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THE DIFFERENCE OF ONE
Prominent Business Men Honored for Efforts to Rid World of MS
*Event photos coming soon!*
Chuck Connors of Wilmette, Ill., and Larry Wallden of Peoria, Ill., are not content to wait silently, idly by for a cure to be found for multiple sclerosis -- an unpredictable, often disabling disease of the central nervous system that interrupts the flow of information between the brain and the body, and often stops people from moving. Instead, they’ve spent years of their lives, and recruited the efforts and dollars of their friends, employers and business associates, to raise untold awareness and hundreds of thousands of dollars for much-needed research and for National MS Society programs and services. Connors’ daughter Colleen and Wallden himself both live with MS.
On Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2009, the Society’s Greater Illinois Chapter honored Chuck and Larry as “Champions for the Cause” at the 2009 Dinner of Champions fundraising event. News Anchor Kathy Brock of ABC 7 Chicago emceed the evening’s program, held in the Crystal Ballroom at the Hyatt Regency, 151 East Wacker Drive, Chicago. Chuck Connors, chief executive officer of international refractory ceramics company Magneco/Metrel, was presented with the Greater Illinois Chapter’s Lifetime Achievement Award, and Larry Wallden, retired president and managing director of Caterpillar, Inc.’s CAT Asia Operations, received the chapter Chairman’s Award.
Every hour in the United States, someone is newly diagnosed with MS, which affects more than 20,000 people in Illinois alone. “We honor these leaders for their remarkable achievements and personal commitment to finding a cure for MS,” says Chad Smith, chairman of the chapter’s board of trustees. Click here for a copy of the press release>> or click on one of the photos below to learn more.
CHAMPIONS FOR THE CAUSE
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Honoring Chuck Connors with Chairman and CEO of international refractory ceramics company Magneco-Metrel, Connors is a member of the National MS Society’s board of directors and of the Greater Illinois Chapter’s board of trustees. |
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Honoring Larry Wallden with Retired from Caterpiller as president and managing director of CAT Asia Operations, Wallden is a member of the National MS Society’s Central Region Council. |
Both men are activists, fundraisers and champions for an MS cure. If you were at Dinner of Champions 2009, thank you for joining us in honoring these leaders for their remarkable achievements and their personal commitment to finding a cure. If you missed it, you can still honor them, and help us achieve a world free of MS, by clicking on the button below to make a donation.
It takes just one person to start a movement and bring hope to those living with MS!
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Download flyer >>
To make an individual contribution or for more information about donor opportunities, please contact Director of Major Gifts Terri Connor Brankin at 312.423.1182, or write to her at terri.brankin@ild.nmss.org.
2009 PATRONS & CORPORATE SPONSORS |
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| GOLD/ Honorary Co-Chairs |
AON Corporation |
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| SILVER | Exelon Corporation | ||||||||||||||||
| BRONZE | American Airlines Lester and Renèe Crown Dolly and Merwyn Dan EMD Serono Daniel J. Hennessy Illinois Tool Works Inc. Northern Trust The Purcell Family |
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Dinner of Champions is one of the largest charity fundraisers in Chicago and an opportunity for corporations to come together and investment in a future without multiple sclerosis. This event is the Greater Illinois Chapter’s premier annual gala, and it is spearheaded by many members of the chapter’s board of trustees.
Our goal this year is to raise more than $1 million to support cutting-edge MS research and to provide educational programs and support services to the more than 20,000 individuals and their families living with MS in Illinois.
Corporations from across the state can help advance treatment options and research for this often devastating disease by sponsoring this premier event. Business leaders, individuals and corporations can also support the National MS Society in one of the following ways:
* Purchase a table or sponsor package at a level that shows your commitment to a cure
* Provide a unique item to be auctioned at the event
* Make a contribution, and Join the Movement!
To sponsor this year’s Dinner of Champions event and/or for individual contributions and more information about donor opportunities, please contact Director of Major Gifts Terri Connor Brankin at 312.423.1182, or write to her at terri.brankin@ild.nmss.org.