Jeans & Jewels spawns coats and shoes

A fundraising gala to be held this month in Franklin for just the third year has already become a jewel of the community. The Jeans & Jewels Charity Extravaganza, the principal annual fundraiser for The Junior Auxiliary of Franklin, is set for Saturday, April 26, from 7 to 11 p.m. in Building 8 at The Factory in Franklin.

The Junior Auxiliary is a non-profit organization that serves, through a variety of projects, children and families in Williamson County in need of clothes, shoes, coats and other essential everyday items. While the "Auxiliary" in Junior Auxiliary denotes its status as an ally to other organizations (the Boys & Girls Club, My Friend's House, the Mercy Children's Clinic), the money it raises through Jeans & Jewels goes directly to its own projects, which include:

Coat of Many Colors -- A program that provides winter coats to elementary-school kids in Williamson County and Franklin Special School districts. The Auxiliary receives referrals from school nurses, guidance counselors or administrative personnel, purchases the jackets and delivers them to the school.

Shoes for Souls -- A program that provides shoes for needy children, also coordinated through Williamson County and Franklin Special School districts. The Auxiliary also gets requests for shoes for kids from Bridges of Williamson County and the Tennessee Baptist Children's Home. Auxiliary volunteers meet the kids and measure them for shoes, go shopping, and return to fit the shoes on the children.

It may seem incredible that in this largely affluent or well-off area of Tennessee there are children lacking coats or decent shoes, but that is indeed the situation. There are kids with shoes that are too big, shoes that are too small, shoes that are worn out -- with holes and the soles coming off. It isn't a stretch to say that to minister to these children's soles is to minister to their souls. In a day when Self-Esteem is king, what could be more appropriate and crucial than starting at the foundation of self-estimation - the shoes on one's feet?

Your purchase of a $65 ticket will help these kids in need dress for success - will perhaps put them on the road to productive adulthood. The event will include heavy hors d'oeuvres, live music by Cruel Shoes (heavy, also, we're assuming), a cash bar, wine tasting included with ticket purchase, and a silent auction. "Dressy casual attire" is expected. (Shoes, of course, but jackets not required.)

This year, the Junior Auxiliary hopes to expand its involvement with My Friend's House, which provides safe and humane environment for children and adolescents, many of them with histories of dependency and neglect, substance abuse, unruly and delinquent behavior, and physical and emotional abuse. The Auxiliary provides a meal and an activity or field trip with the Boys & Girls Club twice monthly. Its volunteers help at functions in Williamson County such as the 5K run that benefits the Mercy Children's Clinic.

At Christmas, the Auxiliary sells a cookbook comprised of members' recipes, called Flaunting Our Finest, at Christmas Village. The Jeans & Jewels extravaganza took the place of the Auxiliary's annual golf tournament. Last year's event raised about $10,000.

The Junior Auxiliary of Franklin's Jeans & Jewels Charity Extravaganza is 7-11 p.m. Saturday, April 26 in Building 8 at The Factory in Franklin. For ticket information, visit www.jafranklin.org or e-mail aandmsherwood@comcast.net.