John Bacile has been a beloved part of the Dallas design community for years. Designers often drop in to his longstanding Riverfront Boulevard storefront, Antiques Moderne, for its wealth of authentic midentury modern treasures. With nearly three decades of collecting antiques under his belt, Bacile has a knack for curating less-discovered artists too. He’s incredibly passionate about his business.
He also needs help. Bacile was diagnosed with stage 4 bladder cancer two and half years ago. But he battled back, and things were miraculously looking up for about eight months. Unfortunately, cancer is stubborn, and Bacile’s miracle drug stopped working. He currently finds himself with only months to live — again. But there is hope, thanks to an experimental immunotherapy treatment that is currently only available in India. His friends, Bryan and Judy Aldridge, helped him discover it. Now, Bacile will be the first cancer patient of his kind to receive the treatment, and he is hopeful that it could be a cure.
Bacile sent out an email on Tuesday morning to his Antiques Moderne contacts to share his story, and the outpouring of support has been overwhelming. “I can not tell you how special it makes me feel to see such an overwhelming outpouring of purchases and donations from so many people,” says Bacile. “I had no idea so many people cared about me on a personal level. I always thought it was mostly business. There’s so much good in the heart of Texans.”
Here are a couple of ways we can lend a hand. To help cover the immense cost of the treatment, Bacile will be offering deep discounts (40 to 60 percent off) on his beautiful finds at Antiques Moderne this week and next. Give the store’s Instagram account a look to find something that speaks to you. If the walls and floors of your home are already spoken for, you can still visit Bacile’s GoFundMe page to donate what and learn more about Bacile’s story. If you donate $2,500, the Aldridge family will even let you stay for a week (flights covered) in their beautiful San Miguel home in Mexico. Judy herself decorated it, so you know it’s just brilliant.
The Dallas design community is filled with so many vibrant personalities. Let’s rally behind one of the kindest.
