- April 23, 2024
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It may have been a lighthearted evening as grown men strutted down the catwalk modeling elaborate bras, but the event had been put on for a much more serious cause.
The 7th Annual BraTini event was being held to raise money for the American Cancer Society and celebrate cancer survivors. The catwalk is an annual tradition that brings BraTini to a whole new level.
This year the event was also put on as a way to honor the men and women in the community who responded during and after Hurricane Irma. This included firefighters, police officers, EMTs and linemen.
The event, put on by the REALTORS Sold 4 the Cause, took place on Tuesday, Oct. 10 and brought in around 300 people. The organization is one of Florida's fundraising reams in the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk in Volusia and Flagler counties. According Lisa Blythe, who is on the board for the organization and who emceed the event, last year's BraTini theme was superheroes. This year the board decided it should be local heroes.
"That's something we haven't done in the past," Blythe said. "This year we wanted to salute American everyday heroes."
At the beginning of the show, several military members stood as the national anthem was played to salute the nation's heroes.
BraTini, which started in 2011, has raised thousands of dollars for the cancer society. Last year, more than $35,000 was raised at the event.
Rose Roberts and Debbie Callahan, the founders of Sold 4 the Cause, were both present on Tuesday. Roberts, a breast cancer survivor, met Callahan at the Making Strides walk. They had known each other through real estate but decided they should join forces and work toward a cause they were both passionate about.
Now, they have not only been able to put together the BraTini event but bring together more people for Making Strides.
"We've gone from 40 people walking with us to up to 275 walkers, from realtors to business partners to people of the community," Callahan said, adding, "we average around $75,000 a year that we donate."
This year, well-known individuals such as WROD's Frank Scott, Jim Jaworski of the Daytona Tortugas and DJ Tremble of WVYB took to the stage to model the "whimsically-designed" bras, which were later bid on in addition to other silent auction items.
Even Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood made an appearance despite being hit by a car about a week ago. Chitwood has participated in the event for several years in a row.
Bras were auctioned off for several hundred dollars all the way up to more than $6,200, which was for Chitwood's bra.
And what brings these organizers back each year to put on the event? The cause, according to Roberts. It's all about the cause.
"We do such good work and people in the community appreciate what we're doing, it's wonderful," Roberts said. "We have every company out there. We compete with each other for sales but when you walk in the door we're friends, we're a group, we're here for the same cause."
