Handbags for a cause - Wayne-Wilson News Leader, Fremont, NC

13 March 2008 — Many teenagers know they want to make a difference, but often don’t know where to start. But Katie Wheeler of Stantonsburg decided to start with what she knows – handbags – and move forward from there.

Katie, who was crowned Miss Stantonsburg in November and also holds the title of Miss Wilson Outstanding Teen, had a crazy idea a few months ago to raise awareness of cervical cancer while pursuing another passion – fashionable pocketbooks.

In November of last year, Katie conceived the idea for her Helping Handbag projects. She would collect handbags and wallets from donors all over the county. She would then sell the bags at a big event to raise awareness of cervical cancer, and donate all of the funds to cancer research.

But why sell handbags instead of raising the money outright?

“I’m a purse fanatic,” Katie said. “It’s something I enjoyed, and I thought I could really relate to selling.”

She began collecting handbags in mid-January for an April 5 sale, and has already gathered more than 250 handbags.

“We’ll keep on collecting until right before the sale,” she added.

The secondhand bags, which include several well-known brands like Vera Bradley and Coach, will be sold at set prices during the sale, all priced at $20 or less.

In addition, raffle tickets will be sold the day of the sale for a brand-new Dooney and Burke bag that was donated. Interested customers can purchase a ticket for a dollar for a chance to win the high-priced bag.

Katie has expectations for a very successful event raising a lot of money for her to donate to the National Cervical Cancer Coalition.

She explains that she chose to address the issue of cervical cancer awareness and prevention as her platform because it touches her family on a personal level.

Katie’s mother, Dawn Grimes, was diagnosed with the disease when Katie was younger. Though she doesn’t remember very much of what happened then, Katie has learned a lot about the disease as she’s gotten older.

This March, Dawn will have been a cancer survivor for eight years, something that Katie said she’s grateful for every day. That’s why she decided to use her service project to promote awareness of the disease, as well as prevention.

Katie said she had conceived the project back in November, before she had earned either of her crowns or even participated in a pageant.

“Wilson was my first real big pageant,” she said. “I had never even really talked about being in a pageant until November.”

But she adds that her titles have given her a bigger platform and a louder voice to support her mission.

“Being involved definitely helps get the message out,” she said. “I guess when you have a title, it gets you more exposure and more people are willing to listen to you.”

Her title has also added a lot of appointments to the 16-year-old student’s already busy schedule. In addition to the volunteer work she does, the Wilson Christian Academy student participates in volleyball, and is very active in her youth group at Peace Church in Wilson.

She also enjoys cheerleading and playing softball, but had to forego those sports this year because of all of her other activities.

“I was sad because I really wanted to play softball,” she said. “But with my schedule, I would have only been at practice one day a week.”

So in her prioritized choices, the teenager made a decision that many others her age wouldn’t – joining one interest with community service, rather than simply seeking to fulfill her own desires.

Back to this week's News Leader

REGISTER TO WIN BASEBALL TICKETS TO ECU,
CHECK DAILY FOR NEW CONTESTS!

TOP AREA JOBS

Jump-start your career today!

Issue of 13 March 2008

Wayne Wilson News Leader
113 N. Wilson St., PO Box 158,
Fremont, NC 27830
(919) 242-6301 •
Fax (919) 936-2065

Princeton News Leader
119 W. Edwards St., Princeton, NC 27569
(919) 936-9891
Fax (919) 936-2065

Email us:
Advertising Department
News Department
Letters To The Editor
Publisher