A Night of Awareness in the Windy City
Myself with Dr. Marsel Mesulam, Director of Northwestern CNADC and man who first identified PPA.
Leaving 70 degree weather behind in Charlotte, North Carolina and heading up north to the Windy City of 25 degrees, blistering winds and snow may not sound ideal on paper; however, when such a tremendous group of people come together for a great cause like this one, it’s a no brainer!
The goal? To get a bunch of local Chicago-ans and friends together in one room to support THE CAUSE by raising awareness and funds for the Cognitive Neurology and Alzheimer’s Disease Center (CNADC), the #1 research facility in the world for PPA research. Thanks to Kevin Connolly and his wonderful team at CNADC, we brought in over 100+ guests for this event. Friends came in the cold to support this journey and our host, Rock Bottom Brewery, did a fantastic job of keeping people’s glasses and bellies full the entire evening.
Not only did this fundraiser bring a hefty amount of money, but we had a multitude of activities taking place throughout including a PPA video (made in my hometown of Charlotte), a silent auction and a raffle featuring prizes local Chicago-ans took full advantage of.
We had the distinct honor of meeting Dr. Marsel Mesulam, the doctor who first identified PPA and Director of the CNADC medical department along with his wife Dr. Sandra Weintraub, a renowned doctor with a PhD in NeuroPsychology . We had the pleasure of meeting patients who had been diagnosed with PPA who were proud of the work being down with this campaign along with their inspirational family members fighting everyday for more awareness and treatment for THE CAUSE. We had friends and family that lived in Chicago show-up as well as people whom have been following this cause from Day 1. I was thrilled to finally meet them in person! On top of that, there were several people who ran The Great Wall of China Half and Full Marathon in attendance. You better believe I was picking their brains for stories, advice and feedback about the run ahead!
Through the diligent work of the CNADC team, 6 amazing packages were assembled for the silent auction. Moreover, a raffle was held at the end of the evening giving away prizes from local Chicago vendors and sponsors.
Lori Gapinski, one of many people attending the event remarked, “Had a wonderful time tonight at the fundraiser. Such good people and all our best to Jason. Thank you for all that you are doing! Good Luck on Sunday and May 19th! We all will be thinking of you as you are doing such a wonderful thing for the people that are suffering with PPA and the loved ones surrounding them.”
You never know how an event is going to come together when you start from scratch, but I think it is fair to say, we were blown away by the turnout and support last night. Without a doubt, the CNADC fundraiser delivered BIG-TIME!
With the fundraiser being a massive success across the board, we can now focus on the race ahead – Hustling up the Hancock building against 4,000 other competitors.
94 Flights. 1,632 steps await. Wouldn’t have it any other way!
To see more photos, go to: Hustle up the Hancock
To watch the speeches, go to: CNADC and Run4Papa Speeches