Annabelle Furrh, third from the left, has used her project to honor her grandparents (photo courtesy of Annabelle Furrh).

When Annabelle Furrh’s grandparents became sick, they moved to Dallas so that the immediate family could better care for them. Sadly, they both suffered from pancreatic cancer, one of the deadliest cancers, and within two years, both of Furrh’s grandparents passed away. Now the Woodrow Wilson senior is honoring the memory of her grandparents with an event to raise money and fight the disease that took her loved ones.

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Annabelle organized artists, sponsors and hosts for her pop-up art show, called ArtBOOM!. Boom was her grandparents last name, and conveniently makes a great name for an event. Professional and amateur artists have donated pieces for the show, which will raise money for the Lustgarten Foundation, where 100 percent of the donated funds go toward pancreatic cancer research.

Furrh booked the Filter Building at White Rock Lake, which gave her a deal on the booking because of the nature of the event. She has already raised over $9,000 in donations, including a generous donation of $5,000 from Dan and Betsy Healy at Civitas, and the show hasn’t even happened yet. Her goal is to raise $10,000.

Art will range from student pieces for $25 to a 1972 painting from former NFL player and artist Bob Kilcullen for $10,000. It will include paintings, sketches and sculptures. In addition to recruiting artists, Furrh has learned to be bold when asking for donations, a skill that is unnatural for most high school students.

Furrh took on the task of this project for her Creativity Action Service project at Woodrow Wilson, which is part of the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Program where students interact with and serve their community. She has been aided greatly by her classmate Isabella Albert, and will have between 50 and 60 student volunteers to help her set up and take down the event. Dr. Kelly Ritchie, the IB Coordinator at Woodrow, has also been an advocate. Ritchie recently lost her father to pancreatic cancer as well.

Elizabeth Furrh, Annabelle Furrh and Dr. Kelly Ritchie (photo courtesy of Annabelle Furrh)

ArtBOOM! is on Nov. 21 from 5-8 p.m. at the Filter Building at 2810 White Rock Road. Furrh’s mother, Elizabeth, who has also been instrumental, has high hopes for the show.

“Come to the show and buy a piece of art,” she encouraged. “Make a donation and come to give.”