Rustic Love Vienna

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Your generosity is making a real difference.
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As the school year came to a close, Rustic Love made one final pantry donation for the season to support a very special local program: Poe Middle School’s Raven’s Nest.

Led by the incredible Marissel Miranda, Raven’s Nest continues serving Poe’s most vulnerable families all summer long through bi-weekly food deliveries to their homes. This labor of love happens entirely outside of her regular job and is a remarkable example of the significant impact one person can make.

The need at Poe Middle School is significant:

➡️ Nearly 77% of Poe’s 900 students qualify for Free and Reduced Lunch.
🍎 Many families lose access to reliable school meals during the summer months.
➡️ Traditional food drives and fundraising efforts can be difficult to sustain because many of the families who would normally participate are the very families receiving assistance.
🍎 Raven’s Nest relies heavily on outside donations and volunteers to keep its shelves stocked and serving families year-round.

We would love to help secure a business sponsor for Raven’s Nest for the 2026–2027 school year. If your company, organization, or employer is interested in making a lasting impact on local children and families, please contact us and we’ll gladly connect you with Marissel. ☀️

Want to help today? Raven’s Nest also maintains an Amazon Wish List:
🛒 https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/1G3BL23ZZKBLY

Thank you for supporting Rustic Love and our mission to help food-insecure families in our community. Summer can be one of the most challenging times of year for struggling households, and because of your generosity, we can continue helping Poe students and their families when they need it most.

Our Hometown Art Auction ends tomorrow, June 7, but today, please give a warm welcome to our final featured artist: Shari MacFarlane! 🎨💛

Shari holds a truly special place in this year’s auction. Not only did she create two beautiful pieces for the event, but she is also the teacher and mentor of three other artists featured in the auction — a wonderful reflection of the creativity and inspiration she shares with others. 🌻 We also got to see a sneak peek of Shari's painting process -- did you know that underneath her "Hop To It" sign's green frog there is an orange one? It's all part of the paint layering process! So cool!

Shari's artistic journey began at just 16 years old as an arts and crafts teacher at a summer camp in Upstate New York. She later studied Fine Art at RIT, where she discovered a lifelong passion for both painting and teaching. Over the past 40 years, Shari has dedicated herself to nurturing creativity through her own artwork and by teaching hundreds of art students of all ages. 🐸

Shari shared that her purpose in life is to help others discover their creativity and connect with their authentic selves. Today, she continues that mission by teaching and painting daily from her home studio in Vienna. 🌻

We are so grateful to Shari not only for the beautiful artwork she contributed to this auction, but also for the countless ways she enriches our community through encouragement, mentorship, and creativity. Thank you, Shari, for sharing your incredible talents and your generous heart in support of Rustic Love’s mission to help fight food insecurity in our community. 🐸🌻
Auction link: https://www.32auctions.com/hometownartauction

Today’s Rustic Love Hometown Art Auction artist spotlight features Jordann Franks! 🎨🍉

Jordann is a lifelong Vienna resident who developed her love of art while taking art classes all four years at Madison High School. ❤️🖤 She later graduated from BYU with a teaching degree and now teaches PE and Health at the “rival” Oakton High School. 💛❤️

These days, Jordann uses art as a creative outlet and a way to unwind from her busy schedule. Her playful personality shines through in her cheerful Rustic Love watermelon sign — and considering watermelon is her favorite food, we’d say the theme is absolutely perfect! 🍉

We love the whimsy, color, and joy of Jordann’s piece and are so grateful she shared her talents with our auction to help support our mission to fight food insecurity in our community. Thank you, Jordann! 💚🩷