Filipino American Cancer Care Debuts Charity Gala in Manassas, VA

On Saturday, October 31, 2026, fashion will take on a purpose far greater than style when Filipino American Cancer LL I’ll Care (FACC) presents its “Fashion for Hope and Courage Charity Gala” at the Magnoliya Grand Conference & Event Center in Manassas, Virginia. The glamorous evening will bring together cancer survivors and warriors, families, volunteers, supporters and designers for a celebration centered on hope, courage and helping cancer patients facing financial challenges during treatment.

Beginning at 4:00 p.m., the gala will feature dinner, a fashion show, presentations, recognitions and entertainment. Behind the glamour is an important fundraising goal. FACC hopes to provide $1,000 in financial assistance to approximately 20 cancer patients, depending on the amount of funds raised from the October 31 event. The assistance is intended to help patients and their families manage some of the expenses associated with cancer treatment and everyday living.

The evening will also bring personal stories to the runway. Cancer survivors and warriors will be recognized, while families and friends will have an opportunity to honor loved ones who have passed away from cancer. FACC will recognize its Philanthropic Heroes, volunteers and supporters whose contributions allow the organization to continue serving patients and families. Designers from the United States and the Philippines will participate in the fashion show, which is expected to involve approximately 100–120 models.

Because the gala falls on Halloween, the celebration will continue after the fashion show with a Halloween Party and Costume Contest, adding a festive conclusion to an evening with a serious and compassionate purpose.

A Runway With a Mission

Fashion shows traditionally celebrate creativity, craftsmanship and personal expression. Designers introduce their collections, models bring those creations to life, and audiences experience the excitement of seeing fashion transformed into performance. At FACC’s Fashion for Hope and Courage gala, however, the runway will carry an additional message. This is not simply a showcase of beautiful clothing; it is a fundraiser designed to provide practical help to people living with cancer.

Behind the elegant gowns and runway lights is the reality that cancer can create enormous financial pressures. Treatment may become a patient’s immediate priority, but rent or mortgage payments, transportation costs, groceries, utilities and other household expenses continue after a diagnosis.

For FACC President Josie Ziman, a breast cancer survivor, those realities make the mission particularly meaningful.

“Cancer can change a family’s life overnight,” Ziman said. “When someone is going through treatment, there are medical expenses, transportation, food, bills and many other things the family still has to worry about. Through this gala, our goal is to help approximately 20 cancer patients with $1,000 each, depending on the amount of funds we are able to raise. It may not cover everything, but we hope it can ease some of the financial burden they are facing.”

Her words capture the practical purpose behind the fundraiser. One thousand dollars may not eliminate every financial challenge associated with cancer, but assistance does not need to solve every problem to make a meaningful difference. For a family balancing treatment and household responsibilities, help with groceries, transportation or bills can provide much-needed relief.

When Cancer Changes a Family’s Life

Cancer rarely affects only the person who receives the diagnosis. It can change the daily routines and responsibilities of an entire family, often with little warning. Medical appointments may dominate calendars, treatment schedules can interfere with employment, and relatives may suddenly become caregivers, drivers, advocates and sources of emotional support.

Financial circumstances can also change quickly. Patients may reduce their working hours or temporarily stop working while receiving treatment. Caregivers may miss work to provide transportation or assistance. Meanwhile, regular household expenses continue alongside costs connected with medical care.

These are some of the circumstances FACC hopes to address through its financial assistance programs. The organization recognizes that supporting someone with cancer requires looking beyond the disease itself and understanding the practical difficulties surrounding it.

A patient may receive medical treatment while still worrying about groceries or transportation to the next appointment. Another family may struggle to pay household bills after a patient or caregiver misses work. Financial assistance cannot remove the physical and emotional challenges of cancer, but it can help ease some of the pressures surrounding those challenges.

Each of the approximately 20 patients FACC hopes to assist represents an individual with a family, responsibilities and a life beyond cancer. Through the gala, the organization is asking the community to see those individuals not simply as patients but as people trying to maintain everyday life under extraordinary circumstances.

A Volunteer Organization Built Around Service

Filipino American Cancer Care, Inc. is a Virginia-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization established in 2020. Run by volunteers, FACC provides financial assistance, cancer education, awareness and support to cancer patients and their families.

The organization relies on fundraising events, sponsors, donors and volunteers to continue its work. That community-based structure makes events such as Fashion for Hope and Courage especially important. The gala raises money, but it also creates awareness of FACC’s mission and introduces new people to opportunities to support cancer patients.

Volunteers contribute their time and skills, donors provide financial resources, sponsors help make programs possible, and supporters share the organization’s mission with others. The gala brings these different groups together and gives them an opportunity to see how individual contributions can become part of a larger effort.

FACC’s Filipino American identity also gives the event a strong sense of community. Filipino culture places great importance on family relationships and helping relatives, friends and neighbors during difficult times. When someone becomes seriously ill, that tradition of rallying around a person can become especially meaningful.

Fashion for Hope and Courage extends that circle of care beyond immediate families. The patients who receive assistance may never personally meet every person who helped make the gala possible, but the support demonstrates how a community can respond when others are experiencing hardship.

Survivors and Warriors Take Center Stage

One of the most meaningful elements of the gala will be its recognition of cancer survivors and warriors. In a setting normally focused on designers and models, FACC is intentionally creating space for the people whose experiences give the event its purpose.

For some, survivorship represents completing treatment and entering a new chapter. For others, cancer remains part of life through continued treatment, monitoring or long-term effects. Those still confronting the disease may identify themselves as cancer warriors, reflecting the determination required to continue through uncertainty.

A cancer diagnosis can sometimes cause people to feel as though their identity has been replaced by medical terminology. Conversations become filled with test results, medications, procedures and appointments. Yet every person with cancer remains much more than a diagnosis. They are parents, spouses, children, siblings, friends, professionals and members of communities.

Courage can also be quiet. It may mean attending another appointment while afraid of the results, undergoing treatment despite difficult side effects, caring for children while exhausted or asking for help after years of being the person who helped everyone else.

By recognizing survivors and warriors during the gala, FACC gives those experiences a place of honor. The runway becomes not only a platform for fashion but also a symbol of perseverance and moving forward.

Among those returning to the runway will be FACC model Theresa Jay Rubi, 31, of Albany, New York, a scientist who previously worked in Washington, D.C. Theresa first walked the runway with FACC in 2024. Earlier this year, she was diagnosed with Stage 4 breast cancer that has metastasized to her bones. She will return to the runway this October, this time not only as a model, but as someone personally facing the disease at the heart of FACC’s mission.

Theresa’s return brings an especially personal dimension to Fashion for Hope and Courage. Having previously participated in the event as a model, she now steps onto the runway with a profoundly different connection to its purpose. Her presence reflects what FACC seeks to honor through the gala: the courage of individuals confronting cancer while continuing to live, participate and move forward.

Remembering Loved Ones

The gala will also recognize families and friends honoring loved ones who have passed away from cancer. Their inclusion adds an important dimension of remembrance to an otherwise celebratory evening.

For families who have lost someone, supporting other cancer patients can become a meaningful way to honor a loved one’s memory. Participating in a fundraiser may help another family receive assistance during circumstances that feel painfully familiar.

The gala makes room for many experiences of cancer. There will be survivors celebrating their journeys, warriors continuing treatment, caregivers standing beside loved ones and families remembering those they have lost. Together, their stories represent why cancer support must extend beyond hospitals and treatment centers into the wider community.

Designers From the United States and the Philippines

Fashion will remain one of the evening’s major attractions, with designers from both the United States and the Philippines contributing to the runway presentation. Approximately 100–120 models are expected to participate, making the fashion show a substantial production and demonstrating the number of people contributing their talents to the cause.

The participation of designers from both countries is particularly fitting for an organization rooted in the Filipino American community. The runway creates an opportunity for Filipino and American creative influences to meet while supporting a shared charitable mission.

Fashion has the ability to communicate culture through design, fabric, craftsmanship and personal expression. In this setting, it can also communicate solidarity. Every designer, model and participant becomes part of an effort that ultimately aims to help cancer patients.

Recognizing FACC’s Philanthropic Heroes

FACC will also honor its Philanthropic Heroes, volunteers and supporters whose contributions help sustain the organization’s work. The recognition is significant because nonprofit organizations depend on people willing to work both publicly and behind the scenes.

Fundraising events require extensive planning, coordination and volunteer effort long before guests arrive. Throughout the year, additional volunteers and supporters help FACC advance its cancer education, awareness and patient assistance programs.

Recognizing these individuals reinforces the idea that philanthropy is not limited to financial donations. People can contribute time, expertise, advocacy, creativity and service. Each contribution strengthens the organization’s ability to help patients and families.

A Halloween Celebration With Heart

The October 31 date gives the gala another distinctive element. Following the fashion show, presentations and recognitions, guests will be invited to continue the evening with a Halloween Party and Costume Contest.

The celebration adds a playful dimension to an event centered on a serious cause. Supporting cancer patients does not require every moment to be solemn. Joy, friendship and celebration can exist alongside remembrance and advocacy.

After the elegance of the runway, guests will have an opportunity to embrace another form of fashion through Halloween costumes. The combination of formal glamour and festive celebration gives the gala a unique personality while maintaining its central charitable purpose.

Turning Hope Into Action

The word “hope” appears prominently in the gala’s title, but FACC’s fundraising goal turns that idea into something practical. Hope becomes a patient receiving financial assistance, a volunteer contributing time, a designer sharing creativity, a sponsor supporting the organization or a guest purchasing a ticket.

In this context, hope is more than optimism. It becomes participation.

The same is true of courage. Courage belongs to patients facing treatment and survivors reflecting on their journeys, but it also belongs to families navigating uncertainty and caregivers who continue supporting loved ones every day.

Fashion for Hope and Courage creates a place where these experiences can come together. The runway celebrates creativity, while the larger evening celebrates people and the willingness of a community to help.

An Evening of Fashion, Hope and Community

The FACC Fashion for Hope and Courage Charity Gala will take place Saturday, October 31, 2026, beginning at 4:00 p.m. at the Magnoliya Grand Conference & Event Center, 7001 Infantry Ridge Road, Manassas, Virginia. Tickets are $150 for adults and $75 for children under 13. The evening will include dinner, the fashion show, presentations and recognitions, followed by the Halloween Party and Costume Contest.

FACC is also inviting members of the media to attend and cover the gala. Reporters will have opportunities to interview cancer survivors and warriors, families affected by cancer, participating designers, FACC Philanthropic Heroes, and FACC leaders and volunteers. The runway presentation, survivor recognition, designer collections and Halloween festivities will provide opportunities for television, print, digital and social media coverage.

For media inquiries, Josie Ziman, President of Filipino American Cancer Care and a breast cancer survivor, can be reached at 571-352-0165 or info@filamcancercare.org. Emmyrich “Richie” Vicente, FACC Board of Advisor and gala committee member, can be reached at +1 (301) 679-5982 or Richierichv@hotmail.com.

As the runway comes to life on October 31, Fashion for Hope and Courage will celebrate more than fashion and glamour it will showcase a community united in supporting those affected by cancer. Through the gala, FACC hopes to provide $1,000 in financial assistance to approximately 20 cancer patients, depending on the amount of funds raised from the October 31 event, helping ease everyday expenses during treatment. By honoring survivors and warriors, remembering loved ones lost to cancer, recognizing volunteers and philanthropic supporters, and bringing together designers and models for a shared cause, the evening will transform fashion into a meaningful expression of hope, courage and compassion.