Over the last year since NowYouKnow was founded, we have attended numerous events throughout the city including fashion shows, restaurant openings, charitable events, business launches, anniversary celebrations, shopping extravaganzas, and so much more.  It goes without saying that we have had ourselves plenty a good time in this city but some of the events that stay with me the most are those that give back.  Friday night, the Fear No Fashion at Bentley Gold Coast benefitting PAVE – Promoting Awareness, Victim Empowerment – did just that…. stayed with me. 

As great as the entire event was with the most luxurious cars, delicious food, creative cocktails, fabulous fashions, and one of the best hosts – Marcellas Reynolds, a native of Chicago, I left remembering PAVE.  And even deeper than that, remebering founder Angela Rose and PAVE ambassador Laura Dunn who touched the crowd so deeply with their stories,their bravery, their courage, their strength, and their fight to help other and empower other victims.

Angela Rose founded PAVE at a young age after being abducted and sexually assaulted.  Instead of staying silent and allowing herself to continue being a victim she gave herself a voice and in essence has given millions of other victims a voice, too.  PAVE is currently in 50 cities and 4 countries.  They speak at colleges all over and train students on sexual assault prevention.  Sharing her story has given other victiims the courage to share their story, too.

PAVE Ambassador Laura Dunn was motivated to speak out after Angela spoke at her college.  She was a guest speaker at the Fear No Fashion event Friday night and shared her story thanking Angela for changing her life for the better.  Her story was featured in the September 2011 issue of Cosmopolitan.  She has also been featured on NPR, CNN, and Time Magazine and is currently working on getting the Campus Sexual Violence Elimination (SaVE) Act passed.

The show Friday was all about promoting personal empowerment and raising awareness and money for PAVE so more individuals can benefit from it’s services.  There was a silent auction filled with all kinds of goodies to bid on including exquisite jewelry, signed sports paraphenelia, and nights out to the hottest spots in Chicago.  And the show was filled with models from Agency Galatea and designs by Borris Powell, Rodwall Couture, and Neiman Marcus.  Marcellas Reynolds kept the crowd entertained even when forced to ad lib for a brief moment, but if anyone can pull it off he’s the man. 

For more information on the power of PAVE, please visit: www.ShatteringTheSilence.org.

 View the full Fear No Fashion 2011 album at NowYouKnow’s Facebook Page.

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