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Burglars boost blingy bras in Hinesville
0404 Stolen bra
Suzie Q members say they hand decorated the bras for a fundraiser to help fight cancer. - photo by Photo provided.
Team Suzie Q, a group of Liberty County residents who will run in the Susan G Komen Race for the Cure in Savannah April 17, suffered a setback Monday from a break-in at the Mills House.
The team had been using the former Liberty County Development Authority/Chamber of Commerce office at the corner of Memorial Drive and Oglethorpe Highway for their final meetings and fundraisers leading up to the race.
Among the fundraising items taken were three hand crafted bras for an “Art Your Bra” sale. The stolen items were painstakingly sewn by members of the team and were meant to honor and commemorate women who are battling or have battled breast cancer, including the designers’ relatives.
“Members of the Suzie Q’s had worked so hard to do some things to bring attention to the need to prevent and cure breast cancer,” Team Suzie Q founder and president Deidre Howell said. “It was really heart breaking to think someone would be so thoughtless to take items that really had no value to anyone other than those of us committed to this cause. The Art Your Bra pieces were handmade by several of our Suzie Q’s. One in particular, the ‘button bra’ was made by a Q whose daughter is dealing with her second bout of breast cancer. The buttons were sewn onto the bra by hand, no glue gun. And, with each button, she had only the health of her daughter in mind. The thief couldn’t have known the sentimental value of this particular piece and hopefully will return it somehow.”
Team member Leah Poole said the button bra was stitched by Jeanette Replogle using buttons from the early 1900s. The belonged to her grandmother. Poole said it took Replogle three days to make.
Poole made a polka-dot bra and she and Replogle pieced together a candy bra, also taken in the burglary.
“It saddens me that something like this could happen,” Poole said. “It was obviously planned and someone who had been watching us move things in. I was really angry for about 12 hours and then hilarity and more sadness started to set in as I started to think about someone modeling one of these crazy bras without ever knowing what they meant to those who made them.”
Other items stolen were candle holders, glass vases, cleaning supplies and a table, according to the Hinesville Police Department incident report.
The Susan G Komen Race for the Cure is set for 8 a.m. April 17. Currently there are 35 members of the Suzie Qs, including men, children and pets.
“Our target was to have 100 women from Liberty County and Fort Stewart register and walk with us,” Howell said. “Some of us are running, some are walking and some are convinced they can’t walk the whole 5K. But we know, together, we can do it.
Howell said there is still time to join the team and register for the race. Folks interested can register online at: http://www.active.com/donate/komencoastalGA/DHowell61
“We are walking for all women,” Howell said. “”It’s estimated that one in four women will have to deal with breast cancer sometime in their life. Me, I’m walking for my daughters, Samantha, Sara, and Laura and hoping that the money we raise will help find a cure and they will never, never have to deal with this disease.”
The Suzie Qs have raised almost $2,000. The money will go to the Coastal Georgia Affiliate of the Komen Foundation.
“We raised this money by having small raffles, spaghetti dinners and jewelry and purse sales,” Howell said. “We did this in less than six months. Our goal for next year is $25,000 to help pay for new, digital mammography equipment at Liberty Regional Medical Center so women from our community can get better screenings because early detection equals a better cure rate.”
If the thieves wish to return the stolen bras, they can do so anonymously by putting them in a bag and hanging the bag on the front door of the Mills house.

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