The Katie Cares Fashion Show has become an annual event that unites the community to raise funds for Katie Cares, a local charity that provides various supports to those who experience hospital stays.
Last year, the organization introduced a new component to the fundraiser that allowed the community to get involved from afar — the Katie Cares Online Auction.
After a successful inaugural year, the auction is back with a new batch of items that includes something for every taste.
44 items and counting
Ruth Reimer, CEO and key spokesperson of Katie Cares, said the auction will be underway on Saturday at 8 a.m.
The auction closes on September 27th at 8:30 p.m.
Standout items include a “restaurant extravaganza” with a value of $930, which features certificates from The Keg, Rae and Jerry’s, Bailey’s Prime Dining, Montana’s BBQ & Bar, Hy’s Steak House, 529 Wellington, and Frankie’s Italian Kitchen in Winnipeg.
Winnipeg is also the destination for the “Luxury Getaway for Two” package that includes a visit to Thermëa Spa Village and a stay at the Hilton Garden Inn.
Other items include a bed, Jets tickets, a Kubota Sub-Compact Tractor, an inline landroller, and more.
‘It’s overwhelming at times’
The outpouring of generosity from those who donate to the auction is not lost to Reimer.
“It's overwhelming at times because of the enormity of this,” she said. “The impact is that we can continue to give back to the community.”
The funds will go toward the Katie Cares Cottage, a welcoming home away from home for families from all over the province (Reimer said that this year, 100 communities were represented) who have loved ones in the care of Boundary Trails Health Centre.
Katie’s Cottage also provides families who stay in its facility with an in-house-made breakfast to ease the burden.
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For Reimer, fundraisers like the Katie Cares Auction ensure the organization can continue to provide its services.
“When you're coming to Boundary Trails, whether it's because of a surgery or palliative or kidney dialysis or different challenges that people are facing, we can face those with them together, and we can get them through it, and we don't have to think about where the money [will] come from,” she said.
“We use this money with integrity, honesty, and transparency. Those are not just words that I use, but those are words that I live by .... Being wise with our money and not just spending because we have it is probably the key to the future of Katie Cares.”
The inspiration behind the project
Reimer said that Katie Cares is what it is today because of a dream held by Katie, her daughter, who herself experienced time in the hospital as a 13-year-old cancer patient.
Although Katie succumbed to her battle with cancer, her legacy lives on through the charity that she started to ease the burden of people whose experiences she understood so well.
“She had a vision, for sure, and I think it was to give back always,” said Reimer. “That is happening all the time, but it’s gotten bigger than that, and that spirit of being able to pay it forward has grown so much, and for her, I think she’d be thrilled.”
To support the Katie Cares Auction, click here.
With files from Ty Hildebrand