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New York City - The Concert for Autism Speaks, a star-filled
evening of comedy and music headlined by legendary entertainer
Bill Cosby and six-time Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter
Toni Braxton raised more than $1.4 million for Autism Speaks,
the nation’s leading advocacy organization dedicated to
increasing awareness of autism and
raising money to fund autism research. Proceeds from the
Concert for Autism Speaks will go toward examining potential
environmental causes of autism, as well as research into
treatments for autism.
NBC News’ Tom Brokaw served as the master of ceremonies for
the Concert for Autism Speaks, which took place at Frederick
P. Rose Hall - home of Jazz at Lincoln Center - in new York
City and featured a special surprise performance by acclaimed
singer-songwriter Michael McDonald. Jerry Seinfeld, Russell
Simmons, the cast of “Saturday Night Live” and “All My
Children’s” Leven Rambin, who portrays an individual with
autism were among those in attendance.
“Autism is a disorder that is robbing families of the chance
to fulfill their dreams and experience the everyday joys most
of us take for granted,” said Bill Cosby. “For example, many
children with autism are very limited in their ability to
develop warm relationships with others, including their
parents. We all need to do our part so that, with our help,
these families will finally get the answers they so
desperately seek.”
“When autism became a part of my family’s reality, I was
determined to join Autism Speaks in its battle against this
devastating disorder that is impacting thousands of families,”
said Braxton, who is currently headlining in a long-term
engagement at the Flamingo Hotel in Las Vegas. The mother of
two children, one of whom has autism, went on to say, ‘So much
progress is being made on all fronts-from the laboratory to
Capital Hill - but all of us must continue to fight until we
have found the cause and a cure for autism.”
“We are incredibly grateful to Bill and Toni for lending their
remarkable talents to us for this truly memorable evening,”
said Suzanne Wright, co-founder of Autism Speaks.
Autism is a complex brain disorder that inhibits a person’s
ability to communicate and develop social relationships, and
is often accompanied by extreme behavioral challenges. Autism
Spectrum Disorders are diagnosed in one in 166 children in the
united States, affecting four times a s many boys as girls.
The diagnosis of autism has increased tenfold in the last
decade. The centers for Disease Control and Prevention have
called autism a national public health crisis whose cause and
cure remain unknown.
Autism Speaks is dedicated to increasing awareness of the
growing autism epidemic and to raising money to fund
scientists who are searching for a cure. It was founded in
February 2005 by Suzanne and Bob Wright. Bob Wright is Vice
Chairman and Executive Officer, General Electric, and
Chairman, NBC Universal. Autism Speaks and Cure Autism Now
(CAN) recently announced plans to combine operations, bringing
together the two leading organizations, dedicated to
accelerating and funding biomedical research into the causes,
prevention, treatments and cure for autism spectrum disorders;
to increasing awareness of the nation’s fastest growing
developmental disorder; and to advocating for the needs of
affected families. To learn more about Autism Speaks, please
visit:
www.autismspeaks.org |