Before revision: Upon publication of the Cuddle Party website, the events were opened to the general public, and, thanks to a swarm of media attention, became a phenomenon in New York.New York Observer In order to meet the demand for Cuddle Parties in other cities, Mihalko and Baczynski began a training and certification program in January 2005, and have since trained a number of individuals to facilitate Cuddle Parties in various cities.Dailycal.org
After revision: Cuddle activities are also popular in the Pacific Northwest, where Erez Ben-Ari of Redmond, WA, has been organizing such events since 2018 as part of the cuddle-club 'Spoonz'.. Spoonz closed permanently due to the COVID-19 Global Pandemic, but following relaxation of restrictions in the region, Ben-Ari created the non-commercial cuddle community 'HugzCuddlez', which offers free group-cuddle events on a weekly basis, with an average of 30 guests in attendance, and at 9 locations in the region.Upon publication of the Cuddle Party website, the events were opened to the general public, and, thanks to a swarm of media attention, became a phenomenon in New York.New York Observer In order to meet the demand for Cuddle Parties in other cities, Mihalko and Baczynski began a training and certification program in January 2005, and have since trained a number of individuals to facilitate Cuddle Parties in various cities.Dailycal.org