Thursday, May 8, 2008

Valley View Center celebrates a partnership with the Step Up Women’s Network

By Laura Seewoester

Local women who are facing the challenges of cancer will get a special treat this Mother's Day. Valley View Center and Macerich (a national owner and operator of shopping centers) celebrated the launch of its new partnership with the Step Up Women's Network Thursday morning with a "Step Up, Step Out" event. More than fifty women from the DFW area volunteered to put together wellness bags for women undergoing cancer treatment. The bags contained fashion and beauty samples as well as a personal, handwritten note by the woman who assembled the bag. The bags will be taken to Gilda’s Club, Bridge of Blessing, The Bridge Breast Network, Presbyterian Hopsital of Allen and Richardson Regional Medical Center this weekend through the Dallas and North Texas Susan G. Komen Affiliate offices.

The turnout at the event was pretty amazing. Right at the start women were buzzing around, filling their bags, then getting back in line to do a few more. While the event lasted from 11 - 1, all the bags were filled after a mere 40 minutes. The women volunteers also got a little special treatment of their own with chair massages, mini-manicures, mini makeovers and a few snacks, all donated from businesses at the mall as a thank you for volunteering.

The Step Up Women's Network is a national non-profit organization dedicated to strengthening community resources for women and girls. The organization strives to "invest, involve and inspire" women and girls so they will not only benefit personally but also professionally.

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• Charity
• Women's Issues