These South Florida sports legends receive honor from charity aiming to cure paralysis
Several sports legends, including those with ties to South Florida, are set to be honored Monday night in New York City.
The 37th Annual Great Sports Legends Dinner takes place at the Marriott Marquis in Times Square.
Some of the legends being honored with connections to South Florida are the undefeated 1972 Miami Dolphins team, Nick Buoniconti and Tim Hardaway.
Others include Edgerrin James, Tony Stewart, Lindsey Vonn, Vladimir Guerrero, Shirley Muldowney and Sarah Will.
Hall of Fame sportscaster Lesley Visser is emceeing the event, which benefits the Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis.
Buoniconti is being honored posthumously. He played on the Dolphins’ perfect season, became a Pro Football Hall of Famer, won two Super Bowls and was the founder of the Buoniconti Fund and its parent company, The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis.
Hardaway played for the Miami Heat during a lengthy NBA career, which yielded selection as a five-time All-NBA Team member, Olympic gold medalist and recent Hall of Fame inductee.
The Tudor Group and Mack Family are presenting the Monday dinner, which is honoring philanthropist Lois Pope with an outstanding humanitarian award and Mary Kate Callahan with an inspiration award.
Pope endowed a $10 million gift 20 years ago for the Lois Pope LIFE Center as a permanent home for the Buoniconti Fund and Miami Project. Callahan is a National Paratriathlon Champion, four-time Paratriathlon American Championship medalist, and two-time World Paratriathlon medalist.
“More than 1,000 sports legends, celebrities, philanthropists, corporate leaders and other influential people. The evening includes honoring the Sports Legends and Honorees, entertainment by Rain, A Tribute to the Beatles, a spectacular auction featuring one-of-a-kind sports memorabilia items, fabulous jewelry, and much more,” according to a press release.
In addition to the Tudor Group and Mack Family, benefactors, according to the press release, include: Mark Dalton, Reed Mack, Carnival Corporation & plc, Carnival Foundation, Micky and Madeleine Arison, Pepe Badia and Badia Spices, Inc.
“This year’s Legends Dinner, like all those that preceded it, will include another amazing line-up of sports celebrities and honorees, all coming together to help us stand up for those who can’t,” said Buoniconti Fund president Marc Buoniconti in a press release. “The evening will be an emotional one as we pay tribute to these great individuals, but also to my dad, who was the driving force behind our efforts since he made the promise to find a cure for paralysis to me in my hospital room 37 years ago. We will honor his legacy as we work to fulfill that promise to all living with paralysis.”
