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The W Hotel on Poydras co-sponsored the third annual Alegria fashion show benefitting the Louisiana SPCA on February 20. Tickets started at $25 for general admission and went up to $1,000 for a sponsored table. WDSU personalities Rosa Flores and Melanie Hebert emceed the event and local singer and songwriter Mia Borders entertained the guests.
Channeling Oxygen’s “Project Runway,” five local talents – including Ashley Gunkel, Meghann Harney, Esther Rose, Molly Stackhouse and Alicia Zenobia – presented collections to a sold-out crowd of more than 500. Zenobia was crowned the 2011 winner and awarded $1,000 in cash and prizes. Alegria founder John Delgadillo and last year’s winner Bernadette Klotz also presented original designs. Local models also took part in the competition, and CoCo Capdepon and Thomas Barone each won $500.
Between ticket sales and a silent auction, this year’s fashion show, chaired by Delgadillo and SPCA event coordinator Lisa Keitges, raised more than $17,000 for Louisiana SPCA’s community clinic, programs and services. Founded in 1888, the organization is the oldest animal welfare program in the state. Every year, the organization provides basic medical services and care for about 11,000 animals living in the state.
