Omaha Fashion Week is a six day showcase of the Midwest’s best fashion designers, models and people. Each day has a new theme; Thursday’s runway was the Methodist Survivor Show. The showcase featured 100+ survivors walking in looks from local boutiques.
Among the survivors was Kacie Flaherty, she recently got the good news of being cancer free. Being able to rejoice on the runway with others was an uplifting event.
“It means a lot to be able to walk with my sisters in pink or any other cancer survivor.” Flaherty explained, “It’s really cool because we get the opportunity to do something fun instead of having all the bad things we go through with the cancer diagnosis, this is the fun side.”
The effects of a cancer diagnosis reach friends and family as well. Fifty-four percent of Americans reported they or someone in their immediate family had been diagnosed with cancer, according to a CBS news poll.
The owner of the non-profit, Kamie K. Preston Hereditary Cancer Foundation, Brandi Preston started this foundation to ensure that families who are affected by cancer can take control and catch the disease early on.
“I started my non-profit five years ago in the memory of my mom who was diagnosed with breast cancer when she was 35 and again at 38, and lost her battle when she was 40,” Preston said. “I was 14-years-old, and a couple days before she died she made me promise I would know my risks of cancer and do something about it.”
Preston’s non-profit ensures free cancer screenings for family members who have had a history of cancer in their family. At Omaha Fashion Week, the foundation offered screenings on-site for anyone who qualified. Preston hopes to educate and prevent other families from experiencing the same hardships her and her family faced.
“With the work that we are doing, we are going to help a lot of young girls be able to have their moms with them when they pick out their wedding dress, and have their children, and those survivors are going to be here to see all of their children grow up,” Preston said. “I wish my mom could be here, but I know she would be really proud of what we are able to do in her honor.”
The most important message shared on Thursday night was no matter who you are, survivors stay strong together.
Flaherty wants everyone to remember, “It’s okay not to be okay, it’s okay to break. Tacos break all the time and we still love them. So, you will get through the bad days, just keep pushing.”
