Philanthropy Profile

My mom was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2009 and passed away from it on October 6, 2012.  These were the most difficult three years of my life.  During her battle, an organization called Gilda's Club Desert Cities (After Gilda Radner), and now called Cancer Partners, provided guidance and support to her, me and my brother.  The group helped my mom navigate the confusing maze that is our cancer treatment healthcare system, and also provided her with much needed emotional support as she faced the horrible disease.  As a family member of a person with cancer, I was able to attend any number of group sessions geared towards helping me cope with what my mom was going through. Cancer Partners got me through that most difficult of times and continues to offer support for cancer patients and their families.   It is the worthiest of organizations.  I support this organization financially and would like to encourage all of you to do so as well by attending an upcoming fundraiser they are having on Thursday, March 22. 

The event is called the Old Bags Luncheon and features a silent auction of new, gently used and vintage designer handbags.  Attendees come together to socialize and enjoy music, cocktails and lunch while bidding on new and nearly new high-end bags at the silent auction.  Bags for the auction are donated by local boutiques, department stores, and individuals who host purse donation parties among their friends.  Individual tickets are only $150.  Table of ten tickets are only $1,350.  Your support for this event would be deeply appreciated.  I miss my mom every day and am thankful that Cancer Partners was there when we all needed help. 

If you're in Palm Springs now, or on your way here, there is a good chance you are going to be here from February 16 - 19.  A major art event, Art Palm Springs, will be held over this holiday weekend.  The Fair is the "Official Contemporary & Modern Art Exhibit and Market Place in Palm Springs California". The seventh annual edition will bring nearly 80 galleries from Asia, Europe, North and South America representing hundreds of artists to the Palm Springs Convention Center. The Fair is strategically scheduled over the extended President’s Day Weekend coinciding with Palm Springs Modernism Week at the height of the Coachella Valley’s season. Art Palm Springs and Modernism Week turn the Desert into a cultural mecca over this weekend, attracting close to 15,000 acquisition oriented art lovers to the Fair year after year.

Since its early editions, Art Palm Springs has been a draw for curators, collectors, designers and celebrities that include Cheech Marin, Jodie Foster, Alexa Davalos, Udo Kier, Shelby Lynne, Rain Phoenix, and award-winning designers Christopher Kennedy, Dann Foley and Erin Valencich.

The opening night will be on Thursday, February 15, and is for VIP ticket holders only.  The event will benefit the Palm Springs Art museum and will include an "Artist of the Year award presentation" to Ed and Andy Moses, who are father and son as well as gifted artists.