BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Fashion and football took center stage Thursday night at Highmark Stadium as the WNY Women's Foundation hosted its annual What She's Made Of event, celebrating women-owned businesses and the contributions of women throughout Western New York.
For Kaylee Starkweather, a Buffalo State fashion design major, the event was an opportunity to showcase her bridal and formal wear collections while connecting with other women entrepreneurs.
“It means so much for me to just be here and form ourselves as a community,” Starkweather said.
WATCH: Women's fashion, football come together at Highmark Stadium for WNY Women’s Foundation event
She said one of the things she was most looking forward to was seeing local women-owned businesses receive recognition and support.
“What I'm most excited about is just uplifting, empowering all these women-owned businesses and letting them be known here,” she said.
Starkweather said opportunities can make a difference for women in an industry where they may not always receive the recognition they deserve.
“Showcasing our work here is so important because I feel like as a women-owned business and a woman in general, we are generally overlooked by a lot of people, and it's amazing to be able to have so many supporters and people here willing to kind of share their love for us,” Starkweather said.
The event brought together women for an evening of networking, conversation and fashion. This year's program featured Buffalo fashion icon Mara Hoffman and a runway show in partnership with the Buffalo Bills Women's Association.
Sheri Scavone, CEO of the WNY Women's Foundation, said the event is designed to bring people together while highlighting the talent and contributions of women in the region.
“What She's Made Of event, which is an incredible time to get women and male allies together to network, to learn. We've got this incredible Buffalonian, Mara Hoffman, who's joining, and our theme is fashion. We're partnering with the Buffalo Bills Women's Association,” Scavone said.
The show also raised funds to support the foundation's mission of helping women thrive throughout Western New York.
Scavone said supporting women and recognizing the talent present in the region are central to that mission.
“What this is all about is supporting the work of the Western New York Women's Foundation, which is critical to uplifting women in our region and really utilizing the talent that's available here. So this supports our work,” Scavone said.
This year's event also offered a new setting at Highmark Stadium, giving attendees a different experience while bringing the community together.
Suzanne D'Amico, director of development for the WNY Women's Foundation, said the location helped make the evening especially unique.
“The unique part of this year is that we're at Highmark Stadium, which is amazing, and it's really a place where everyone wants to be. So it really gave us an opportunity to give the community a really unique experience,” D'Amico said.
The evening celebrated more than fashion, highlighting the importance of supporting women-owned businesses, creating opportunities and building a stronger community across Western New York.
