Nashoba Tech student designs poster for fashion show

WESTFORD — Pedro Mendez may not know a lot about the world of fashion. But he knows his way around graphic design.

Pedro, a sophomore in the Design & Visual Communications program at Nashoba Valley Technical High School, was a special guest at a recent fashion fundraiser by virtue of his design being selected to be used as the show’s promotional flier.

The annual fashion show is produced by Jodie Lasonde and Laurie Dillon. The two were looking for an appropriate design to be incorporated in the show’s promotional material.

The show was held March 18 at Westford Regency Inn and Conference Center, and Pedro and his mother received free tickets as a prize for his winning flier design.

“I was pretty happy, pretty proud,” Pedro, an Ayer resident, said about the email he received from Lasonde to tell him his design was selected. “She gave us a few images and showed us some past designs. I had the idea, and I just kept making some small changes to it until I finished it.”

When looking for a flashy design for their flier, Lasonde and Dillon approached Nathan Meharg, a Design & Visual Communications instructor, who, in turn, challenged sophomores to design their own flier. The show raises money each year for a different department or program at Boston Children’s Hospital. This year’s event benefited Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome, as well as the agency Clear Path for Veterans.

“Laurie and I received seven proposed fliers, which were all great,” Lasonde said. “But Pedro’s stood out. We loved how he captured and incorporated the show’s title, ‘All the World’s a Stage – Challenge the Label,’ into the flier and how the coloring matched the PTSD ribbon.”

Meharg said he felt Pedro’s design was the right choice.

“Pedro’s design really had the right look and feel for the event, and overall he did an excellent job on it, so I wasn’t at all surprised when his was chosen,” Meharg said. “That set the visual tone for the rest of the project, and the whole class worked as a team putting the tickets and program together.”

“Working with Nathan Meharg, Pedro and the entire class has been an incredible experience,” Lasonde said. “We can’t wait to work with them for our next charity fashion show.”