The Greymates Story
Some say it was a joke. Others say it was a dare. No matter how you tell the story, it’s now a reality. After John Parker, president of Southeastern Greyhound Adoption (SEGA), saw the 2003 film Calendar Girls, he thought that his group of volunteers could pull off a calendar similar to the one showcased in the movie. When he approached Patti Peterson, the organization’s fearless fundraising chair, with his idea, she initially balked, thinking there was no way she’d ever find 12 women to pose nude with their beloved Greyhounds.
The more Patti thought about it, the better the idea sounded and she pitched the idea to a female photographer friend, who immediately jumped on board. Now, to find the models. It took a few phone calls, but Patti was able to fill the spots pretty easily. It was clear that the women of SEGA would do anything to help raise funds for Greyhound adoptions.
Lots of creative brainstorming, hours of practicing in front of the mirror and two photo shoots later, the pictures were taken and the scary part was over. Or was it? As word spreads about the calendar, the Greymates and their ladies are getting a lot of unexpected attention from friends, family and the media. Many of the ladies shocked loved ones when they bared it all for the camera. The ladies just remind their circle of friends that it was all for a good cause, as the group hopes to raise more than $20,000 with the sale of the calendar this year.
The Inspiration
What would inspire 12 women to bare it all for their four-legged friends? The original and most famous Calendar Girls from the UK were showcased in the 2003 feature film of the same name. Their self-published Alternate Women's Institute Calendar raised more than $550,000 for leukemia research in 1999 by selling 88,000 copies of their calendar.
Twenty-six other Southern women in Aiken, S.C., followed in the footsteps of their British muses, creating an 18-month calendar to help save the Aiken Area Council on Aging program. Their 2003 calendar, Still Magnolias, raised more than $100,000 for the not-for-profit organization.
The ladies of SEGA hope to have similar success with their calendar. Although their initial goals may be more modest than their predecessors, the women hope to also raise awareness and promote Greyhound adoption nationwide.