Fashion with a Passion event to benefit Make-A-Wish child

An Encinitas woman is helping to bring a young fashion designer’s dream to life later this month when she co-chairs the eighth annual Fashion with a Passion event, benefiting the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

Lisa Paul Hill, co-owner of the Encinitas-based Trends on the Go mobile fashion boutique, has been working with Make-A-Wish for nearly two decades and became involved in the Fashion with a Passion event in 2012. She will co-chair the event for the first time this year with Trends on the Go business partner Kathy Baird, of Shadowridge, after the pair successfully ran the event’s vendor village the last two years.

The event, on March 24 at the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising (FIDM) in San Diego, will feature activities such as vendors for jewelry, home goods and fashion; food; photo booths; wine tastings; and makeover stations. There will also be raffles and auctions.

Guests may also take part in the Ultimate Fine Accessory and Outerwear Swap, where attendees may exchange clothing, purses, necklaces and jewelry with one another.

Well-known Los Angeles designer and FIDM spokesperson, Nick Verreos, will be featured in a high-end fashion show that will headline the day.

“There are a lot of opportunities for the attendees to be on the campus of FIDM, and a lot of people that have attended have actually decided to go into a designing career,” Paul Hill said.

Every year, the Fashion with a Passion event works with Make-A-Wish to give a child facing a critical illness a chance to interact with the fashion world.

This year, the organization is working with a 10-year-old San Diego girl who has aspirations to be a fashion designer.

“For her to get to see how these students get to put together these designs and watch these demos, I think she’ll just get to have that whole inspiration of being right there with the campus and actual designers,” Paul Hill said of the girl.

Heather Ginsky, community partnerships manager with Make-A-Wish San Diego, said wishes like these “engage entire communities in life-changing moments” and “give children renewed energy and strength.”

“We believe in the power of a wish,” Ginsky said. “It is our purpose to provide children and their families with a life-affirming experience in the midst of a very challenging time. The support of partners such as the Fashion With A Passion team enables us to create life-changing wishes for children every year.”

For tickets and more information about the event, visit www.fashionwithapassion.org.