22-02-2025
Children's Diabetes Foundation offers fun, fashionable fundraiser
For 47-years, the Brass Ring Luncheon has been a fun, fashionable way to support the Children's Diabetes Foundation, which is the funding arm of the Barbara Davis Center for Diabetes. The luncheon starts with a silent auction, featuring Jewels for Hope, which is allows people to buy preloved high end jewelry. There will also be a live auction and paddle raise, a full lunch, and the fashion show featuring Marc Bouwer. Bouwer is a designer best known for couture evening wear and has created some of fashions most iconic looks like Whitney Houston's wedding dress and the gown Angelina Jolie wore to the 2004 Academy Awards ceremony.
"Before the fashion show, they actually have a Hero's Walk, which honors one of our late endocrinologists at the Barbara Davis Center. So several of our advocates and patients from the Barbara Davis Center do a Here's Walk," said Lori Finch, Past President of the Guild of the Children's Diabetes Foundation.
At this year's Brass Ring Luncheon, Judy McNeil will become the first winner of the T1D Changemaker Award. The Guild of the Children's Diabetes Foundation created the award to honor those in either the Guild or the community that has been a change maker for the Guild. McNeil has served as the chair of the Brass Ring Luncheon a couple of times, president of the Guild, historian and helped in several other areas over the course of 25 years.
"Years ago, I found out that my husband had three cousins, and each one of those cousins had a child who was diagnosed as a youth with Type 1 diabetes, and they were patients at the Barbara Davis Center," McNeil said about why she's so passionate about the cause.
The Barbara Davis Center is a world-renowned facility for the treatment of and research into Type 1 diabetes. The Barbara Davis Center for Diabetes serves more than 8,000 patients from 36 states and 43 countries.
"130 people are diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes every month in the country. 45-percent of those are either uninsured or underinsured, and 35-percent are at or below the poverty level. It costs about $20,000 the first year of diagnosis so it's dramatic for people," Finch explained.
The Children's Diabetes Foundation helps to bridge some of those financial gaps for families facing a Type 1 diabetes diagnoses.
The Brass Ring Luncheon is coming up on March 6, 2025 at the Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel. CBS News Colorado Anchor Michael Spencer will be hosting the event.
