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Kent Smith / NBAE / Getty Images
The Bobcats "My Hero Gala" supported the Bobcats
Youth Foundation and the Presbyterian Hospital Community Care Cruiser. |
October 24, 2009
Bobcats Sports & Entertainment (BSE) President and Chief Operating Officer Fred Whitfield, Presbyterian Hospital President Mark Billings and Carolina News14’s sports director Mike Solarte hosted more than 500 guests at Time Warner Cable Arena for the third annual "My Hero Gala" black tie fundraiser to support the Bobcats Youth Foundation and the Presbyterian Hospital Community Care Cruiser. This year’s event, presented by Deloitte, featured Bobcats players, coaches and executives in tuxedoes and basketball shoes, with music by the Urban Guerilla Orchestra and a live auction. My Hero Gala Awards were given out to education advocate and school volunteer Carlenia Ivory, healthcare provider Dr. Herbert W. Clegg and Bobcats star player and youth mentor Raymond Felton in honor of their contributions to the Charlotte community.
Serving on the "front lines of freedom," Ivory is a community treasure with a vision of equality and success for all children and families. Wife of the late Titus Ivory, Sr. and mother to sons Titus II and Terrell, Ivory joined Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools as a part time employee in 1992 with a passion for improving public education. Securing a $250,000 grant from the Junior League of Charlotte to develop initiatives that made education a top priority in the Double Oaks community, Ivory launched the Saturday Enrichment Program, a tutoring/mentoring program for youth, an SAT-prep course for high school students, a club for middle school girls, a youth group committed to the study of the environment, summer camp and more. Over the years Ivory has worked quietly behind the scenes to bring agencies and people together on behalf of children and families.
A pediatrician in Charlotte for more than 25 years, Dr. Clegg is renowned in his field as evidenced by his long-standing tenure with Eastover Pediatrics. He is one of the few experts practicing today in pediatric infectious diseases, and serves in a leadership role as the president of Presbyterian Hospital’s physician division, Presbyterian Novant Medical Group. His vision of equal access to quality healthcare is partially responsible for the creation of the Community Care Cruiser and the fulfillment of its mission.
Entering his fifth season in the NBA, Felton has quickly become a team leader both on and off the court. In addition to finishing in the league’s Top 15 in three major statistical categories last season, Felton has taken a leading role in several local and regional community initiatives. His work with Big Brothers Big Sisters is chief among them, acting as spokesman for the program in Charlotte while hosting basketball clinics for "bigs" and "littles", donating game tickets to the organization and mentoring a "little" of his own. In collaboration with his parents, Felton also partners with Feed The Children to provide meals and personal items for hundreds of underserved families during the holidays. Through the team’s community relations department, Felton gives his time and attention to a variety of programs including Special Olympics, Presbyterian Hemby Children’s Hospital and the Make A Wish Foundation.
In its third year of operation, the Presbyterian Hospital Community Care Cruiser continues to provide comprehensive primary and preventive medical care to un- and underinsured youth. Led by a medical director and staffed by a pediatric nurse practitioner, nurse and social worker the Cruiser offers screening services, immunizations, prenatal care, asthma treatment and health resources in underserved neighborhoods. Since it first launched, the Cruiser has logged more than 9,000 miles, treated more than 2,900 patients, administered more than 4,000 immunizations and provided more than 35 referrals to community health resources.
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