Published: Princeton Times Newspaper, August 28, 2009

 

 

 

 

 

 

Published in Princeton Times

Newspaper, December 4, 2009

 

The big "easy" for anyone's Christmas budget

 

Guest Columnist:

Julie Lockhart

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thursday July 8, 2010

 

by Monica Orosz

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Brides-to-be can visit the Charleston Marriott Sunday and Monday to find heavily discounted gowns - and help a charity cause at the same time.The Brides Against Breast Cancer charity wedding gown tour will make a stop in Charleston as part of a 50-city, nationwide tour.

 

The tour is coming here because of the efforts of Bluefield wedding planner Julie Lockhart, owner of Locked Hearts Wedding and Event Planning.Lockhart said she heard of the charity through her wedding planning circles and called the organization.Hundreds of gowns from the smallest sizes to the largest will be available, donated by manufacturers, designers, retailers and individuals."They are discounted by 75 percent - gowns start at $199," Lockhart said.

 

Proceeds benefit the Making Memories Breast Cancer Foundation, a nonprofit organization based in Portland, Ore., that is dedicated to granting wishes, including memory-making events, for Stage IV breast cancer patients. Founded in 1998, the organization has developed fundraising efforts such as the charity gown events to support its efforts.

 

"It's such a great cause," said Lockhart, who credits the Marriott and teams of volunteers from around the state for helping organize the Charleston event."I have some of my past brides coming to help that day," she said.

 

Vendors such as wedding photographers and other wedding planners will be on hand to help and give out business cards as well.Former Secretary of State Betty Ireland will help kick off the event by making opening remarks Sunday and officially opening the doors to the Marriott's top-floor Pavillion, where the gowns will be set up.

 

Now vice president of business relationships for MATRIC, Ireland said, "I lost my own sister to metastatic breast disease six years ago, so I am a strong supporter of those programs that benefit those persons who are fighting late-stage breast cancer."

 

Gowns available at the event are valued up to $8,000, according to organizers. Tiaras, veils, crinolines and other accessories also will be available.

 

Those wishing to donate gowns also are invited to bring gowns from 2006 and newer.

While organizers are in town, they also will be searching for deserving patients.

The general sale takes place from noon to 8 p.m. Sunday and from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday. Admission is free.

 

Those wishing to take part in the "power hour preview" may shop from 10 a.m. to noon Sunday by paying a $20 admission fee.

For more information on the charity and its events, visit www.bridesagainstbreastcancer.org or www.makingmemories.org.

 

 

 

July 13, 2010

 

By Whitney Burdette

 

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Nikki Conklin stands in front of the full-length mirror and takes in what she sees. The 26-year-old from Arvada, Colo., smoothes the front of the gown and turns to the side so she can get a better view of the detailing on the back. Conklin, who has family in West Virginia, came to Charleston to purchase her wedding gown. Unfortunately, she has to do it without her mother, who died of breast cancer three years ago. "It's really sad, but I feel she's with me," Conklin said.

, the fundraising arm of the

, made a stop at the Charleston Marriott on Sunday and Monday. It was the perfect place for Conklin to find her dress.

"I think this is a great way to find a wedding dress and give to people who need it," Conklin said.

Allison Caudle, eastern region tour director for Brides Against Breast Cancer, said the gowns the organization sells are donated by bridal salons, manufacturers and individuals. The gowns are marked 50 percent to 75 percent off and all the proceeds go to grant the last wishes of Stage 4 breast cancer patients.

"Those patients have breast cancer, but it has metastasized to other organs such as bone, liver or brain," Caudle said. "It is their last wish to go on a trip with their family. Everything we do is specifically for granting wishes and not research or anything like that."

Caudle said the organization tries to find deserving cancer patients in each place the tour visits, but she said the organization has been unable to find a Stage 4 breast cancer patient in the Charleston area.

This is the first time Brides Against Breast Cancer has stopped in West Virginia. Julie Lockhart of Locked Hearts Wedding and Events in Princeton, said she found out about the organization and wanted to bring it to the area.

"When I found out that it had not been to West Virginia, I called them and asked them what we had to do to bring it here," Lockhart said. "They honestly just said all they needed was the space and volunteers, so I made it happen."

 

Lockhart said the event usually takes a year to plan. However, she began planning in February and said she wanted the event to stop in Charleston as soon as possible.

 

Caudle said about 25 brides came to the event, and four dresses were sold as of Monday afternoon.

 

"It's not bad for the first time in the city," Caudle said. "It's a little slow start when we go to a new state or city."

 

Lockhart said she was not disappointed because no matter how many dresses were sold, someone still benefited from it.

 

"If we sold one dress, that's one more dress than we sold before we started," she said. "That's money going to someone who needs it."

 

Conklin said purchasing her dress from Brides Against Breast Cancer was important to her. She said her mother would have enjoyed the experience because she often gave to charities.

 

"If she were here, she would be all about me buying a dress to support breast cancer," she said.