Ingalls fashion show includes honor for ‘tireless fundraiser’ Juell Kadet
BY SUSAN DEMAR LAFFERTY slafferty@southtownstar.com September 19, 2012 4:00PM
Models walk the runway during the Ingalls Development Foundation Fall Into Fashion Show at Odyssey Country Club Wednesday, Sept. 19, 2012, at 19110 S. Ridgeland Ave. in Tinley Park. | Matthew Grotto~Sun-Times Media
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Updated: October 21, 2012 2:46PM
As nearly 400 people came together Wednesday afternoon for fun and fashion to raise money for cancer research, they also honored the woman who made it all happen for the past 14 years.
In a surprise announcement at Ingalls Memorial Hospital’s 14th annual fall fashion show at the Odyssey Country Club, Juell Kadet, of Crete, owner of Rogers and Hollands Jewelers, was recognized as an “ardent contributor” and “tireless fundraiser” who has made a “tremendous difference” in the lives of patients, said Eugene Feingold, chairman of Ingalls Health System.
Kadet is stepping down from the Ingalls Development Foundation Board, and Feingold on Wednesday named her the first director emeritus of the board.
“I just cannot believe it,” said Kadet, a breast cancer survivor. “I started this (fashion show) because of my cancer and wanted to help other people. This has been my life.”
“This is for everyone who has ever helped or contributed,” she said. “If we all stay together, we can cure some part of cancer” through research and clinical trials.
Since the fashion show was initiated in 1999, it has raised $325,000 for cancer research. Wednesday’s event raised $80,000 — which included a $50,000 donation from Kadet’s own foundation.
Feingold said Kadet, a member of the Ingalls Development Foundation for 21 years, has brought in $1.2 million in gifts and donations.
“She is our gem. She is our Juell,” he said.
The event has grown from 150 to Wednesday’s 395 — its largest crowd ever.
Participants bid on silent auction items, and enjoyed a fashion show provided by the Chicago Apparel Center.
“I like to look at fashion and support this cause. This is much more fun than just sending a check,” said one of the attendees, Kris Michuda of Frankfort. “Who has not been touched by cancer?”
Marsha Kortum, a cancer patient now involved in one of more than 50 clinical trials at Ingalls Hospital, summed it all up.
“Your attendance today means you are helping the south suburbs get the best care,” she said.
The clinical trials now offered at Ingalls test the effectiveness of new treatments, new interventions that may lower the risk of cancer, and new ways to detect cancer early and diagnose it more accurately.
