Press releases

House of Hope mixes fashion,
philanthropy

MORE FASHION SHOW INFO

PRESS RELEASE DATE: MARCH 9, 2010

Record attendance, fantastic fashions and a special drawing added glitter to House of Hope’s annual fashion show, held Feb. 12 at Mariner Sands Country Club.

“Hearts for Hope,” the 11th Annual Fashion Show, Luncheon and Auction mixed fun, fashion and philanthropy.

Nearly 300 guests attended the sold-out event, helping House of Hope surpass its fund-raising goals. The luncheon netted more than $40,000 to support clients seeking food, clothing, life-changing counseling services, and emergency financial assistance.

The fund-raising emphasis for this event was on assistance for young mothers. The emcee, Sue McVeigh of Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, announced an “Adopt-a-Mom” program to enhance House of Hope’s ability to help women who are trying to support a family on meager wages. The effort was inspired by guest speaker Dianna Morris, who told of how she came to House of Hope in a time of dire need and received food, clothing and payment of an electricity bill. More than that, however, she praised the efforts of her House of Hope case worker at the time, Sara Norman, who was “an angel” who also offered sympathy, guidance and respect to help her stabilize her life and her family.

The fashion centerpiece, of course, was the modeling of "upscale resale" clothing courtesy of donors to House of Hope. Volunteer extraordinaire Randi Zabriskie provided the commentary and coordinated the fashions, which came from House of Hope resale stores. Randi is a part-time Mariner Sands resident who owns an exclusive women's clothing boutique in Aurora, NY, called Jane Morgan's Little House.

The event also included live and silent auctions with fabulous getaways and pampering spa packages, plus fine gifts, entertainment packages and restaurants. During the live auction, Grace Towner modeled an elegant Badgley Mischka gown donated by Michelle Maguire. House of Hope volunteer Deb Connett was the winning bidder.

Another highlight of the show was the chance to win a custom-designed necklace created for House of Hope by Diamonds by Terry. For a $25 donation, guests could purchase a key that could open a jewelry box that contained the diamond, gold, silver and ruby necklace worth about $1,850. The winning key belonged to Diane Ballard, who was thrilled with her prize!

The presenting sponsor for the event was the Pedersen Family Foundation.Other major sponsors included longtime benefactor Bobbie Trimble and the Law Office of Lauri Goldstein.

Anyone who missed the show should check out the boutique items that are always for sale at all four of House of Hope's locations.

For more information about House of Hope, call (772) 286-4673 or visit www.hohmartin.org.