Hundreds of ladies flocked to Omni Dallas for the eighth annual Heroes and Handbags. The luxury handbag auction benefited Heroes for Children (HFC), a nonprofit dedicated to supporting families affected by childhood cancer.
The reception looked more like a scene from Fight Club than a fundraiser, as chic attendees bid feverishly via smartphone in a battle royale to win bags from such elite designers as Celine, Bottega Veneta, Chloe, Nancy Gonzalez, Chanel, Bulgari and Balenciaga. The auction also included a "Kate" bag, which Elaine Turner designed exclusively for the event.
From the handbag wars alone, Heroes for Children raked in more than $90,000.
Once the bidding closed, even defeated devotees trotted into the ballroom, where a tasty brunch awaited. Attendees settled in while HFC executive director Kristy Hensel welcomed guests and drew raffle prizes.
When chairman Kim Bannister took the podium, she reminded ladies about the real purpose of the daytime fete: to support Heroes for Children. Then the organization's co-founders, Larissa Linton and Jenny Scott — who each lost a child to cancer — presented Leah Haberer with the Sprit of Allie and Taylor award for her ongoing contributions.
Later, mother-daughter duo Jill Roberts and Brooke Bott took the stage. Bott spoke about her battle with cancer and how HFC helped her cope. She focused on the necklace around her neck, made from beads of courage she accumulated throughout the course of her treatment.
The crowd — including honorary chairs Nancy Dedman and Rachel Dedman, Lynn McBee, D'Andra Simmons, Jennifer Houser, Skye Brewer, Tamara Bickel, Susan Evans, Kate Rose Marquez, Cecily Gooch, Claire Pruitt Wilhite, Gillian Breidenbach, Krista Warren, and Rachel Ladin — got even tearier as Roberts talked about her daughter's struggle and how HFC's support helped ease the pain. Today, Bott is cancer-free.
After a morning of bidding, brunching and tearing up, attendees ended the afternoon on a sweet note — by filling up bags with treats from the candy bar.
Susan Evans, Lucinda Buford, Jenny Scott
Keith Lee Latte is a matcha drink.Instagram