Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation Honors Andrea Mitchell of NBC News and Eli Lilly and Company at the Twelfth Annual Great Ladies Luncheon and Fashion Show

Celebration of science and fashion benefitting Alzheimer’s research includes special preview of Oscar de la Renta’s Fall 2022 Collection

On Wednesday, June 1, 2022, the Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation (ADDF) hosted their Twelfth Annual Great Ladies Luncheon and Fashion Show honoring Andrea Mitchell, NBC News Chief Foreign Affairs Correspondent and Chief Washington Correspondent and Host of Andrea Mitchell Reports on MSNBC, with the 2022 Great Ladies Award and Eli Lilly and Company with the 2022 Estelle Gelman Award, which was accepted by Anne White, Senior Vice President and President, Lilly Neuroscience.

The event raised more than $550,000, every dollar of which will go directly toward accelerating the development of drugs to prevent, treat and cure Alzheimer’s disease. In an afternoon of science and fashion, the event celebrated the incredible advocacy and support of the ADDF’s mission by this year’s honorees. The event also featured a special preview of Oscar de la Renta’s Fall 2022 Collection in collaboration with our fashion partner Saks, introduced by Fernando Garcia, Co-Creative Director of Oscar de la Renta, with remarks by Eliza Bolen, Executive Vice President of Oscar de la Renta.

Leonard A. Lauder, Co-Founder and Co-Chairman of the ADDF, presented Andrea Mitchell with the 2022 Great Ladies Award, “I have known Andrea for many years, and she is truly a great lady. Since the beginning, she has been brilliant, loyal, dedicated, and unstoppable in her advocacy and support of the ADDF and our mission to find a cure for Alzheimer’s disease.”

Elise Lefkowitz, who founded the event with her husband Marc in honor of her mother Estelle Gelman, reflected on the meaning the luncheon holds for her entire family, “This is our 12^th year hosting this event and it’s a great comfort to my family to know my mother’s spirit lives on in the work that we are doing – giving of our time and talent to search for a cure for Alzheimer’s. The ADDF is unmatched in its dedication to funding the most promising science and I truly believe that they will be instrumental in finding a cure so that no family has to endure losing a loved one to Alzheimer’s like we did.”

Accepting the Estelle Gelman Award, named for Ms. Lefkowitz’s mother, Anne White added, “I'm proud to accept the Estelle Gelman Award on behalf of my Lilly colleagues who are committed to advancing the science of Alzheimer’s disease treatments and diagnostics on behalf of patients and their loved ones. We have been pursuing innovation for more than 30 years, investing billions of dollars and countless hours of scientific research to make a real difference in the lives of patients. I lost my own mother to Alzheimer's disease and am proud that we have never given up. It's personal to us. We also appreciate our continued partnership with the Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Foundation – whose mission is so consistent with ours.”

Notable guests including Judy and Leonard A. Lauder, Andrea Mitchell, Elise and Marc Lefkowitz, Charlie Lefkowitz Crowley, Lauren Oshie, Lynn Blitzer, Kristin Rae Cecchi, Kelly Ripken, Fernando Garcia, Adrienne Arsht, and John Cruz were among the supporters in attendance.

Preceding the luncheon, Dr. Howard Fillit, Co-Founder and Chief Science Officer of the ADDF, moderated a scientific symposium highlighting new and emerging developments in Alzheimer’s diagnostics. The symposium featured Rhoda Au, PhD, Professor of Anatomy & Neurobiology at the BU School of Medicine, Catherine Bornbaum, PhD, Head of Clinical Operations & Partnerships at RetiSpec, and Kim Macko, MBA, Head of Global Brand Development - Neuroscience Diagnostics & Operations at Eli Lilly and Company.

“At the ADDF, we have long believed accurate and accessible diagnostics are essential to driving research forward by enabling early detection, allowing us to enroll the right patients in clinical trials and track their progress, and aiding the development of new, effective therapies to treat and prevent Alzheimer’s,” said Dr. Fillit. “Thanks to the work of the Diagnostics Accelerator and talented researchers like our three panelists, we are seeing incredible progress. We will soon see more diagnostics come to market that can detect different biomarkers of disease, which is an important step toward our ultimate goal of using precision medicine to treat each patient’s unique Alzheimer’s pathology.”