Single Mom Creates a Business to Help Others

Nancy Gibbs of Laguna Niguel believes that nothing provides more strength than dire necessity, and that is how and why mitzvahpartycentral.com was created.

The single mom, 51, is a former events coordinator for Temple Beth El in Aliso Viejo who was let go after three years of service. She has been unemployed for more than a year.

“The economy forced my position to be eliminated. As an unemployed single mom who had spent my entire adult married life raising two children, I was faced with the challenge of figuring out how to support my family,” she said.

Gibbs said she is a strong believer that there is an opportunity to be found in every problem.

“I had discovered while working as an event planner that there was a void in the world of Jewish life cycle event planning. There were limited resources for people seeking qualified vendors as well as for vendors reaching out to families requiring their services,” she said.

As a result, she created mitzvahpartycentral.com, a place for Jewish families planning an event to find the services, venues and experts they need.

“One thing that kept me going, aside from my passion and determination, was the importance of showing my children that even though there were many difficult obstacles to overcome, I wasn't going to be discouraged and give up on what I had started,” she said.

Gibbs said mitzvahpartycentral.com, which launched Feb. 15, is a one-stop shop to help celebrations come to life with as little stress as possible. 

“In  addition, I will  produce the Ultimate Mitzvah Faire, bringing vendors and families together ‘punim to punim’ (face to face) to shmooz, kibitz and, of course, eat at the fairs in various cities throughout the year.

“Paying it forward is very important to me, and being a single mom in the vulnerable position of having to provide for my children, I wanted to find a way to help other women in similar situations,” she said.

That’s when she heard about Women Forward, a program of Jewish Federation & Family Services, Orange County, and decided it was a perfect fit. Women Forward helps women in transition to become financially self-sufficient, giving them the ability to provide a safe living environment for them and their children.

Mitzvahpartycentral.com will be giving 5 percent of all profits from the website and the Ultimate Mitzvah Faire to Women Forward.