Meet Alli Womac | Chief Operations Officer and Founding Member of ‘WEEN DREAM

We had the good fortune of connecting with Alli Womac and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Alli, where are your from? We’d love to hear about how your background has played a role in who you are today?
I am from Berea, OH, a small suburb outside of Cleveland. I grew up in a single-income home—my dad owned a carpet cleaning company and my mother was a stay-at-home mom until I was 16 years old. Growing up, I never realized that we didn’t have a lot. I always had birthday parties and Christmas presents and was even fortunate enough to take dance lessons consistently starting at a very young age. My parents made sure that they could keep me in classes, pay for recital expenses, and purchase costumes every year until I graduated high school. I had no idea how much of a financial burden it was on them until I was much older. For Halloween, my mom would always sew our costumes herself. One year, I was about 7 or 8 years old, and she made me a one-of-a-kind Belle dress from Beauty and the Beast. My brother was Batman. I loved that costume so much that I wore it until it fell apart! Between that costume, my tutus, and all my experience in live theater, I was very drawn to the power that a costume has on a child—specifically on my imagination and ability to dream and visualize beyond my current circumstances. I always felt that I could become a professional dancer every time I wore a costume because it gave me the ability to believe that it was possible. So I never stopped trying, never stopped learning and growing. I was fortunate enough to work as an international performer for the better part of a decade before moving to New Orleans, where ‘WEEN DREAM is based. When I was approached by the founder to help her grow this organization, it was an immediate and emphatic YES! If I remember correctly her exact ask was, “Hey! I’m starting a Halloween costume nonprofit and since you’re a dance you have to love costumes. Wanna join?!”

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
So ‘WEEN DREAM is an all-volunteer organization. All of the work is done by a small group of volunteers each season who work tirelessly from August through mid-October to match costumes for children across the country. We are the only nationally recognized nonprofit with this mission. It was surprisingly simple to get established and grow. The power of social media! And it’s been obvious over our last 9 years that this is a missing service all over the country. While there are local efforts to collect and distribute used costumes, as far as I know, we are the only effort that allows the child to choose two characters which we then work to match specifically for them. The biggest lesson I’ve learned from my work with this organization is that people are always willing to help, especially with something they feel strongly about. Halloween is a huge holiday, much bigger than I realized going into this, and children and adults alike have supported us each year with gathering costumes, raising funds and spreading the word. Our biggest challenge right now is that being only volunteers, our time is limited outside the season. We’re actually working right now to create a strategic plan that will allow us to grow exponentially!

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Favorite spots in New Orleans?! Don’t make me pick! If a friend were coming for a week and was looking for “the best time ever”, it’d have to be Mardi Gras. While Bourbon Street is a big attraction for people during Carnival, the real magic happens along the parade routes in the neighborhoods. The day-long, family-friendly parades with people in costume, barbecuing and dancing in the streets nothing is better. And the food in Nola is unlike anywhere else. It’s so hard to choose a spot. When I’m asked where to eat I ask what people want to eat before I give them a recommendation. The best gumbo isn’t at the same place as the best oysters or the best jambalaya. You almost have to spend a week to truly enjoy all the unique cuisine. My other favorite time of year is Jazz Fest, the last weekend in April and first weekend in May. The fest itself draws a huge crowd and is a great way to experience huge national acts as well as hundreds of local bands. The Daze Between, or the Mon-Wed between the fest weekends, are filled with local shows, unexpected collaborations, and pop-up performances that rival anything else I’ve ever experienced. Music and passing a good time is really what this city is about and those two major events highlight the best in the city every year!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My shoutout has two parts. Part one goes to my mom who, from a very young age, had us invested in giving back. Whether it was giving away our own toys just before Christmas, picking out a turkey dinner for a family at Thanksgiving, or shopping off of the Salvation Army Angel Tree, she always instilled in us that there is someone who you can help, no matter how small the gesture.

The second shoutout goes to Charlie. As the babysitter for a pediatric cancer survivor, I was witness to how illness can rob someone of the innocence and wonder of their childhood. I think of him every time I match a costume to a child hoping that it’s possible to restore that even if just for a day. He’s my ultimate motivation.

Website: www.weendream.org

Instagram: @ween_dream

Facebook: weendream