HughE Dillon: A Night of Broadway Stars

Big voices perform for Covenant House's fund-raising gala at the Kimmel Center.

On Monday night, the Covenant House presented “A Night of Broadway Stars” at the Kimmel Center’s Perelman Theater. Covenant House provides crucial services to homeless kids. Event committee chair Mary O’Neill Griesser is with friends Pat Riley, Kathy Tomson, and Marty Macartney.
 

 
Below: Covenant House board chair Frank McGrane, Helen McGrane, Pamela Hansen, and Jon Sprogell.
 

 
The night’s honoree was Daniel Hilferty, president and CEO of Independence Blue Cross (IBC), who couldn’t make it, but sent amazing IBC representatives to represent. Below: Eric Inge, Yvonne Jones-Weatherby, Rogelio Riley, Alysia Robinson, Cynthia Hayward, Lorina Marshall-Blake, and Nate Bandy. The IBC has donated more than $500,000 to Covenant House since 2004 in support of its Connections Clinic, which is operated in conjunction with Children’s Hospital of Pennsylvania.
 

 
Below: Justin Pizzi and Nicole Michalik. Covenant’s continuum of services include a street outreach team, a 51-bed crisis center, transitional housing, medical care, and educational and employment assistance. These efforts were supported with $200,000 raised at the gala event last year. This year’s figure should surpass that, as the event was sold out at 600 tickets.
 

 
Below: Shelia Wagner, Kelly Clarke, Christine Boyle, Darlene Woffington, and Judi Taylor were excited to see the show and are always happy to support the wonderful cause.
 

 
Below: Kim Covello, Suzanne Valutas, and Eliana Papadakis. (Today, Mrs. Papadakis was being honored for her work with the American Heart Association at the 2012 Go Red for Women Luncheon.) Some of the evening’s performers included Tony Vincent, who was recently seen on The Voice, and has fronted the band Queen for several performances; Sophia Ramos, who has sung with Metallica, Paul Simon and Shakira (Ramos shared an intimate story of her own experience with homelessness); Danny Zolli, who has starred in more than 23 productions of Jesus Christ Superstar worldwide; Rita Harvey, who made her Broadway debut performing the lead role of Christine Daae in Phantom of the Opera; Patti Russo, best known as Meat Loaf’s female lead vocalist and current lead vocalist for Trans-Siberian Orchestra; and Lawrence Clayton, an accomplished singer.
 

 
Below: Ann Thornton Field and Irene Hannan. Also that night, some of the kids helped by Covenant performed “Today My Life Begins” by Bruno Mars; there wasn’t a dry eye in the place afterward.