Bra Couture KC: A Decade of Celebrating Survivors

This year, Bra Couture KC celebrated our tenth year supporting Kansas City’s uninsured and underinsured men, women and children with cancer. Watching survivors celebrate with their families at our annual event is a very special occasion, and with the funds raised, we now have Cancer Service Centers across the entire metro area, including 200 annual free mammograms donated by Imaging for Women.

We launched in partnership with The University of Kansas Medical Center in 2010 to create the Patients in Need Fund at Missys’ Boutique, providing key appearance items not available to uninsured cancer patients. Since then, we have added a separate PIN Fund at KU specifically for uninsured cancer patients suffering from lymphedema.

We have expanded with Cancer Service Centers located at Truman Medical Center, Sarah Cannon at Research through the Research Foundation, and support Cancer Action, which has a center in Overland Park and Independence, Missouri. In the fall, BCKC will open a new Cancer Service Center at North Kansas City Hospital, and with funds from our next event, BCKC will support the annual mammogram program for uninsured at Samuel U. Rodgers. See bracouturekc.com for center locations and services provided.

In some of our centers, funds support patients with rent, utilities and cards for food and gas, if that patient cannot work during treatment. Derricka McDaniel is a patient who received prescription assistance from our funds at Cancer Action, nutrition supplies from our funds at Truman Medical Center and breast prosthetics, head wraps and counseling from our funds at Missys’ Boutique at the KU Cancer Center, one patient using three of our centers for support. We love this.

Bra Couture KC has continued to serve patients during COVID-19 due to the generosity of our sponsors who donated to our April 2020 event; it was cancelled, but these incredible donors chose to leave their funds with BCKC to ensure our recipients could continue to be served.

These funds will deplete soon, so along with grant applications, Bra Couture KC will hold a live auction in October that will feature a vacation trip to Colorado with a condo for six, car rental, lots of in-car items and $1000 in cash. This trip, along with a condo in the Bahamas and one other island location, will all be enhanced with tickets for sporting events, restaurant vouchers, etc. Watch bracouturekc.com for details about these amazing packages to be auctioned in October, to make a donation or become a sponsor for the 2021 event. ■

BCKC 2021 Save the Date!
The 2021 event is scheduled for April 23 at the Signature Hangar at the Downtown Airport. The VIP Experience begins at 6:00 p.m., general admission opens at 7:00 p.m. and the runway show starts at 8:00 p.m. Find details and purchase tickets at bracouturekc.com.

Written by: Sharon Payne