|
New York, NY.
November 22, 2022 – Last night’s Lupus Research Alliance (LRA)
Breaking Through Gala at Manhattan’s historic Ziegfeld
Ballroom was both inspiring and successful, raising more
than $4 million for lupus research. More than 600 people
turned out to recognize 2022 Gala honoree Leslie D. Hale,
President & Chief Executive Officer at RLJ Lodging Trust,
and LRA’s Distinguished Service Awardee, former President &
CEO Kenneth M. Farber. As Gala Honorary Co-Chair,
Selena Gomez addressed the audience in a special message
personally encouraging everyone to join her in supporting
the LRA’s mission.
Dedicated
Business Leader Leslie Hale Honored for Lupus Commitment
Ms. Hale was
presented with the 2022 Lupus Research Alliance Gala Honoree
award by Art Collins, Founder and Managing
Partner of theGroup and member of the RLJ Lodging Trust
Board of Directors. Mr. Collins described Ms. Hale’s intense
drive for excellence and dedication to the company since
joining in 2005 and subsequent meteoric rise. Ms. Hale is
putting that same intensity toward the lupus cause on behalf
of her sister Wendy Hale-Giles who lost her battle with the
disease.
In accepting the
award, Ms. Hale shared, “Now, every family event, every
photo we take will always have a void. As a woman of color,
I feel a tremendous sense of personal responsibility to help
those most impacted by lupus. Working with the Lupus
Research Alliance will be one of the most significant things
I do in my lifetime to honor Wendy. It has given me the
opportunity to help raise awareness about lupus – something
I wish I had back then to help my sister. Supporting the LRA
has given my family purpose to our pain.”
Kenneth M. Farber
Receives Distinguished Service Award
In presenting the
Distinguished Service Award to Kenneth M. Farber,
Ira Akselrad, LRA Board of Directors Co-Chair and
President of The Johnson Company, described his many
accomplishments through his 20-year tenure with the
organization. “Ken has led this organization from inception
through a merger with two leading lupus organizations to
build the current Lupus Research Alliance as the largest
private funder of lupus research worldwide. We thank him for
his unwavering commitment to lupus research.”
“What makes this
night so special is seeing so many people committed to the
same goal that the LRA staff is committed to – funding
research into the cause, the cure, the treatment and
prevention of lupus and its many manifestations.” noted Mr.
Farber. Naming the many allies in the cause, Mr. Farber
particularly praised LRA’s new President and CEO Albert Roy.
“The Board of Directors could not have made a finer choice.
He’s brilliant, enthusiastic, and tenancious, but most
importantly he cares deeply about the struggles of people
with lupus.”
Special
Supporters Recognized for Contributions to Lupus Community
NBC’s talk show host
and long-time LRA friend Willie Geist hosted the
evening with his inimitable charm, quick wit, and dedication
to the cause. Hale also conducted a quick ‘talk-show’ live
with lupus notables celebrating incredible strides being
made in lupus research.
Philanthropist
Michael R. Bloomberg expressed his continued support for
the work of the LRA on behalf of his close friend LRA Board
member Jennie DeScherer who has fought lupus for decades.
Former LRA Board member Jerome Chazen was remembered
for his endless generosity to the organization in time,
expertise, and resources on behalf of his sister-in-law who
had died from lupus.
LRA President and
CEO Albert T. Roy thanked the many supporters who
have made 2022 a year of discovery and diversity for lupus
research progress. He noted, “It is with the same tenacity
that Wendy lived her life, that the LRA will remain
ruthlessly focused on identifying and investing in the most
promising research to allow people living with lupus to
become the best version of themselves. The LRA alone cannot
achieve the laudable goals that have been shared this
evening – it will take a village inclusive of everyone
present tonight and joining virtually. We need everyone to
continue in helping advance our collective mission because
the people living with lupus are depending on us.”
Mr. Roy recognized
each of the 2022 Gala Co-Chairs for all their hard work.
Lead Co-Chairs were Thomas J. Baltimore, JR.,
Chairman and CEO of Park Hotels & Resorts; Jennifer A.
Dakin, Managing Director of Wells Fargo Bank NA; and
Deborah L. Harmon, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Artemis Real
Estate Partners. Many long-standing supporters also
supported the event as Co-Chairs of the event: Board of
Directors Co-Chairs Ira Akselrad, President of The
Johnson Company and Richard K. DeScherer; as well as
The Honorable Robert Wood Johnson, Chairman of the
New York Jets and LRA founding chairman ; LRA Board members
and lupus advocates TV personality Brenda Blackmon
and IBM Business Development Leader Veronica Vargas Lupo;
and William J. Wolfe, Chairman of First Washington
Realty, Inc.
In addition to
Selena Gomez, Honorary Co-Chairs supporting the Gala were
Michael R. Bloomberg, Lady Gaga, and 2021 Gala
honoree Nadeem Meghji, Senior Managing Director, Head
of Real Estate Americas Blackstone.Speakers also applauded
all the people who showed what ManyOne Can accomplish for
lupus research together – those who helped raise millions,
those who advocated for more lupus research federal funding,
those who helped educate others about the disease, and those
who participated in the research needed to deliver new
treatments and a cure.
Even NYC’s historic
Empire State Building did its part in highlighting
the importance of lupus research by lighting up NYC’s
skyline in the colors of lupus awareness – purple and red.
And the female tap dance band Syncopated Ladies
stepped up, tapping into the hope of supporters gathering to
support the LRA.
Last night’s program
can be viewed
online here
using the PIN LRA22. Continued donations are welcomed. The
Lupus Research Alliance thanks the worldwide lupus community
for their ongoing support of the innovative research needed
to deliver new treatments and a cure.
About Lupus
Lupus is a chronic, complex autoimmune disease that
affects millions of people worldwide. More than 90 percent
of people with lupus are women; lupus most often strikes
during the childbearing years of 15-45. African Americans,
Hispanic Americans, Asian Americans, and Native Americans
are two to three times at greater risk than Caucasians. In
lupus, the immune system, which is designed to protect
against infection, creates antibodies that can attack any
part of the body including the kidneys, brain, heart, lungs,
blood, skin, and joints.
About the Lupus Research Alliance
The Lupus Research Alliance (LRA) is the largest
non-governmental, non-profit funder of lupus research
worldwide. The organization aims to transform treatment by
funding the most innovative lupus research, fostering
diverse scientific talent, and driving discovery toward
better diagnostics, improved treatments and ultimately a
cure for lupus. Because the LRA board of directors funds all
administrative and fundraising costs, 100 percent of all
donations supports lupus research programs.
|