LOCAL CHAPTER OF THE LEUKEMIA & LYMPHOMA SOCIETY SETS NATIONAL FUNDRAISING RECORD

12 VOLUNTEERS RAISE $621,000 IN JUST 10 WEEKS

DC Area's Lizzy Walker Conroy of EmeryAnn LLC and Ray Regan of MobileCom Networks and ISS Win National Recognition

The National Capital Area Chapter of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society has set a national record for raising funds for the Man & Woman of the Year campaign. In just 10 weeks, the local chapter's 12 volunteers raised $621,000 as they competed for recognition as the Man or Woman of the Year, awarded to the male and female candidates who raised the most money for the organization.

The National Capital Area Chapter almost doubled the amount raised by any of the other 36 Society Chapters participating in the campaign. In addition, DC's Lizzy Conroy, co-founder of EmeryAnn LLC in Washington DC, was the top local and national female fundraiser. National Capital Man of the Year, Ray Regan, co-founder of MobileCom Networks and ISS was the nation's second most successful male fundraiser. Hundreds of candidates in 41 citites nationwide competed for the titles.

"Every year we are amazed by the talent, effort and dedication that our Washington, DC area candidates and leading business organizations bring to this campaign," said Donna McKelvey, executive director of the National Capital Area Chapter. "Through their work, each one of these candidates also raised awareness about the disease, our organization, and the importance of the research and patient services that we can provide with the money that they raise. We can never thank them enough."

"The 10 weeks we spent working on this campaign were truly intense, and my success is due in large part to the amazing contributions of my family, friends and colleagues, but also because of the support I received 24/7 from the Society," said Lizzy Walker Conroy. "The staff is incredibly knowledgeable and helpful, anticipating our every need and making a very difficult job much easier." The National Capital Area chapter has been the top fundraiser for the past six years, and local campaign winners have won the national title seven times during that period.

"Unlike any other non-profit I have worked with, the Society has a comprehensive training program, which provides candidates with actionable tool kits to aid in fundraising," said Tatiana Platt, chief trust officer, America Online, Inc., the campaign's co-chair and a former local Woman of the Year. "This is invaluable and includes everything from an online web site, to template letters, to ideas for events." AOL further supported the campaign with an online incentive award given to the candidate who secured the most donations online.

"The business community has jumped in to help because of the huge impact we see our dollars and efforts making in the Society's fight against blood cancers," said campaign co-chair Dave Dorros, managing director, L.J. Melody. "The money we raised in just 10 weeks will fund a three-year translational research project, a fantastic return on investment by any measure."

All 12 candidates were honored at a June 11 gala held at the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium in Washington, DC, where Ray Regan and Lizzy Walker Conroy were recognized as Man & Woman of the Year.

Other top fundraising participants were:

• Woman of the Year Runner Up: Nancy Shahin Itteilag, Long & Foster 
• Woman of the Year 2nd Runner Up: Cheryl Romero, Sapphire Technologies
• Man of the Year Runner Up: Jason Baum, Washington Redskins 
• Man of the Year 2nd Runner Up: Peter G. Bianco, Trufina.

Other candidates who participated in this year's record-breaking campaign were: Jim Banks, McGuireWoods LLP Pam Burns, Pamshops4you Gregg Howell, J.J. Taylor, Inc. Christopher Malloy, B.F. Saul Mortgage Colleen Sasser, LCG Systems Cid Szegedy, Interstate Hotels & Resorts. Honorary candidate: leukemia survivor Ken Dineen, Accenture.

The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society is the nation's fastest growing volunteer health organization and employs a variety of fundraising mechanisms, ranging from single event fundraisers like DC's Leukemia Ball (the area's largest non-political fundraising event) to Team In Training (which raised over $90 million in 2004), to golf tournaments, The Leukemia Cup Regatta and more. In the year ended June 30, 2005 the Society's National Capital Area Chapter raised about $10.5 million.

Because of its grassroots nature and low overhead, the Man & Woman of the Year campaign is one of the organization's most important fundraisers. In 2005, the national campaign raised $5.2 million, a 21% increase over the previous year.

Presented by Accenture, The Man & Woman of the Year Campaign is a ten-week fundraising competition in which male and female business leaders nationwide mount their own campaigns to raise money to benefit The Society's mission to cure blood cancers. A special thanks to the 2005 sponsors L.J Melody and Company, AOL, Interstate Hotels & Resorts, and Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP.

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