Haute Pink to Celebrate Breast Cancer Community Through Fashion, Support

By Sym Posey | The Birmingham Times

For many people affected by breast cancer, the journey does not end when treatment does.

There are financial challenges, emotional hurdles, changes in relationships and the everyday realities of learning how to live beyond a diagnosis. For Forge Breast Cancer Survivor Center, supporting patients, survivors and the people who love them means addressing those needs long after the medical appointments are over.

On Friday, Oct. 2, Forge will bring that mission to the runway during its signature fundraiser, Haute Pink, at Red Mountain Theatre.

The annual event will pair 10 local Birmingham fashion designers with 10 special models, each of whom has been impacted by breast cancer as a survivor, co-survivor, previvor or health care provider. Each designer will create a custom look for their model, transforming the runway into a celebration of fashion, individuality and the many experiences within the breast cancer community.

“Haute Pink is Forge’s signature fundraising event, but it’s also a celebration of the strength and resilience of the breast cancer community,” said Meg Lovett, vice president of communications and development at Forge. “Guests can expect an evening of fashion created by amazing local artists, incredible survivor stories, food, drinks and a lot of pink.”

Most importantly, she said, attendees will hear directly from people whose lives have been changed by breast cancer and by Forge.

Beyond Treatment

Founded to support people impacted by breast cancer, Forge provides services from the time of diagnosis through treatment and long after treatment ends. Its resources include financial assistance, transportation, counseling, peer support, wigs, mastectomy bras, prosthetics and supplies, as well as nutrition and financial counseling.

The organization’s goal is simple: “to make sure no one has to face breast cancer alone,” Lovett said.

That philosophy is at the heart of Haute Pink.

The event was created to bring the community together around breast cancer in a way that felt celebratory and empowering while placing survivors at the center of the conversation.

“We wanted to create something that felt different from a traditional cancer fundraiser,” Lovett said. “Breast cancer can be incredibly heavy, and we wanted Haute Pink to be a space where people could celebrate life, celebrate survivors, celebrate co-survivors and celebrate the community that surrounds them, while still recognizing the seriousness of what so many people are facing.”

The fundraiser also offers an opportunity to challenge the idea that breast cancer is a single experience with a predictable beginning and end.

“Breast cancer is not one experience, and there isn’t a one-size-fits-all recovery,” Lovett said.

One person may need transportation to treatment. Another may need financial assistance, counseling or a prosthesis. Someone else may need help navigating life after treatment or simply a community where they can spend time with people who understand what they have experienced.

Those different needs are reflected in the stories of Haute Pink’s models.

Real Stories of Survivorship

Among them is Delpha Bartley-Jones, a longtime friend of Lovett whom she describes as a “powerhouse mom, community volunteer and businesswoman.”

Bartley-Jones was determined that her breast cancer diagnosis would not derail her career in banking or her commitment to her children.

“Breast cancer was by no means easy for her,” Lovett said, and Bartley-Jones turned to Forge when the weight of the experience became difficult to carry alone.

Her story, Lovett said, represents what Forge hopes people understand about survivorship: Sometimes support means help with the practical and financial realities of cancer. Other times, it means having somewhere to go where cancer does not have to be the focus.

Bartley-Jones participated in Forge programs where she could make wreaths or play mahjong alongside other women who understood what she was going through.

“Nothing had to be said; you could just exist and enjoy the task at hand,” Lovett said.

That sense of community is one of the reasons Forge emphasizes that its services are tailored to the individual.

The proceeds from Haute Pink help make those services possible, including financial assistance, transportation, mental health counseling, peer mentorship, wigs and mastectomy supplies. Forge also uses the funds to reach people who might otherwise fall through the cracks.

All Forge services are provided at no cost to patients, survivors and co-survivors.

Having people who have experienced breast cancer represented on the Haute Pink runway is essential to the organization’s work, Lovett said.

“Survivors aren’t just the people we serve — they are the reason we do this work,” she said. “Having them on stage, walking the runway and telling their stories changes the conversation from talking about breast cancer to listening to the people who have actually lived it.”

The models also represent the broader community affected by the disease, including health care providers and others whose lives have been shaped by breast cancer.

More Than a Fashion Show

While Haute Pink serves as a major fundraiser for Forge, Lovett hopes guests leave with more than an appreciation for the fashion. She wants them to better understand the realities of breast cancer and the continuing needs of patients and survivors.

“If someone walks away thinking, ‘I didn’t realize people needed this kind of support after a breast cancer diagnosis,’ or a patient or survivor walks away empowered and hopeful, then we’ve accomplished something important,” she said.

And the event is not exclusively for those personally affected by breast cancer.

Lovett also sees Haute Pink as an opportunity for Birmingham’s fashion, arts and theater communities to come together.

Guests will have the chance to see the work of local designers, enjoy an evening at Red Mountain Theatre and support an organization providing direct services to people throughout their breast cancer journeys.

“You don’t have to have breast cancer touch your own family to understand how important this work is,” Lovett said.

Haute Pink will be held Friday, Oct. 2, at Red Mountain Theatre. Tickets for the 2026 event are available at hautepink.swell.gives.