The lights, the audience, the fashion—the idea of strutting down the runway as a model is the very definition of glamour when you’re a kid. It’s an experience Friends of Kids with Cancer makes a reality for young cancer patients through its Fashion Show & Boutique. As the nonprofit’s signature fundraiser, the event honors its mission to give children and families the support and services they need beyond their medical treatment.
The fashion show is a major fundraiser for the nonprofit, having raised more than $400,000 in 2019. However, according to Merri Cross, board president emeritus and the event’s planning committee chair, the real focus is on the models. Each year, patients from Mercy, SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children’s and St. Louis Children’s hospitals are selected to participate, and they receive the superstar treatment. Along with modeling in afternoon and evening shows, each participant receives special gifts and gets to stay overnight at The Ritz-Carlton, St. Louis with their family. “It’s a fantastic, glamorous day for them, and our supporters get to see the children that they are helping,” Cross says. “Nothing compares to watching these kids come down the runway.”
The experience is just one example of how the nonprofit helps children and families dealing with serious illness. “Our mission is to help kids with cancer be kids,” Cross notes. “Kids go through so much from the moment they are diagnosed. We want to provide reminders of the joys of childhood.” The organization started in 1992 as an initiative to create toy closets in hospitals and doctors’ offices so children undergoing treatment would find the experience a little less frightening. Today, Friends of Kids with Cancer’s services have grown to include programs that meet the educational, emotional and recreational needs of the families it serves.
Friends of Kids with Cancer hosts several fun events for families throughout the year, including a Halloween party at Grant’s Farm and a back-to-school night at The Magic House. The nonprofit also provides tutoring and testing support from educational professionals for both cancer patients and their siblings, and its scholarship program makes postsecondary education more accessible. To meet the emotional needs of its clients, it offers art, music and play therapy for patients; counseling for the entire family; and support groups, including those for families who have lost a child to cancer.
This year’s Fashion Show & Boutique is Nov. 3 at The Ritz-Carlton, St. Louis. Boutique shopping from local shops and vendors begins at 10 a.m. for the luncheon show and 5:30 p.m. for the dinner show. The event will include a new VIP rooftop garden experience in the evening. The day will be extra special as it marks both Friends of Kids with Cancer’s 30th anniversary and the return of the fashion show after a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic. “It’s wonderful that we can be back in person this year to provide an unforgettable experience to both our models and guests,” Cross says. “We’ve been around for 30 years, but unfortunately, we have not seen a decline in childhood cancer. Attending the fashion show directly supports these children and their families.”
Friends of Kids with Cancer provides educational, emotional and recreational support for children undergoing treatment for cancer and blood-related diseases. Its annual Fashion Show & Boutique is Nov. 3 at The Ritz-Carlton, St. Louis. Pictured on the cover: Patient Polet (right) with her sister Pamela. For more information, call 314.275.7440 or visit friendsofkids.org.
Cover courtesy of Friends of Kids with Cancer
Cover photo by Colin Miller of Strauss Peyton Photography
Pictured at top: Friends of Kids with Cancer’s Fashion Show & Boutique gives young cancer patients the spotlight.
Photo courtesy of Friends of Kids with Cancer
