By JON BAKER

PAWTUCKET  ---  With boyfriend Greg Greenlaw by her side, local native Tracie Bourget was strolling into a Federal Hill bar one May night when a promotional poster for the “Real Rhode Islanders Charity Calendar Contest” caught her eye.

“I said to Greg as an aside, ‘What do you think? Should I go for it?’ and he told me, ‘Do it!’” offered the 35-year-old Agnes Little Elementary School teacher. “The more I thought about it, I figured it wasn’t my style. I’m not a big self-promoter, so I was wishy-washy about the whole thing.
“Then I found out someone had nominated me — to this day, I don’t know who — and I ended up receiving three casting calls, but I didn’t go; I felt too nerdy about it,” she added. “I didn’t want to be an ‘older woman’ who was trying to hang on.”
Following more self-analysis — including the facts she’s a lifelong city resident, a 1991 Tolman High graduate and a second-grade instructor — Bourget decided, albeit reluctantly, to set aside her insecurities.
“I’m so glad I did,” she said. “It’s a great cause, and I know they’re going to put a little ‘bio’ under the pictures.
“I figured I could promote the city of Pawtucket, its children and the teaching aspect. I have an understanding of what their final goal is … and I want to tell people I’m proud to be from Pawtucket. It doesn’t make me a ‘townie’ that I chose to stay. The reason I did: I wanted to give back to the community and its schools -- everything it did for me..
“My aunt is a breast cancer survivor, and I have a lot of beautiful nieces and school children in my life,” Bourget said. “All of the girls I’ve known, and girls I taught in the beginning of my career, they’re in college at this point — I want their futures to be safe and healthy, their well-beings ensured.”
That’s just the kind of person Stacie Caputi had in mind when she assembled this first-ever contest, designed to benefit the Gloria Gemma Breast Cancer Resource Foundation. On Saturday, June 28, 15 men and 15 women ages 21-60 made the “team” at a gala held before 60 finalists and a cheering crowd at Monet Lounge in Providence.
Contestants were judged on their successes, the goodness of their inner beings, positive impacts on their communities and also photogenic qualities. Their photos will appear in two distinct 2009 calendars.
Among the Blackstone Valley victors: Bourget; Glocester’s Bob and Carol Ventura; East Providence’s Dr. Omar Meer; Spogga Hashway of Cumberland/Richmond (the dancer at WaterFire); and, last but not least, Shauna Fontaine of Woonsocket.
“I knew Gloria Gemma, who died in 2004, and I know her family,” said Caputi, who runs her own marketing agency — Omnia — in North Providence.
“I came up with the idea, like, last December. I thought about the ‘Real Rhode Islanders’ angle: That is, those who know about coffee milk, Del’s Lemonade, ‘Six Corners’ in East Providence and Allie’s Doughnuts. I wanted to find people who, wherever they went, were known by their accents.
“I wanted to do something with true Rhode Islanders in our settings, with a lot of state-wide themes, while also benefiting this truly worthwhile cause,” she added. “Those sites will include Newport shops and mansions, the Narragansett Town Beach towers, Prospect Park, Waterplace Park, Federal Hill’s DePasquale Square, the Roger Williams Park carousel, the Biltmore and more.”
Shooting has already started, as Caputi has a calendar launch date of early- to mid-October to coincide with Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
Unlike others, Carol Ventura didn’t need perusal of a poster to become involved.
“I know all about the Gloria Gemma Foundation, as I’m a breast cancer survivor,” noted Ventura, 45, Rhode Island Housing Authority’s director of development. “When I was diagnosed in October 2004, I was shocked. You never expect to hear that. It was one of the most difficult times I’ve ever experienced. I had radiation almost every day of the week for four months; I didn’t take time out of work, I went on my lunch hour, and I still take pills for it.
“I got really sick at the end, but I got through it. You just keep fighting and move on,” she continued. “I had a terrific husband, Bob (a Seekonk native who also will be photographed), and daughter (Tiffany) who helped me get through it … This was a given for me. When you go through something like breast cancer, you worry not about yourself, but could it happen to those closest to you? I worried about Tiffany.
“Bob works for GEM Plumbing, and knows the Gemma family. He also is the treasurer of the foundation … I’m not worried about getting my picture taken. I’ve been in a breast cancer calendar before. Naturally, I just hope it raises resources for the foundation, and help women not as fortunate as myself.”
Dr. Omar Meer, 36, a native of Pakistan who has a private practice in East Providence, had a different take.
“I was nominated for it, and I have no idea by whom; for a moment, I thought, ‘Wow!’” he said. “Once I found out the details, I thought it was a great idea … When I discovered it was for breast cancer, I hoped younger people would become involved with both the calendar and raising awareness.
“I remember when I was a medical student, HIV came to the forefront, and I saw how many people became involved, regardless of age, gender or nationality,” he added. “I’m hoping these calendars bring out the same kind of enthusiasm for the fight. This idea puts the fun in fundraising.”
The calendars, at $19.99 each, should be available by October at all Tim Horton’s shops; Curves; the Brown Book Store and also online.
“We’re trying to raise as much money as we possibly can,” Caputi stated. “A million dollars would be great, but we haven’t set our goal that high.”