Michigan Home Staging Professionals Improve Lives by Thinking Globally and Acting Locally

DETROIT, MI – September 6, 2007 — The International Association of Home Staging Professionals (IAHSP) Foundation, a non-profit organization founded by Barb Schwarz, the creator of Home Staging, is pleased to announce the beginning of the 3rd annual Worldwide Staging Service Week, September 9th through 16th, 2007. A record 46 Chapters of the IAHSP will participate across the country in a weeklong event to improve the lives of others through the magic of Home Staging. Members of the IAHSP across the US and Canada will come together beginning September 9, 2007 to help local organizations and individuals in their communities who are in need of Staging services. Past benefactors have included such places as nursing homes, schools, women’s shelters, and individuals in need of selling their homes.

Bringing it all “Home” for the residents of Michigan is The Great Lakes Regional IAHSP Chapter. For the second consecutive year, The Great Lakes IAHSP Chapter has selected the Ronald McDonald House of Detroit and the Charities of Southeast Michigan as their World Wide Staging Week benefactors. Over seven days, members of The Great Lakes Regional IAHSP Chapter will transform the office and lobby areas of the Detroit Ronald McDonald House, creating a warm and inviting point of entry for the Ronald McDonald House network of families being treated at Children’s Hospital. “We want to create a ‘homey’ feeling. The Ronald McDonald House is considered a ‘home away from home’ and we want to create that feeling for the families every time they enter the Ronald McDonald House,” said Carolyn Stieger, Great Lakes Regional IAHSP Chapter President.

As the Great Lakes Chapter has grown, so has its commitment to community. As an additional World Wide Staging Service Week project this year, The Great Lakes IAHSP Chapter will also assist in Staging a portion of the Ronald McDonald House in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Families with children receiving treatment at Mott Children’s Hospital of the University of Michigan stay at the Ann Arbor house. Over 600 families each year travel and stay at the Ann Arbor house during treatment and care. “We are happy to be able to include the Ann Arbor Ronald McDonald House this year. We will be staging several common living areas and adding artwork,” said Carolyn Stieger.

The IAHSP is comprised of 125 local Chapters and approximately 2,500 Accredited Staging Professionals (ASPs). As the recognized professional association and voice of the International Home Staging industry, the IAHSP sets the standard for Staging and is the benchmark for excellence in real estate. On a regular basis, ASPs volunteer their time, talents, and personal resources to work for the betterment of the communities that they serve and transitively enhance the quality of lives through service to others.

Barb Schwarz, Creator of Home Staging, President and Founder of StagedHomes.com, Founder and President of IAHSP, the IAHSP Foundation and the World Wide Staging Service Day said, “It is with great enthusiasm and joy that we give back to the communities that we live and work in.” Schwarz coined the phrase “Think globally, act locally through the world of Home Staging” to be the theme for the World Wide Staging Service Day. Schwarz pioneered the concept of Home Staging in 1972 and since 1985 has taught over 1,000,000 real estate agents and professional home Stagers her Staging principles. Schwarz added, “Through the magical power of Staging we create beauty, reduce stress and improve the value of Real Estate and lives.”

You too can make a difference. The IAHSP Foundation in conjunction with local IAHSP Chapters is accepting donations, all of which are tax deductible. For more information about the World Wide Staging Service event in Michigan or to make a donation, please visit our website at http://iahsp.com/worldwidestaging/ or call Carolyn Stieger, President, Co-Ambassador of the Great Lakes Chapter of IAHSP and 2007 IAHSP Foundation Ambassador, at 248-515-2156 or via email at Stieger_carolyn@yahoo.com.