In12Days to bring peace, hope, joy and love to all of Las Vegas, a city still struggling to recover from 2008’s economic downturn
LAS VEGAS – The Las Vegas Valley used to be a place of promise, where people from across the nation moved their businesses and homes to find better lives and invest in their futures. Today, residents are searching for signs of hope and a glimpse of the lives they once thought existed just past their fingertips.
The holidays are on their way, and resident Suzanne Lea doesn’t want another Christmas season to go by without hope, love and support for the city she calls home.
Lea’s In12Days aims to inspire the people of Las Vegas and Henderson to dream again, and during 12 days this Christmas Lea and her team of national sponsors will transform the bleak landscape to a holiday vista where drummers drum, lords leap and ladies dance. Lea’s holiday love letter to the city she loves begins Tuesday, Dec. 13, and she will parade her project of hope around the Las Vegas Valley through Christmas Eve.
The details of each day are a secret, but the idea is simple.
On Dec. 13 (Day 1), at least 12 groups, families and organizations will receive a huge basket of fat green pears and pairs of gloves and slippers for everyone in their household. Inside are further instructions about their role in the upcoming 12 Days of Christmas festivities.
But they aren’t the only ones who will be a part of the magic; pears will parachute down all over Las Vegas, sharing the news of the upcoming 12 days to groups of people everywhere. From this day on, everyone will want to discover, “What is In12Days? Who are the 12 groups that have been selected, and why? What will happen next?”
The list of sponsors already enlisted to help pull off this extraordinary event in Las Vegasis extensive. Some of the major sponsors include Blue Man Group, Cirque du Soleil, FedEx, Trader Joe’s, UNLV Rebels, Michael Minden Diamond Jewelers, Loews Hotels, Lake Las Vegas Resort, Ravella Hotel, The Village Lake Las Vegas, The Golf Club at SouthShore, Kristen Hertzenberg and members of Phantom: The Las Vegas Spectacular and Castle of Cakes.
In12Days was born from great loss. When Lea’s beloved husband, Bryan, died in April 2008, she knew Christmas would be hard for her and her two young sons. Little did she know, her friends at St. Viator’s Catholic Church had other plans.
On a gray morning Dec. 13, 2008, Lea’s doorbell rang. She and her sons opened the door to find a bowl of green pears with a note that read, “Count down the 12 days of Christmas with us! It starts today! For 12 days, a bit of cheer will arrive, so please check by your door.”
On each of the 12 days of Christmas, Lea and her sons received themed gifts – even a group of nine church ladies dancing in the street on Day 9. By the end of those 12 days, the sadness and pain had lifted from the Leas’ hearts.
From that point on, it became Lea’s mission to pay it forward. As a result, In12Days has delivered extravagant 12 Days of Christmas events to individuals and organizations for the past three years – and not just at Christmas. Last year, In12Days brought the 12 Days of Christmas to 80 foster children and leaders at St. Jude’s Ranch with the help of 1,000 volunteers and sponsors nationwide.
For more information on In12Days, call 702-509-0555, visit www.In12Days.net, or follow them on Facebook, YouTube and Twitter.