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| POWER
UP Founders Stacy Codikow and Amy Shomer |
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POWER UP for a Great Time
Gala to Take Place December 9th at Regent Beverly Wilshire
Hotel
By Rebecca Redshaw
The
traditional gift for the first anniversary is paper. Therefore,
the women of POWER UP should be wrapping their presents in gold
given their success in 2001. The expectations of co-founders and
co-directors, Stacy Codikow and Amy Shomer, have surpassed their
dreams and given them reason to celebrate in style.
"We
said initially if we had a hundred members in our first year,
we'd be happy," Codikow said. "Well, in less than a
year we have a membership of more that five hundred."
In
addition to gay women in Los Angeles who are professionals in
the entertainment industry, the Internet has helped draw
interest from around North America with a chapter of more than
fifty members established in New York City.
Sunday,
December 9th, POWER UP will celebrate their first
year with a fundraising event at the Regent Beverly Wilshire in
Beverly Hills. Tickets, which start at $200 a person, are going
fast as buzz spreads about the gala.
Codikow
barely contained her excitement. "The event's going to be
spectacular! We're giving an award to Jehan F. Agrama, who
produced the GLAAD media awards for eleven years. And also to
Alan Poul, the Executive Producer for Six Feet Under. The
hotel is a gorgeous venue and we're making it an old-fashioned,
glamorous Hollywood theme. [Our event] Will be different because
it will be a lot more fun."
The
list of celebrity guests supporting POWER UP is extensive and
growing as the event nears. Laura Linney, Melissa Gilbert,
Rosanna Arquette, Mike Farrell, Iona Skye, and Christina
Applegate are just a few of the celebrities who will be on hand.
There will be a special cocktail party prior to the dinner
where, for a higher priced ticket, you can share your martini of
choice with many of the special guests.
The
success of POWER UP is not contingent on this one evening.
Shomer and Codikow have dedicated themselves in the last year to
establishing a non-profit organization of integrity.
"We
are an industry organization that has certain standards unto
itself. It's made up of people from all fields of the industry,
so we're that and we're women who happen to be gay as opposed to
a bunch of gay women who happen to be in the industry,"
Codikow stated.
In
addition to the monthly networking opportunities at mixers,
POWER UP has established film grants, a quarterly newsletter,
and a website: http://power-up.net/
But
the focus in the next two weeks is on planning a great party.
Everyone's invited - men, women, gays, straights. Are
celebrities worried about being labeled as gay?
Codikow
set the record straight. "You know what? There's paranoia
or homophobia or naivetι in every aspect of what we do. The key
is integration."
Rebecca
Redshaw is a freelance writer living in Southern California. She
can be reached at scribbler9876@aol.com.
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