Winter 2007 Newsletter

Our Winter 2007 newsletter is now available to download. You need Acrobat Reader to view this file. If you need it, download it here.

Isn’t Life Grand

The Wilshire Grand that is, where enthusiastic supporters of the Southern California Chapter of the Scleroderma Foundation gathered this November 3 to enjoy a terrific evening of fun, entertainment, dancing and dining at the 11th Annual “Key To A Cure” Gala.

Hosted this year by Chris Harrison, emcee of television’s “The Bachelor,” the exciting evening of merriment and music kicked off with a toast by our Chapter President Dr. Dan Furst and included live and silent auctions stocked with hundreds of interesting items and experiences including a Pro Bowl Football Package in Honolulu, Hawaii, a stay in a luxury home at Lake Tahoe’s Incline Village, Nevada, and a week in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. The winning bidders were sure to enjoy their time screaming, swinging, skiing, sunning, swimming, and if so desired, sleeping at these famed resorts in 2008.

In addition to a night of marvelous music performed by The Ernie Halter Quartet and a comedy set by Saturday Night Live’s Victoria Jackson, over 400 participants were also fortunate to enjoy the sounds of a special musical guest star, Grammy Award and Country Music Award Nominee John Waite, famous for a variety of wonderful songs including his number one hit single “Missing You,” as well as music from his latest album “Downtown…Journeys of a Heart,” which he performed to the great pleasure of everyone in attendance.

The amazing evening in the beautifully decorated Pacific Ballroom of the elegant Wilshire Grand Hotel was sponsored this year by Fort Ashford Funds, Anheuser-Busch, Motorola and the Benner Family, and co-sponsored by Dr. S. Jerome and Judith D. Tamkin of the Tamkin Foundation, Bonnie and Jeff Kroh, the Rich Family, and also featured a presentation to many worthy recipients who have contributed so much of their time and energy to making the Chapter and its activities successful. Special honors went to Actelion Pharmaceuticals, this year’s Spirit of Hope Award was presented to Helen Greenberg, the Spirit of Leadership Award went to Dr. Dinesh Khanna of UCLA’s Geffen School of Medicine, and the Janie S. Benner Memorial Spirit Award was given to the editor of the Sclero Sun, Robert Rich. As the party progressed late into the night, many of the guests, with bags loaded with terrific memorabilia, auction purchases, and complimentary bottles of delicious Barefoot Cellars Wine, were happy to say that this was the best Gala ever and were already looking forward to next year’s event in support of the Scleroderma Foundation’s ongoing commitments to support, research and education.

La Mirada Walk Raises $120,000

On Sunday, June 10, over 1,000 supporters of the Foundation from all around the Southland came out for a great day of music, munching and marching in a perfect setting at the La Mirada Regional Park raising over $120,000 for the Scleroderma Foundation.

With the terrific help of Supervisor Don Knabe of the 4th District and the Los Angeles Department of Parks and Recreation, the staging of the event included all the touches of a carnival, with friends and families greeting one another and strolling among the many booths and exhibits set up by supportive organizations and businesses, while loads of kids rocketed around the various slides and rides with their faces painted and their arms tatooed, enjoying the day to no end!

There was even the proverbial kitchen sink, or in this case, an old fashioned dunk tank, where Kelly Davidson led the way by selling chances to sink the fortunes of a willing line-up of dunkees. Taking their place on the seat of watery destiny to tease the crowd into a frenzy of ball flinging were Dan Furst, Joe Wetter, Phil Clements and Brian R. Adams just for starters. Even Frannie Waldron, National Scleroderma Foundation Director, visiting from the East Coast with her family, offered to take her place..

Doing their culinary duties, the good people from Baja Fresh served up a terrific lunch for the teams as they returned from the 1K, 2K and 5K marches of the day and settled down for a picnic in the grass, while the band Barefoot Planet broke the sound barrier and played great music for all to enjoy.

Even pets came out for the day, many in the t-shirts of their owners teams, tolerating tremendous amounts of petting and affection from numerous admirers and lending their very special type of support.

All in all, it was a wonderful day that passed much to quickly, leaving a terrific feeling of satisfaction with everyone who attended in support of the Southern California Chapter of the Scleroderma Foundation.

Click here for pictures from this wonderful day!
http://www.rl-imaging.com/gallery/2988260

More photos here!

Summer 2007 Newsletter

Our Summer 2007 newsletter is now available to download. You need Acrobat Reader to view this file. If you need it, download it here.

Stars and VIPs Came Out to the Scleroderma Foundation's 10th Annual "Key to a Cure" Gala and Raised Over $215,000!

Peter Cetera	Mark Curry

At the 10th annual “Key to a Cure” gala on November 4 at L.A.’s Wilshire Grand hotel, celebrities, VIP’s, and some of California’s top doctors gathered to honor those who have contributed to the progress in treatments for scleroderma, a life-threatening connective tissue disease that affects the skin and internal organs. The evening was hosted by the hilarious actor and comedian Mark Curry, and guests were treated to a live performance by Grammy winning recording artist Peter Cetera, who sang several of his mega hits, including “The Next Time I Fall,” and “The Glory of Love.”

Attendees and presenters at the event included "Desperate Housewives’" Kathryn Joosten, "Desire’s" Eliana Alexander, "Deal or No Deal’s" Lindsay Clubine, Discovery Channel host Steve Truitt ("Cool Stuff" and "How It Works"), and ABC news personality Adrienne Alpert.

Honorees included:

• Dr. Neil Jones, who received the "Janie S. Benner Memorial Spirit" Award
• David B. Parker, who received the "Spirit of Hope" Award
• The Scleroderma Lung Study, which received the "Spirit of Leadership" Award.

Sponsors included:

• Fort Ashford Funds, LLC
• Anheuser-Busch, Inc.
• The Benner Family

10th Anniversary Patron Awardees included:

• La Habra host Lions Club
• Debbie Flannagan
• Wescom Credit Union
• Jesus Rangel
• Anheuser-Busch, Inc.
• Nancy Wempe
• Beta Sigma Phi
• Chris Corman
• Vertical Cure
• Dennis Benner

The evening was filled with laughter and tears, as honorees and presenters talked about how scleroderma has affected their lives in different ways. A live auction was hosted by Today in L.A.’s Steve Truitt.

Auction items included two first class trips to Hawaii and private suites for 24 people at games for the L.A. Lakers and Kings. “Let’s go, this is for a fabulous cause, let’s see those hands,” Truitt shouted as a bidding war ensued for VIP seats to the upcoming sold out Barbara Streisand concert.

A silent auction had guests shopping for everything from spa packages to trips to Santa Barbara, as well as a bevy of fun items from Anheuser-Busch (including a Budweiser electric guitar), fabulous works of art, wine baskets, and even laser eye surgery donated by top local eye surgeon Dr. Rajesh Khanna. Winners were able to take their auction items home that evening, making for some early holiday shopping for a good cause.

The evening finished with dancing and a wonderful performance by The Jay Sterling Band playing standards and big band sounds that had even tired guests on their feet.