Not many college students get to go to the New York Fashion Week shows at Bryant Park. And even fewer get to go backstage and then sit in the coveted front row next to a major celebrity. But that's exactly what LIM College junior Lee Ann Bulgin did after raising nearly $6000 for colon cancer as part of a program that Katie Couric launched to help educate Americans about colon cancer and raise funds for research on it. 

On Wednesday, September 14th, Bulgin met with Couric backstage at the Fashion Week tents at Bryant Park. The two talked and posed for photos together before attending colon cancer survivor Carmen Marc Valvo's Spring 2006 show.

Bulgin, 20, is a Fashion Merchandising major from Sag Harbor, New York. She says, "I wanted to raise funds for colon cancer research because I lost my grandfather to the disease five years ago. I got the word out to my family and our friends and they were extremely supportive." Bulgin's referrals resulted in the sale of 115 raffle tickets and raised almost $6000 for three organizations involved with research, treatment, fundraising and education related to colon cancer.

The three organizations who benefited from the raffle are the Entertainment Industry Foundation's National Colorectal Cancer Research Alliance, the Jay Monahan Center for Gastrointestinal Health at New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center and the National Cancer Center.

The grand prize was a 2006 model 330i BMW Sedan. The raffle was part of a larger program through which the fashion industry is helping to educate Americans about colon cancer and to raise funds for research on it. Colon cancer is the leading cancer killer of non-smoking Americans, and is the second-leading cancer killer of Americans overall, but is highly preventable with proper screening and curable 90% of the time when detected early.

According to LIM President Elizabeth S. Marcuse, "We are very proud of Lee Ann's efforts. At LIM we continually encourage the students and staff to give their time and talents to a number of important initiatives and charities." LIM students participate with several organizations in a number of events, including the Revlon Run/Walk for Women, which raises awareness and funds for women's cancers research, counseling and outreach programs; Bottomless Closet, which provides professional clothing, job readiness and post-employment training and coaching services to underserved women; and an annual blood drive for the New York Blood Center.