by Holly Wilensky
You might remember the Shortstack girls back in November as the helping hands and ambassadors of the BQE Design Expo, the local designer fashion event held in Hollis Hills.This teen modeling program sponsored by Windows of Opportunity (WOO), is the dream come reality that lets any girl who isn’t up to modeling industry standards audition for a chance to be a part of the “Shortstack” modeling agency.

Girls that are chosen for the program range in all heights and sizes. There are no body specifications or prerequisites to join the group so any girl can participate.

Shortstack was created by Oakland Gardens resident Olivia Mignone at the age of 15. Now as a grown woman, Olivia and volunteers for Shortstack book photo shoots with professional photographers, host charity events and even put on their own fashion show which is sold out each year.

On April 30, the girls of Shortstack strutted off the runway to celebrate Earth Day. The girls solely took on the huge responsibility of the restoration of the Hollis Woods Community Church Park, located on 82nd Avenue and Bell Boulevard.

Hollis Woods Community church has done nothing but support Hal Eisenberg, Director of WOO, in providing them with free meeting space and support for their activities to keep WOO’s programs going strong. After meeting at Hollis Woods for several months now, the Shortstackers gave the church grounds a much needed makeover.

The overgrown, weed infested, leaf covered church park was no match for the teens as they raked, bagged, swept and cleaned until the park was looking better than they were! No weed or stray leaf survived after all of the raking, spading and flower planting, which left the church grounds ready for the their “Yard of the Month” acceptance speech.

“What an amazing day. I am so proud of these girls,” said Tracy Mignone, Windows of Opportunity’s board member. “This was a major task at hand… cleaning and sprucing up a church playground for kids… and not one complaint heard. Just lots of fun and laughter.”

Shortstack is no stranger to giving back and providing opportunities for the 20 models chosen each year to take part in its 8 month long program. “Through workshops, rehearsals, charity events, photo shoots and fashion shows, these girls become the types of models our society should look up to,” said founder, Olivia.

The day was full of hard work, but at the end of it all, the church and its congregants were extremely happy. “We haven’t seen this park cleaned in many years. I am hoping this breathes some life and brings families back to our congregation,” Reverend Sharon Wolf said.

The Shortstack 5th Annual Charity Fashion Show is right around the corner on June 17th at 8:00 p.m. Please visit www.wooshortstack.org for tickets and information. Hurry, the show will be sold out!

For more style education, fashion inspiration and Shortstack information, please visit www.thedressrecycler.com. Your bargain fashion superhero!

Read more: Queens Ledger – Shortstack gives local church makeover
Original Article: https://queensledger.com/pages/full_story/push?article-Shortstack+gives+local+church+makeover%20&id=13321359&instance=home_art_2nd_left