Tickets and sponsorships are still available for the 10th annual Golisano Children’s Hospital Fashion Show set for Dec. 6 at Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Resort & Spa to benefit Kids’ Minds Matter, Golisano Children’s Hospital mental and behavioral health program. An elegant affair, the event will feature a gourmet luncheon, fashion show and several opportunities to support the regional healthcare priority.
Attendees can participate in the silent auction, bidding on items like hotel stays, handbags, artwork, autographed merchandise, social outings and more. Another unique fundraising attraction is the flower wall, where guests select a flower and win a corresponding prize, which included purses, jewelry, picture frames and gift baskets.
Models in the fashion show include former patients from the hospital, such as Kayden Selleck, who was born prematurely at 23 weeks, weighing just over a pound. Kayden, who has many challenges due to his extreme premature birth, including cerebral palsy, has worked hard to walk without a walker, cane or other assistive device. Another model, Sophia Cameratta was diagnosed with Stage 4 Acute Lymphoblastic Lymphoma at 2.5 years old. She endured years of intensive chemotherapy and cranial radiation and has been in remission for more than four years. Siblings Skye and Lucas Saunders were both born with club feet and had surgery to repair them and walk normally. Armando Llechu, chief administrative officer at Golisano, will model with his 7-year-old daughter Arianna, who has genetic hearing loss but is able to hear with hearing aids. Other adult celebrity models include hospital supporters, donors and event sponsors.
Residents of the Pelican Landing community created the Fashion Show in 2009 to coincide with Lee Health Foundation’s launch of a capital campaign to build a state-of-the-art, freestanding children’s hospital. That facility, Golisano Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida, opened in 2017, so this year the Fashion Show is directing its philanthropy toward mental and behavioral health. Kids’ Minds Matter has become the region’s strategic solution to improve access to families seeking pediatric mental and behavioral health services.
Over the past nine years, the Fashion Show has raised more than $800,000 to support Golisano Children’s Hospital and its lifesaving mission through various programs to meet families’ needs locally. Sponsors include a generous anonymous philanthropic gift to support the cause. Additional sponsors include Marty and John Howard; VaNita and Jim Laurito; Angie Nichols; Bill and Pat Smart; Cameratta Companies; John R. Wood Realtors Carol Wood and Claire McMahon Team; Don Blake of Picket Fence Appraisals; Dorothy Daly; In Memory of Marian Niehaus; Kathie and Dave Shellenbarger; Key Private Bank; Nancy Near and Friends; Seminole Casino Hotel; Stock Development; Altaira Social; Amy Quaremba and Friends; Bob and Gail Hansen; Diane Lepola and Genesis Group of UBS Financial Services; Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Resort & Spa; Mary McVay and Maryanne Kennedy of Downing Frye Realty Inc.; Sandra and Jack Adams; Vi at Bentley Village; Bank of America Private Bank and éBella Magazine.
The fashion show begins at 10:30 a.m. on Friday, Dec. 6 at Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Resort & Spa, 5001 Coconut Road in Bonita Springs. Sponsorships are available and include tickets, group tables, public recognition and other benefits. Individual tickets are $100 per person.
For more information or to purchase tickets, tables or sponsorships, please visit LeeHealthFoundation.org/GolisanoFashionShow or call 239-343-6950.
About Golisano Children’s Hospital
Established in 1994, Golisano Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida has been named a “Top Hospital” by The Leapfrog Group for the past two years. It is the only recognized children’s hospital between Tampa and Miami. Lee Health opened the new 134-bed Golisano Children’s Hospital in May 2017, relocating the children’s hospital from the adjacent HealthPark Medical Center. It includes comprehensive pediatric services including a 24-hour pediatric emergency department, hematology-oncology unit, milk lab, Regional Perinatal Intensive Care Center, and Level II and Level III NICU with 70 private rooms. Golisano Children’s Hospital is proud to have been named Soliant’s 2018 Most Beautiful Hospital in the U.S., a recognition determined by popular vote. For more information, visit GolisanoChildrensSWFL.org.