Searching for the perfect new purse? Maybe two? Looking for a stunning designer bag you can afford?
Join enthusiastic shoppers Sunday, May 5 at the White Lake Eagles for the 7th annual Harbor Hospice Purse Party. This event is open to the public. Doors open at 12:30 p.m. Prices for new and gently used purses, from casual clutches and wristlets to evening bags and totes, start at just $1.
A silent auction features high-end bags. Auctioneer Nicole Popps will round out the event with a robust live auction of designer beauties. Stunning handbags embellished by members of the community and artists from the Arts Council of White Lake will also be showcased. All proceeds from the purse party support Camp Courage, a three-day sleep-away camp held in June at Pioneer Trails Camp on Big Blue Lake for children who are grieving the death of someone they loved. Camp Courage is free to all children attending and this purse auction helps make that possible.
Harbor Hospice volunteer Bob Harter clears his calendar for three days each summer so he can spend time with the children at Camp Courage.
“Children often think they are all alone in their grief,” Harter said. “They’ve lost someone they loved. They don’t know how to talk about it, and they don’t know how to carry their huge burden.” Each year, he watches and helps the healing unfold.
For three days and two nights, the campers enjoy swimming, games and campfires, along with activities like story time and working side-by-side on crafts projects that help prompt meaningful conversations.
They have lots of fun just being kids, and they also have real discussions about death and dying that help them share their feelings with fellow campers and specially trained counselors who are there to listen and support.
“Emotions around grief are hard to navigate, especially for children,” said Ashley Spencer, who created the purse auction and chairs the event. “Often the adults they would normally turn to are trying to deal with their own grief. At Camp Courage, the children have the trained ear of counselors and volunteers, plus they make new friends and have a lot of summer camp fun.”
“No question is off limits,” Harter said. “The simple realization that there is no judgment, that their feelings are completely normal, can be life-changing for the campers.”
Camp Courage is a program of the Scolnik Healing Center of Harbor Hospice, which provides grief counseling to children and adults in Muskegon, Oceana, Mason, Ottawa and Newago Counties.
For more information, call Harbor Hospice at 231-728-3442.
