Costumed characters join forces to help St. Jude's
After a successful first-time event, Costumers With a Cause is bringing a Night at the Museum back to raise more money for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.
Volo Auto Museum Director Brian Grams said the 2015 event raised nearly $4,000. This year's Night at the Museum will be from 7-9 p.m. Friday, April 8, when the museum, 27582 Volo Village Road, again will open for a rare, after-hours glimpse.
"The costumers did such a great job with this last year," Grams said. "The people who turned out for it had a really good time mixing with the characters in costume and walking through our display areas in a relaxed, semiprivate atmosphere.
"We've added multiple exhibits since then, so hopefully even more people will come out and help us raise money this year," he said. "It's such a great cause."
Scott Whipple, who founded the Midwest chapter of Costumers With a Cause and now is the national president of the organization, said even though he moved to Florida after last year's event, he wouldn't miss Night at the Museum.
"No one will ever see anything like this anywhere else in the country," said Whipple, who is flying north to attend. "No one else has a museum like this."
It's the perfect setting, he said, for a charity walk that mixes cosplay enthusiasts dressed up like superheroes from the Avengers, Disney princesses and more with cars made famous in films. The family-friendly event is open to all ages.
Costumers With a Cause is a national group with regional chapters. Group members often can be found entertaining children in hospitals or supporting other organizations' events. The 2015 Night at the Museum was the Midwest chapter's first time sponsoring its own event. This year's festivities also will include raffle ticket sales, with comic book collectibles as prizes.
The minimum donation requested mirrors the museum ticket prices of $15 for adults and $9 for children ages 5-12, but larger donations are welcome and 100 percent goes to the research hospital. For more information, visit volocars.com or call (815) 385-3644.