AMESBURY — Area women will soon be showing a little more skin as they saunter down the catwalk at the upcoming Bra-Zaar fashion show and fundraiser.
Scheduled for Aug. 29 at the Newburyport Brewing Company, the fundraiser benefits local nonprofit Tough Warrior Princesses. Like in years past, participants — including a number of cancer survivors — will be modeling custom-made bras.
Later, those bras will be auctioned off with all proceeds going towards the Amesbury-based nonprofit dedicated to supporting women battling cancer.
The event began four years ago and has steadily blossomed over time — an outcome that event organizer and cancer survivor Cynthia Keefe said has been gratifying.
“It’s pretty exciting, and each year it seems to grow. So, it just seems like more and more people are getting to know about it and getting enthused about it. And, I found it more obvious last year that the people that are participating, they have powerful stories to tell, and that seems to increase with the years,” she said.
This year, 30 bras will make their runway debut, with the majority of them being crafted by local artists. The style of each piece varies greatly with some past creations being superhero-themed and others being adorned with flowers.
“I think that people come and they expect a fashion show, but they quickly realize that there’s much more behind it, and that every bra being presented has a story, and every person that’s involved in the design or being a model, that they have a reason to be there, whatever it might be,” Lisa Stewart, a Tough Warrior Princesses board member, said. “Some of the artists are cancer survivors themselves, and others are creating to honor a loved one, or simply because they believe in supporting women who have been going through cancer.”
Similarly, Keefe, who will announce each story as models walk down the runway, said each account elicits a myriad of emotions from attendees.
“There’s stories that make us laugh, and there are stories that make us cry when each model walks. It all depends on the person designing. Some of them design just for the sake of designing a beautiful or funky bra, and other people design it really from the heart, and it has a lot of meaning for some particular in their lives,” she said.
Then, once the final model has walked, attendees will have the chance to bid on each bra, with all of the proceeds going towards Tough Warrior Princesses, allowing them to continue supporting women battling the disease, Stewart said.
“Cancer can just be so isolating, and Tough Warrior Princesses just reminds women that they have a community behind them. And, I think that with the event of the Bra-Zaar, it allows us people to come together in a joyful way, and then raise funds to allow us to continue the support,” she said.
Those interested in learning more about the Bra-Zaar or purchasing tickets can visit the Tough Warrior Princesses website: https://www.toughwarriorprincess.com/brazaar.html