Handbags for Hope set Aug. 21
By Lillia callum-Penso
There is more than one way to raise funds.
For the second year, Janet Rigdon and the South Carolina Ovarian Cancer Foundation are proving it doesn’t always take a golf tournament. Next week, the Foundation, of which Rigdon is executive director, will present Handbags for Hope, a unique evening of entertainment, food and a chance to accessorize in style. The event features 107 decorated handbags, donated by celebrities, local artists and others, that will be auctioned off. Each bag is unique, says Rigdon, from shape and detailing to, in some cases, materials used.
“Oh, you should see the one made from cat hair; it’s absolutely beautiful and it’s a perfect handbag,” Rigdon says. “We also have one that’s made from a bra. You can’t tell it’s a bra until you open it up and look inside, but it’s also very usable.”
Those bags are actually the fancier ones, but others are more casual — felt, knit and wool. Each is carefully embellished to make it something special.
Last year’s Handbags for Hope event raised $15,000, and Rigdon says this year’s goal is even higher. One hundred of the handbags will be sold via silent auction, all starting at $35, while seven will be auctioned off via live auction. Twenty celebrity-signed handbags are also among this year’s featured purses, including bags graced with the signatures of Patrick Dempsey,
Carrie Underwood and the cast of “Leatherheads.”
All money raised goes toward the foundation’s mission of educating women, and supporting and furthering cancer research. As with all cancers, early detection is key to preventing the spread of ovarian cancer, and raising awareness about the signs and symptoms women should look for is invaluable, says Rigdon.
But awareness and fund-raising don’t have to be boring. That’s one reason the foundation settled on the special handbag event last year. It was different and fun, but still effective.
“We were trying to find something unique that we could call our own,” Rigdon says.
Handbags for Hope set Aug. 21 | GreenvilleOnline.com | The Greenville News
thanks to Ver for the set! iloveit.
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