Trio dares to bare for charity
Three midtown businesswomen are daring to raise $30,000 for the Joe’s Team charity.
Summerhill’s Genevieve Roch-Decter, 29, Rosedale’s Joann Head, 28, and Yorkville’s Taya Day, 26, have combined forces, and networks, for a third time to get the word out for the charity triathlon that raises money for the Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation.
They are doing it by reaching out to those on Bay Street with their Dare To Bare Bikini Fashion Show, to be held July 2 at EFS Lounge on King Street West. Roch-Decter calls it “a pretty easy sell.”
“We thought, what’s the easiest way and low-cost way to raise money for a charity,” said Roch-Decter, sitting with Day in the Four Seasons Hotel’s D-Bar in Yorkville. “Combining the fact Bay Street people go out on Thursday, why not congregate them in one place and do a swimsuit fashion show, because guys on Bay Street like that.”
The women bring with them a vast array of contacts in order to put together the show.
Roch-Decter, a portfolio manager for LDIC Inc., provides the connection to Bay Street. Day, a fitness trainer/model-turned-Forest Hill real estate agent has connections to the fashion world. Head, who works in investor relations with Petaquilla Mining, brings the PR experience.
Day reached out to Dea Fashion for the swimsuits, and brought in 10 models and makeup artists for free.
The venue has offered its services for free as well. The show’s emcee, former Edge 102.1 personality Todd Shapiro, is also on board.
How’d they manage not having to pay for anything?
“Everything is just a cross-promotion,” Day said. “Everyone is promoting themselves all while offering something towards the charity.
“The models want exposure. The event has a photographer and videographer, and [the models] get copies of the pictures to use in their portfolio. The same with the designer.”
For Roch-Decter, it’s all about building a community.
“It’s not about you,” she said. “It’s about the cause you’re supporting, and bringing together a community.”
Roch-Decter has raised the most for Joe’s Team, with $12,812, and Dare to Bare as a team has pulled in over $20,000.
Tickets are still available but the 12 private booths, at $1,500, were sold within the first week.
After that, it’s all about running the triathlon. The event, intended to raise funds for the naming of the Joe Finley Head and Neck Translational Research Centre, takes place July 5 at the CNIB Centre on Lake Joseph in Muskoka.
“I love working with charity events, and I love helping, so it’s a fun hobby to have,” Day said.
