.
Through their own experience serving at the Well, the Oladells know how much of an impact it can make in the lives not only of Well Community members but of volunteers as well. Marcus shares, “I think it can be one of the most enlightening experiences, especially for older children or teenagers, to both give back to their community, but also to have some perspective on how fortunate they themselves may be.”
Of course, in addition to sharing about the need and ways to get involved at the Well Community, Charmaine and Marcus spread the word that Monster Mash provides a great time with friends and neighbors. “The food is always really yummy, and the DJ or whatever musical act they’ve gotten is always awesome,” Charmaine shares. “Some years we’ve gone, we’ve seen everybody we’ve ever known in the neighborhood all out. Everybody’s dressed up. It’s a really fun environment, and then it kind of gets you into going every year. So, then it’s a new fun tradition to look forward to every year.”
Charmaine emphasizes that Monster Mash is a fun evening “if you’re 20 or 70 … You don’t have to be a certain age group, or in a certain type of group, in order to have a good time. … I think it’s the type of thing where you can have fun sitting and just watching people do what they do, or you can have fun participating and dancing and going all out. No matter what kind of partyer and what age you are, I think it’ll be a good time.”
Marcus adds, “This is a Halloween party for adults, and it’s a really fun one … obviously it’s for a really good cause. … You can come have this awesome time. You get to dress up … and that’s super fun because there’s a costume contest, and there’s dancing, and there’s food and there’s drink, and you’re doing it because this amazing organization needs your help.”
Click here to learn more about Monster Mash, buy tickets or become a sponsor.