Benefits With Friends: Art, business meet for Dress for Success

The two-part Works in Progress campaign to benefit Dress for Success Northwest Arkansas will lead off at 6 p.m. Oct. 29 with Works in Progress: The Intersection of Art + Business, a virtual panel event.

Organizers say the panel event "features art and business leaders in conversation on the role of observation and innovation within their respective sectors. In a conversation particularly relevant to the changing national landscape, we will explore what the arts and artists can glean from the business community in order to continue their important work, and how businesses and organizations can absorb a more empathetic and creative approach towards success."

Panelists include Megan Crozier, Sam's Club executive vice president and chief merchant; Linda Naiman, Creativity at Work founder; and Anne Kraybill, The Westmoreland Museum of American Art director and CEO.

Works in Progress: Help Her Paint Her Path, an online art sale, will be Nov. 1-8. The inaugural art sale is "an opportunity for our neighbors to play a part in the journeys of the women in their community. The art, the artists and the community are all works in progress -- masterpieces painted by our endless stories, beautifully strung together,one brushstroke at a time." Deadline for artist submissions is Oct. 23.

The group's mission states: "We empower women toward economic independence by providing a network of support, professional attire and programs to thrive."

The nonprofit organization outfits unemployed or underemployed women when they obtain job interviews. The women work with an image consultant at the Dress for Success boutique, then are outfitted with a suit and accessories from the boutique's stock of donated, gently used women's business and business-casual attire, shoes, belts, purses and jewelry. Women also are able to select a few outfits to get them through the first couple of weeks once they secure the job.

-- CARIN SCHOPPMEYER

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NWA Democrat-Gazette/MICHAEL WOODS • @NWAMICHAELW Samantha Garcia, volunteer with Dressed for Success Northwest Arkansas, helps Debbie James pick out an outfit Wednesday September 28, 2016 during a suiting at their location in Rogers.