Current News
Local Celebrities Put on their Dancing Shoes for Kids
April 16th, 2012
Eight local celebrities added “dancer” to their resumes this spring as part of the second annual Dancing with the Richmond Stars event to benefit Children’s Hospital Foundation. Organized by the MCV Hospitals Auxiliary and presented by C&C Electrical Services, Inc., the March 16 event raised $72,000 for Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU’s (CHoR) Child Protection Team, which provides care for children who are victims of abuse and neglect.
The Child Protection Team, the only source to treat abused and neglected children in the Greater Metro Richmond area, operates out of the hospital’s Pediatric Emergency Room on CHoR’s MCV Campus. The team receives referrals from pediatricians throughout central Virginia and provides them with a resource that can be accessed 24 hours a day and seven days a week for immediate evaluation. The specialized team also runs an outpatient clinic in the facility, offering appointments for medical examinations for suspected cases of abuse and neglect.
“The MCV Hospitals Auxiliary was looking for a new event,” said Karen Shudtz, event co-chair, of the decision to host the first Dancing with the Richmond Stars in 2011, “and it seemed an appropriate time to join forces with Children’s Hospital Foundation to raise funds for children. We are so pleased to play a part in benefiting and celebrating all of the important work being done at Children’s Hospital of Richmond.”
After the success of last year’s program, the 15-person auxiliary board planning committee, led by Karen and her co-chair, Charlotte Roberts, was excited to continue the event in 2012. Celebrities and their professional dance partners from Rigby’s Jig Dance Studio began rehearsing in January and practiced for at least 15-20 hours before the live performance. Andrew Freidan, NBC12 meteorologist, also donated his time to serve as the event’s emcee.
Each dancer was awarded special recognition like Fanciest Footwork and Most Entertaining, but top honors went to Leslie Wyatt, RN, MS, Vice President of Children’s Services and Executive Director of CHoR, for her spirited East Coast Swing. A People’s Choice award, given to Coleman “Coley” Wortham, III, Chairman & CEO, Davenport & Company LLC, was added this year in memory of 2011 celebrity dancer, Russ Palmore, who unexpectedly passed away a few weeks after last year’s show.
Other celebrity dancers were Heidi W. Abbott, Counsel, Hunton & Williams; Lou Gambill, Co-owner, Fraîche on the Avenues; Reggie Gordon, CEO, American Red Cross, Virginia Capital Region; Martin Rubenstein, Owner, Martin Interior Design; Kat Simons, DJ, Lite 98; and Dianne Harris Wright, Board Member, Massey Cancer Center & MCV Foundation.
Photo - Members of the Dancing with the Richmond Stars event committee presented a check for $72,000 to representatives from VCU Health System, Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU (CHoR) and Children’s Hospital Foundation in April. Pictured left to right are Maria Curran, Vice President of Human Resources, VCU Health System; Penny Stygar, Event Committee Member; Judy Collins, Event Committee Member; Eleanor Goode, Chairman, Children’s Hospital Foundation; Dr. Robin Foster, Director of Pediatric Emergency Services, CHoR; Susan Richards, RN, Nurse Manager, Pediatric Emergency Department, CHoR; Aynsley Perkins, Child Protection Team Coordinator, CHoR; Mary Vetrovec, Event Committee Member; Diana Best, Treasurer, MCV Hospitals Auxiliary; Karen Shudtz, Event Co-Chair; Charlotte Roberts, Event Co-Chair; and Jo Ann Barton, President, MCV Hospitals Auxiliary.
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