Monday 14 April 2014

Breast Cancer Care WA's Long Table Lunch and #nomakeupselfie


A few weeks ago we put up our no make-up selfies on our personal social media pages and jumped on the viral trend to increase awareness and donations towards cancer. Little did we know the uproar it would cause in the days following. "I fail to see how this self-indulgent crap serves to heighten cancer awareness" and "this is a chance for girls to promote themselves" are only a couple of negative comments that has flooded our newsfeed. Meanwhile, no one batts an eyelid and question the intentions of our moustached counterparts during November. While I disagree with women shaming out other women for trying to support a worthy cause, I realise everyone is entitled to their own opinion. The Cancer council received over $47,000 in donations in 5 days of the #nomakeupselfie hitting Australia's virtual shores. Not to mention the £8m in 6 days that was raised in the UK attributed to these “self-indulgent” selfies. In our opinion If it raises awareness and funds towards an amazing cause then we will stand by it 110% 



From a negative experience to a positive, we were honoured to be invited to Breast Cancer Care WA's Long Table Lunch 2014 . An excuse to get dolled up, eat scrumptious food, share a few drinks with great company and support an amazing charity.
As we walked into the seated area we are greeted with Helen Reddy's “I am woman” blaring throughout Claremont showgrounds and a buzz amongst the crowd that felt as though we were there for something special.  At each course we were met with a delicious ensemble prepared by some of Perth’s top chefs; Stephen Clarke – Clarkes of North Beach, Scott Brannigan – Balthazar and Bread in Common and Dan Masters – Rockpool Bar & Grill. But the most special moment was when Debbie Gibbins, Lisa Tobin-Renel and Roxy Malek,  breast cancer fighters, were introduced to the crowd. Each woman shared her journey and explained how Breast Cancer Care WA has helped them overcome some of the toughest moments of their lives. Breast Care WA offers mental support through individual and group counselling sessions, physical support offering breast nurses for post treatment care and financial support from grocery shopping through to mortgage or rent payments. I am proud to see over 750 people attend this special event and participate in the donations contributed to this amazing organisation, I am proud of the 3 special guest to share their inspirational story and I am proud of  women supporting each other for such a worthy cause.
As a child of a cancer causality I have witnessed firsthand where donated funds are being used and how important fundraisers such as Long Table Lunch and marketing campaigns like #nomakeupselfies is to cancer patients and research. We're not trying to be "brave" by not wearing make-up, but rather understand the power of a viral marketing campaign. We choose to fight with the masses for a cure rather than fight against a social media trend. If it contributes to helping a family buy a little more time with their loved one then we will jump on every campaign,  social media trend and fundraiser bandwagon that we possibly can and stand proud against every criticism, hate and negativity the virtual world has to offer.




Love

Ivy & Loan xx

1 comment:

  1. I thought the no make up selfies were a great idea :)

    wana follow each other? xx

    www.thesequincinderella.com

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for the comments you beautiful creatures

Love
Ivy and Loan xx