Name: Stephanie Baker!
Location: Small town in Northern Michigan!
How did it feel to find the Golden Ticket?: Finding the Golden Ticket was amazing! I was stunned. I couldn't believe my eyes and I just laughed out loud, shaking my head, and saying "no way, no way". I immediately texted all three of my daughters, my husband, my mom, my best friend! I told everyone at work the next day and everyone at the ceramics class that I take! I told them the story of buying my first Julie Mollo clutch from her booth in Chelsea Market and talking to her. I remember Julie saying that that was her last hairpin clutch! Goofy but, for some reason, I remember. It was such a great little booth and I was hooked! I have clutches EVERYWHERE; four in my truck, four in my work bag, two in my nightstand, so, so many in the bathroom, one in the living room, several in my overnight bag...
Why did you choose the charity that you did: I picked the American Heart Association's Red Dress Campaign because, at the age of 45, I was diagnosed with heart disease and had to undergo surgery to place a stent.
Doctors didn't believe that it was my heart causing my symptoms and blamed my shortness of breath and lethargy on peri menopause and stress. I didn't fit the demographic. I ran every day, I ate healthy, there wasn't a close family history of heart disease, and I was young. After insisting on a stress test I was told that it wasn't a bad test, that, overall, I "passed" and they would just watch me. I had to be my own advocate and fight to get a diagnosis. After dealing with debilitating symptoms from May to September, the cardiologist that I had been referred to agreed to a heart cath and discovered a 90 percent blockage, what they call a "widow maker".
I believe in this campaign and want to get the message across to women that if something doesn't feel right and you're not getting any answers, keep pushing. We know our bodies and we know, intuitively, when something isn't right.
Why did you and Julie choose and collaborate on the design that you did? – what was the process like? Collaborating with Julie was so fun and so easy. I knew that I didn't have to tie my chosen charity to the design of the bag but had an idea that I thought would appeal to all of us Mollowers and compliment the charity. I also knew that it would likely be a copyright issue. Julie agreed and came back with the idea of the hearts and broken hearts; a design that Mollowers had been interested in for some time. I loved the idea and, after seeing a mock up, fell in love with it!
