Lynn women’s group holds annual fundraiser

LYNN – Kim Feeney Zollo and Lucy Dearborn joked that for the next POWER trunk show they will have a red carpet and paparazzi taking pictures.”I have to practice my model walk,” added committee member and host Dearborn.POWER (Power of Women Establishing Relationships in Lynn) had its annual scholarship fundraiser Thursday night at Lucia Lighting & Design, Dearborn’s Western Avenue store. Each year the organization picks a Lynn-based scholarship for which to raise money and this year North Shore Community College students were selected.POWER is a networking group for women who work and/or live in Lynn. This is their fourth annual trunk show.”We always choose a scholarship that benefits Lynn,” fellow committee member Zollo said. “We all have a connection to Lynn. It made sense to us to do this. Lynn is important to us. Lynn has had its share of struggles and we wanted to add to the positivity.”The all-women networking group meets once a month to discuss issues facing working women. “It is a place where we can connect and share ideas,” Zollo said. “Everyone is very friendly and anyone is welcomed.”For Dearborn, hosting the show this year was an added bonus. “I love it. It’s fabulous,” Dearborn said. “It gets 100 new faces in the store. The marketing opportunities are amazing.”The business owner has enjoyed her time at the monthly luncheons. “It is great networking,” she said. “It is also a great way to meet women who also work in Lynn. Sometimes you become so stuck in your own office that you don’t get to meet people. It has been really amazing for me.”The group has been growing as well. “In the beginning it was just 10 people at the lunches,” committee member Anne Gugino Carrigan said. “Now, we have 100 people on the mailing list.”The night featured sample wine offerings from local restaurants as well as local artisans and vendors.”I love going to events like this,” said Marblehead native Ann-Jean Flaxer, who went to last year’s event and enjoyed it so much that this year she brought her daughter, Andrea. “I had such a wonderful evening that I told her that I had to bring her this time.”One reason the mother-daughter duo attended was because of its worthy cause. “I love supporting Lynn,” said Ann-Jean Flaxer, who works at the Lynn Museum.The shopping is the second reason they attended. “The vendors are fab. Everything is just so beautiful,” Ann-Jean Flaxer said.Andrea agreed. “I have really been enjoying my night so far. It is all very beautiful.”One vendor which caught their eye was Couture Planet, an environment-friendly purse company that makes purses out of newspapers based in Lynn. Thursday’s event was Couture Planet’s debut at POWER’s trunk shows.”We are happy to be here,” Couture Planet associate Kathy Cormier said. “We love to support the Lynn community. We don’t just think of ourselves as made in the USA but made in Massachusetts and made in Lynn as well.”Sara Brown can be reached at [email protected].