Gwinnett Daily Post

Alan Wyatt and his wife Judy are co-owners of Designs of the Interior, an interior design retail business in Johns Creek, and have been big supporters of Rainbow Village for the past several years. The more involved they became with us, the better acquainted they became with the services we provide to the families in our transitional housing program.

In June, Alan decided he wanted to form a retail partnership with Rainbow Village. Together, with the help of Michelle Alcorn, another loyal Rainbow Village volunteer, and our staff, we prepared a template for the Rainbow Village retail partnership program.

Every time a visitor to Alan and Judy's store mentions Rainbow Village and purchases an item or a service, a percentage of the total sale will be donated to Rainbow Village. We're excited about our new partnership program and grateful to Alan and Michelle for approaching us with such a wonderful idea.

"We'd love to have more retail partners," said Deborah Pelham, Rainbow Village Resource Development Director. "At present, we also partner with Dr. Pickron of Pickron's Orthodontic Care, who contributes to Rainbow Village through his Project Smile. As a non-profit, we really appreciate his ongoing support and generosity."

As a member of Rainbow Village's event advisory committee, Alan is also instrumental in connecting Rainbow Village with Jon Agri, owner of Quanto Basta, an Italian restaurant at 2980 GA 20 and Windermere Parkway in Cumming. Working together, Jon, Alan, and Rainbow Village are planning a memorable evening of delicious food and great wine on Sunday, Nov. 9, at Rainbow Village's first annual Celebrate the Season Dinner and Wine Auction. This event is open to the public and tickets are available by calling Rainbow Village at 770-446-3800.

"Jon is a terrific restauranteur," Alan said. "I've known him for many years and he's catered many of my events and he always steals the show. He has a big heart and I knew he would jump at the chance to host this event at Quanto Basta."

To find out more about Rainbow Village's first annual Celebrate the Season Dinner and Wine Auction at Quanto Basta as well as our other events, please visit our Web site at www.rainbowvillage.org. The mission of Rainbow Village is to provide families in domestic or economic crisis a healing environment to rebuild their lives through a community based transitional housing program that promotes self-sufficiency.

We are located at 400 Holcomb Bridge Road, Norcross, GA 30071 and have housing in Norcross and Duluth. We offer the following services: case management, life skills classes, and an after school program. We love volunteers. Please call us at 770-446-3800 if you would like to help us fulfill our mission.

Nancy Yancey is executive director of Rainbow Village.