About Bless't Fest
We believe love is the most powerful force in the world — and we're on a mission to prove it.
The Not So Boring Foundation exists to bring people together from all walks of life, creating spaces where community, culture, and joy collide. What started in Los Angeles, California is growing into a global movement — because love has no zip code.
We show up where culture lives. We celebrate what makes us human. And we do it in a way that's fresh, fun, and unapologetically real.
This is what community looks like when love leads.
WHAT
Free food, free clothing, free beauty services, free entertainment, free feminine hygiene products, free kids activities — and community that feels like home.
WHO
People from all walks of life — families, youth, seniors, and community members who deserve to feel seen and loved.
WHY
Because love should be actionable. It started with no donations, no sponsors — just two people who answered a need out of their own pockets and the love they carried.
The Not So Boring Foundation was built by two people with one vision — AuJene and Val — hand in hand, from the ground up. What started as a shared belief that love should be actionable became a movement that has touched lives across Los Angeles and around the world.
And it started with nothing but heart. No donations. No sponsors. No backing. Just two people who saw a need and answered it out of their own pockets and the love they carried.
Before there was ever a festival, there was just showing up. Passing food out across Los Angeles. Providing shoes for people experiencing homelessness. Partnering with other nonprofits to secure housing for youth aging out of the system. Teaming up with an organization to deliver feminine hygiene products to blind and deaf girls suffering from period poverty in Ghana. Every action rooted in the same thing — love, made tangible.
Our Legacy
Then came Bless't Fest.
In August 2024, we hosted our very first Bless't Fest at Leimert Park in Los Angeles, California. It was more than we could have imagined. Over 300 people were clothed and fed. Free haircuts, free braids, free makeup, free clothes, free food, free feminine hygiene products, free games and toys for the kids, good music, and a community of volunteers — from celebrities and influencers to everyday people who simply wanted to show up — all united by the same energy. An energy that reminded everyone there what community is supposed to feel like.
It was a blessing in every sense of the word.
In 2025, we took Bless't Fest international — traveling to The Bahamas, where we provided groceries and clothing directly to people in need.
And we are just getting started.
Val Cherstal
Co-Founder & Executive Director of Operations
Val Cherstal is the structure, strategy, and steady force behind Bless’t Fest. As Co-Founder and Executive Director of Operations, Val leads the behind-the-scenes execution that turns vision into reality, making sure every detail, partnership, and moving piece comes together with intention and excellence.
AuJene Butler
Co-Founder & Chief Creative Director
AuJene Butler leads with love and backs it up with action. As Co-Founder and Chief Creative Director of The Not So Boring Foundation, she is the creative mind and beating heart of everything the Foundation builds. Professional by standard. Creative by nature. Passionate by choice.
Every year we show up. Every year the love gets bigger.
Here's a look at the moments that made us.
This Is What Love Looks Like.
Volunteering was an incredibly fulfilling experience. It was a beautiful event that united wonderful people and the community in exactly the way we needed.
