Clarksville, TN – In recent years, Handbags for Hope has become one of Clarksville’s most anticipated annual events. Nearly 600 people have already purchased their tickets to be part of the action-packed, fun-filled evening at which new and gently used handbags are auctioned to raise funds that will support worthy causes in our community.
The Clarksville Association of Realtors’ Clarksville Young Professionals Network is the host of the event, now in its tenth year, and Sheena Dixon is the 2023 Event Chair.
“CAR hosts this event every year, and the YPN committee puts it all together,” Dixon said. “We start working on this in January. We book the venue a year in advance and work on getting it together all the way up to August.
“This is our tenth year of doing this, and so far we have raised over $1,000,000. Last year, we raised more than $250,000. We would certainly love to hit that mark again, but I know the current economy is a little tough. I do know that every dollar counts.”
All the money raised at the event each year goes into CAR’s non-profit, the Spreading Our Support (SOS) Foundation. Funds from the foundation benefit a lot of different organizations throughout the year.
“It’s like a pot of money sitting there, for which organizations can apply,” Dixon said. “We have a board process that screens the applicants. Some of the projects that will receive funds this year, are Faith Cancer Care Center, Judy’s Hope, Urban Ministries Safe House, and Montgomery County Veterans Coalition. The YPN Committee also supports the Mike Groves Memorial Scholarship.”
In past years, the event was held at the Wilma Rudolph Event Center. Overwhelming support for Handbags for Hope has forced organizers to move the event to the larger Oak Grove Racing, Gaming & Hotel facility. Handbags for Hope will be held on Saturday, August 26th, 2023 from 5:30pm until 10:00pm CT.
“At the WREC, we were limited to less than 500 people,” Dixon said. “We’ve already sold almost 600 tickets for this year’s event. The bigger venue will help us grow.
“We want this to be an elevated experience. There will be a sit-down dinner, live entertainment, including a saxophonist, a violinist, and a live band. We will have a DJ, a photo booth, and other fun things. Of course, the highlight of the evening is the live auction.”
Jimmy Terry, Jr. will once again emcee the event. This year’s auctioneer is Shane McCarrell.
“Shane does a great job,” Dixon said. “He specializes in fundraisers for organizations like ours. We’re excited to have him. There are about thirty realtors, and affiliates of the association on our committee, including Kelly Foote and Lindsay Elliott, two of the original members who were involved in creating the inaugural event, ten years ago. Kelly actually brought this idea to us when she moved here from Murfreesboro.”
Dixon says that tickets and sponsorships are already sold out, but they are still accepting handbag donations for the live auction and premium auction. The organization will accept cash donations as well.
“The live-auction items are luxury handbags, for men or women, filled with items totaling at least $1,500,” Dixon said. “The premium auction features new bags, containing at least $500.00 worth of items. During the event, Shane will be auctioning off the high-end bags. The names of the bags hint at what type of items might be inside them, but it really is kind of a mystery.”
A lot of the bags cost $2,000 or more. In the past, the live auction has had Tiffany’s, YSL, and other high-end designer bags, which are always popular. A special Tiffany’s-filled bag brought more than $30,000 at a recent auction.
“I’ve been involved with this since I started in real estate, and it has grown so much over the years,” Dixon said. “It is a wonderful event. We’re really trying to go all out for our tenth anniversary and honor the people who started it. Of course, our main goal is always to give lots of help to the organizations that we support.”
For more information, go to www.clarksvilleaor.com/handbags/ or the CAR YPN Committee Facebook page. You can email a committee member at ypn@clarksvilleaor.com, or call 931.552.3567.
