Amelia & Nathaniel ~ March of Dimes Featured Kids

BETTENDORF, Ia. – For the third year in a row, I’ll be shooting the March of Dimes Signature Chefs Auction in mid-October. The event features area chefs who prepare some incredible dishes you can sample and vote on, along with numerous silent and live auction items that are quite spectacular.

To honor the chefs participating this year March of Dimes wanted to feature each with local kids who were born premature. Jason Gomez, the executive chef for Farraday’s at the Isle of Capri, is photographed with Amelia, age 2, and her big brother Nathaniel, who is 3. Nathaniel was born at 32 weeks and spent 31 days in the NICU, and sister Amelia was born at 35 weeks and spent 23 days in the NICU. They are two of the handful of kids selected to be featured at the Signature Chefs Auction.

For more information, check out this link… and stay tuned, as more kids will be featured on the blog in the weeks leading up to the big event!

Have a great day!

Shuva

Matters of the Heart ~ American Heart Association Quad Cities Go Red for Women

A couple weeks ago I had the opportunity to photograph the Go Red for Women luncheon held by the American Heart Association. The event, themed Kiss Heart Disease Goodbye, was at the QC Waterfront Center in Bettendorf and full of incredible goodies and info materials provided in Macy’s bags, information from Trinity hospital, and presentations about the importance of why women should be concerned about heart disease and what they can do before it’s too late. I was grateful to be included as one of the sponsors for the event, along with Palmer College of Chiropractic and numerous others.

Silent auction items and vendors ranged from jewelry to chiropractic care to children’s books to healthcare products to makeup to candles to bags and everything in between.

I had a glimpse of the tables set up before the luncheon. Edible Arrangements had chocolate- and vanilla-covered strawberries as table centerpieces. A select number of women had framed quotes poignant to their lives and Mary Kay provided lipstick samples.

I had a chance to attend the breakout sessions and was most impressed by Dr. Rafat Padaria (front-center), a local cardiologist who talked about the myths of heart disease. She underscored that heart disease is the No. 1 killer of women – not breast cancer (which she said ranks #7). Her lecture was eye-opening as she talked about how symptoms are often different for women than men. Padaria said she’s seen women come into the ER with heart problems even though they ate healthy foods and exercised regularly, and that it’s important to get thorough physicals from primary-car doctors that include blood pressure and cholesterol checks.

After the break-out sessions it was time for lunch and the presentations.

One of the highlights on stage was the hot, intense dance performance from cardiologist Dr. Paul and Bettinna Bolger. They danced as if there was no one watching and it sparked cheers and laughter from the crowd.

Kirby Winn (left) of the Mississippi Valley Regional Blood Center served as Master of Ceremonies, and introduced a host of speakers ranging from a nurse who suffered from heart disease herself, to a woman who talked about how heart disease has killed generations of her family, to a healthy, active woman (speaking via a recording) who told the audience she received the same diagnosis about her heart from Mayo doctors as she did from local ones. Heart surgeon Dr. Alyas Chaudhry (center) gave a rather graphic, gross but informative talk showing how consistent fast-food consumption and regular smoking affects the organ. And finally, Group Services (right) presented a $2,500 check to the American Heart Association as a matching challenge.

For more information on heart disease including realizing your risk factors, Trinity’s materials included this online assessment from which you can learn more.

’09 March of Dimes Signature Chefs Auction

Last Wednesday I had an opportunity to photograph the March of Dimes Signature Chefs Auction for a second year. There was some changes this time, the obvious one being a new venue – the QC Waterfront Convention Center in Bettendorf to showcase the event’s Around the World theme:

There was a bit of culture showcased on stage – traditional and contemporary African, Indian and Native American dances, along with a jazz ensemble in the lobby:

Nearby the jazz ensemble were tables of silent auction items – including lots of wine, hotel stays, gift certificates from area restaurants, polo shirts, purses, car washes, oil changes, tickets to area museums, theatre tickets, photo packages by me and more.

Off to the side, was an ice sculpture of the March of Dimes logo.

Like last year, I couldn’t tell you what I ate but I liked nearly everything I tasted. This year was no different except there were more dishes and they were all sooo good!!  Also, kudos to Chef Angela Pobanz of Bass Street Chop House for remembering that I am vegetarian and whipping up a meatless plate for me.

Rose Goodding-Robinson, a certified nurse-midwife, was given special recognition at the evening’s event for her work in developing the first Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) in the Quad Cities. Well deserved!

Now for the action of the live auction.

Just to highlight a few photos below, this live auction was a hit thanks to the wickedly awesome auctioneering talents of Jana Stenzel of Stenzel Auction (top left). One of the lucrative items being auctioned off was a football signed by Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz (middle left) along with press box seats at the Iowa-Minnesota game in Iowa City on Nov. 21. Troy and Kasi, (center) whose family photos I took earlier this year, were winners of the Ellen DeGeneres package, which includes tickets from AirTran (Lucky them!). Steve Ketelaar of KUUL 101.3 FM served as the evening’s emcee (right center) and March of Dimes Division Director Deena Bradford (bottom left) had the honors of presenting a live auction package. And back to Jana (bottom right) who was successful in selling identical packages to a man who lost a bid.

Last but not least, the event can’t be ended without recognizing Grant, this year’s Ambassador Child. His parents Jeff and Linda presented a slideshow telling their story about Grant being born 9 weeks early and the emotions surrounding his difficult birth and ultimate road home as a newborn. Even though it was past his bedtime, the 5-year-old took a moment to hug a few generous donors. In the final tally, $62,000 was raised from the evening’s event!

Laboring for Support (pun intended)

My good friend Abby has openly and eloquently shared her experiences about the birth of her first child on her blog, Let’s Talk About Birth, Baby! She doesn’t hold back details and talks about the nitty gritty. Now six months pregnant, Abby and her husband Shannon are expecting their third child this December. She hopes the birth happens as naturally as it did with her first two – without drugs, without medical intervention and (gasp!) with a midwife to assist.

I have to admit I cringe when I think of it – the pain, that is. But it is easy to think just that when you’ve never been there… and yet I admire people, like Abby, who went through with something most of society doesn’t understand or considers downright taboo.

Enter Friends of Iowa Midwives. They are a grassroots organization working to promote out-of-hospital births, provide education about childbirth options, and license midwives in Iowa. I found them on Facebook a few months ago.

Tomorrow, the organization is hosting a Labor Day Picnic in West Des Moines‘ Raccoon River Park from 4 to 8 p.m. The event includes live music, a Brazilian martial arts demo and a silent auction, in which I’m donating a family session.

In the meantime, check out Abby’s blog. It’s a great read that’s inspiring, entertaining and beautifully uncensored!