On November 5, the Bob Woodruff Foundation held its annual fundraiser “Stand Up For Heroes” in New York City. The event featured a VIP cocktail party at the NASDAQ Marketsite Headquarters in Times Square, followed by a comedy show at Town Hall Theater on Broadway.
The Bob Woodruff Foundation was created by the family of ABC News anchor Bob Woodruff who suffered a severe traumatic brain injury in January of 2006 while covering the war in Iraq. Its mission is to assist injured service members to recover and integrate back into active duty or their local communities.
The VIP cocktail party was held to personally honor over 40 injured Iraq and Afghanistan veterans who had suffered traumatic brain injuries or other related injuries like PTSD. Guests included network news anchors Tom Brokaw, Brian Williams and Dan Rather as well as other media and stage and screen celebrities. Also in attendance were several high-ranking military leaders, highlighted by the Joint Chiefs of Staff 4-star General George Casey, Chief of Staff of the Army.
The Stand Up For Heroes show at Town Hall Theater featured performances by comedians, Ricky Gervais, John Pinnette and Darrell Hammond of Saturday Night Live. The event was hosted by Regis Philbin with Whoopi Goldberg acting as auctioneer. The evening’s highlight was a 3 song acoustic performance by rocker Bruce Springsteen and his wife Patti Scialfa. Springsteen not only performed several of his best known hits, but he also auctioned off one of his Harley-Davidson motorcycles, along with his jacket, and one of the guitars he played that night.
According to Bob Woodruff Foundation Chairman Dave Woodruff, the event “was a tremendous success.” Woodruff said the event “raised nearly $1,000,000 to help our injured veterans, who defend our freedoms everyday. We owe them a lot, and this is a way to show our appreciation and honor their service”
The Bob Woodruff Foundation also used the evening to introduce a new website and fundraising campaign called REMIND.org. Those who want to support the BWF’s efforts can log on to www.remind.org to donate and see how the Foundation is putting donors’ funds to work.
Seaholm Senior Kyle Woodruff and Freshman Ellie Woodruff are nephew and niece of Bob Woodruff and have been actively involved in the organization since it was formed.
