Why, filmmaker Christi Bode wondered, are eating disorders overlooked, underfunded and misunderstood?
It’s a perplexing question, she admits, especially when one considers how conditions including but not limited to anorexia, bulimia and binge eating are considered the most lethal of all mental illnesses, affecting an estimated 30 million people nationwide, according to the
They carry quite a stigma, and they’re not something people like to talk about. Even by those suffering from one of them.
To help get the conversation started, Bode put together that she premiered at Icebreaker, the annual fundraising gala put on by the .
The dinner-dance held in the Pinnacle Club at the Grand Hyatt Denver raised $100,000 to help the Denver-based nonprofit headed by Toni Saiber reduce those numbers — one client at a time — by offering a variety of free education and support services.
In addition to viewing the film, the 314 guests also applauded EDF volunteer Karen Imber as she accepted the 2015 Orly Award. It is named for board member Sue Feld’s daughter, who lost her life to an eating disorder when she was 18.
Saiber and Martha Caschette, chair of the EDF board, spent the pre-dinner silent auction social welcoming such supporters as former Colorado first lady Jeannie Ritter; state Sen. Gail Schwartz and her husband, Alan; 18th Judicial District Judge Rich Caschette; author Alex Odishelidze;Odette Bouret; Suzanne White, senior program officer at the Colorado Health Foundation, and her husband, Lee; artist Sandra Kaplan; and John Tobey, whose John Tobey Event Design coordinated the event.
The EDF’s headquarters, A Place of Our Own, 303-322-3373, is at 1901 E. 20th Ave. and has drop-in hours Tuesday through Saturday.
Joanne Davidson: 303-809-1314, jdavidson@ denverpost.com or twitter.com/ joannedavidson
