Hope, heart and art for Lupus
At 25, Emmeline Aglipay-Villar suddenly experienced an onslaught of seemingly unrelated personal health crises.
What began with skin rashes developed into joint pain and then came the indescribable fatigue, hair loss and dizziness — all of which the young lawyer chalked up to stress.
Like most lupus patients, it took time for her to receive a proper diagnosis. Apart from the varied symptoms a lupus patient can experience, there are only a handful of specialists for the condition in the country.
After Villar learned of her diagnosis, she dove headfirst into learning all she could about lupus, putting in hours upon hours of research — she felt strongly that her fellow Filipinos should be better equipped to deal with the invisible illness.
It was at this time that she decided to raise awareness for the lifelong condition in the country, ultimately creating the Hope for Lupus Foundation.
Today, the foundation is a non-profit organization that aims to promote the early detection and proper treatment of lupus by increasing awareness about this mysterious condition.
Lupus is a chronic and lifelong autoimmune disease where the body’s immune system turns on itself and attacks the organs, mistaking them as foreign and harmful. Over five million people worldwide have been diagnosed with lupus. Realistically, this statistic can be even higher since a number of lupus cases remain undiagnosed. Even though this condition can affect people of all ages, races, and ethnicities, there is still a significant lack of understanding and awareness around this condition.
Raise your paddles for hope
The Hope for Lupus Foundation has partnered with Gavel&Block by Salcedo Auctions. Its benefit auctions over the past four years have raised millions of pesos for the charities and non-profit organizations that it supports.
The Gavel&Block benefit auction for the Hope for Lupus Foundation will be held online on Saturday, Oct. 16 via salcedoauctions.com.
The auction will feature close to 100 lots, with proceeds helping to support the foundation’s work in the illness’ early detection and proper treatment. Among the lots going under the gavel are works by leading contemporary Filipino visual artists such as Emmanuel Garibay, Raffy Napay, Jigger Cruz, Alfredo Esquillo, Jr., Manuel Ocampo, Daniel dela Cruz, Winner Jumalon and Olan Ventura.
Also going under the hammer are sterling silver pieces from Cartier and Tiffany & Co., fine Baccarat and Lalique crystal, as well as jewelry by Riqueza and Janina Dizon.
