This year’s gala was our most successful yet, raising more than $137,000 for the Hugs for Brady Foundation and furthering our efforts to help cure pediatric cancer and improve the lives of those who are battling the horrible disease. We are so thankful to those who donated their time, money and talents to make this night possible.
Sheldon Yellen, CEO, BELFOR Holdings, Inc., was honored with the 2016 Hugs For Brady Foundation’s Pediatric Cancer Humanitarian of the Year Award. Although Yellen was unable to attend the gala in person, he delivered an inspiring letter to be read on his behalf about the value of being nice. His letter in its entirety is below.
“Thank you so much for the honor and privilege of receiving this special award tonight. Although I cannot be there this evening to share the honor with you, I know everyone in the room will help me carry out the simple message this represents. And that is: the power of being NICE. I believe the four letter word, “N-I-C-E” is one of the strongest words in the English dictionary and yet it may be perhaps one of the things we take advantage of. In fact, it is sort of odd to receive an award for being nice and generous and kind – because that’s what we are all supposed to do for one another! For this exact reason, I want to share this award with every one of you in this room. Whether you are a donor or patron or supporter of Hugs for Brady, a family member who has lost a loved one to cancer, or a survivor of an incredible feat – I challenge you to always remember to be NICE. We need to be NICE to each other and we need to share that more often with more people. Let’s everyone in this room start an epidemic of being nice – I encourage you to embrace your neighbor with a HUG FOR BRADY right now! Thank you for this amazing honor and from the bottom of my heart – I wish you all my very best. Thank You!”
Punctuated by smiles and laughter, the roughly 400 people in attendance embraced each other with “a hug for Brady” at Yellen’s urging, as a testament to “the power of being nice.”
In a night that swung between emotional extremes, Emcees Bert Baron of 1450 WCTC talk radio and pediatric cancer survivor Lilly Daneman kept the program going and the energy high, with a little help from a live band that kept the crowd moving out on the dance floor. Receiving the Ellen Gambatese Pediatric Cancer Volunteer of the Year Award were Hugs For Brady 5K and Family Fun Run race co-directors David Brockman, Jodi Brywka and Thomas Morris. As the South Brunswick Director of Parks and Recreation, and having known the late Ellen Gambatese, Morris said he felt the honor was twofold. “Certainly it was such a thrill to be honored in memory of her and, on the other side of the coin, for the Hugs For Brady Foundation,” he said. “It really meant a lot for me and again, you don’t do it for the recognition, but certainly, when you do get recognized, and especially for these two things – for Ellen and for Hugs For Brady – there’s nothing better than that.” Accepting the Randy Siegel M.D. Pediatric Cancer Medical Humanitarian of the Year award for University Radiology was board certified nuclear medicine radiologist Dr. Murray D. Becker. Following a cocktail hour and the opening of a silent auction that ran all night, Brady’s mom and organization Founder Sherrie Wells spoke of the need to continue the foundation’s work. “Childhood cancer does not discriminate,” she said, visibly moved. “Boys, girls, children of all ages, races, religions and nationalities. Childhood cancer does not discriminate.” During Brady’s 10 months of treatment, Wells said that she felt like she was not just an oncology mom to her own son but to all kids battling cancer. “All the children, no matter what type of cancer they have, are extremely special and I could not help but fall in love with each and every one of them,” she said. “Determined to change the world, a childhood cancer or one fundraiser at a time, Hugs for Brady Foundation was born.” The emotion was palpable during the video segments of the program, in which pediatric cancer patients sang a song together and images of Brady filled the screen. Women dabbed at the corners of their eyes with quickly dug-out tissues and more than a few throats were cleared as people composed themselves. Guests were then invited outside on the terrace to watch a dazzling fireworks display, with men surrendering their jackets to short sleeved and bare shouldered women. Foundation sponsors for this year include The Palace at Somerset Park, Midwood Distributors, ProCure Proton Therapy, Wiss, Wawa, Goddard of North Brunswick and Jersey Physical Therapy. This year’s friends of the foundation include state Sen. Christopher “Kip” Bateman, R-16, Jeff and Linda Forbes, St. Augustine of Canterbury Roman Catholic Church, On the Border Mexican Grill and Cantina, Adcorp Media Group, Hermann Services Inc., Hoffmann and Sons Plumbing and Valerie McRae, M.D.
Hugs for Brady would like to thank Nicole M. Wells and the staff at TAPinto.net their coverage of the event. The content above was taken from the online article, South Brunswick: Hugs For Brady Raises More Than $132K At Annual Winter Gala. CLICK HERE to read the entire article.