Topping A Million-Dollar Dance | The local chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation wants to beat their own record
It’s been almost a year since the local chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation shattered the region’s fund-raising records, raking in $1.35 million at its 2007 Promise Ball with 800 guests.
Now, as the May 3 event approaches, the JDRF is looking to smash its own seemingly untouchable record, with a goal for 2008’s Promise Ball of $1.5 million.
“Once you can attain a $1.35 million goal, it’s only natural to want to top it,” said Mary Ann Slomski, executive director of the north central Connecticut and western Massachusetts chapter of JDRF.
Last year’s fund-raising coup surpassed the area’s existing fund-raising record by $500,000. Few nonprofits in the region have come even close to JDRF’s fund-raising achievement, including Saint Francis Hospital and Medical Center’s annual Miracles Ball, one of the most successful in the area, raising $850,000 last year.
JDRF’s Promise Ball success brought event coordinators and volunteers to tears last year. To recapture that magic, the organization is relying on the same strategy.
Beating A Record
“We know what works for this particular market area,” said JDRF special events coordinator Ellen Kellie. “If you have something that works well, you don’t usually stray too far from it.”
One of the vital pieces of the 2007 event, said Kellie, was the “dream team” of volunteers in place. This year, the players have changed, but event coordinators think that will create an even better outcome.
On top of a “diverse” corporate committee that will work to retain the faithful sponsors and enlist the new, JDRF has secured Stephen N. Finger, president of Pratt & Whitney, as the 2008 Promise Ball honoree, and Jothi Purushotaman, vice president of operations for United Technologies Corp., as honorary chair.
Event honorees change every year, and Slomski said the selections are based on a person’s ability to drum up support for the cause. Pratt & Whitney is a long-time supporter of JDRF, according to a press release from the nonprofit, and Finger is already rising to the demands.
Funding New Treatments
“So many lives are affected by diabetes,” Finger said in the JDRF release, “and I highly encourage area businesses to join Pratt & Whitney in standing behind this important event. Together, we can help make a difference for the millions who are waiting for a cure.”
Also involved with this year’s event are ball chair Mike DeFeo, who is market unit vice president for Coca-Cola Enterprises; master of ceremonies Kevin Nathan, who is the NBC 30 sports director; and Michael Samuels, a local chapter member who will put a face to the disease by speaking at the gala about life with diabetes.
Each year, proceeds from the event go to fund diabetes research. This year, research dollars are earmarked to work on developing an artificial pancreas, which would not provide a cure but a way for those suffering from the disease to have better quality of life.
People with Type 1 diabetes are required to constantly check their blood sugar, Kellie said. The artificial pancreas system would eliminate constant checking by continuously measuring the level of glucose and dispensing doses of insulin based on those measurements. That technology isn’t available yet, but experts say it could revolutionize diabetes care and management — and make life a little better until a cure can be found.
JDRF has funneled a chunk of its research dollars raised back into Connecticut’s economy, using in-state resources like Yale’s Diabetes Research Center. Currently, JDRF is funding more than $10 million in research in the state.
Tickets cost $250 for patrons and $350 for trustees (who get a mention in the event program). Sponsorships come in a variety of levels. Donated dollars can be earmarked for the organization’s Fund A Cure option, which ensures that 100 percent of the donated funds go directly to juvenile diabetes research.
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