There was an electric feel in the air at the annual JDRF South Jersey Chapter “Unmask The Cure” Gala, presented by 1^st Colonial Community Bank, on April 14^th. 375 guests filled the entryway of The Westin hotel in Mt. Laurel waiting to find out who the long anticipated “surprise” Gala honoree was. Everyone had their guess of who it could be, but no one was more surprised than George and Chrissie Greatrex when they walked into the crowded entrance to hear their names being announced as a picture of the couple was revealed.

As a signature JDRF fundraising event, the JDRF Gala Program has raised over $1 billion for life-changing type 1 diabetes (T1D) research—research that has led to breakthrough discoveries, many of which have already moved into clinical trials and real-world testing. Although there has been considerable progress, there is so much more we have yet to accomplish.

Each year, the South Jersey JDRF chapter honors a local man or women. This year, they put a spin on their classic honoree. A group of businessmen approached the chapter asking if they could make this year’s honoree a surprise. They did all of the fundraising and ‘’unveiled” their names that night. George and Chrissie have been long time supporters of JDRF after their daughter was diagnosed with T1D when she was 9. “There isn’t a better deserving couple than George and Chrissie”, said Tom Deeney, Chapter President.

Another heartfelt moment shared that night was when the Fund A Cure speaker, Emily Greatrex took the stage. Yet another surprise to her parents, George and Chrissie. You could hear a pin drop as Emily, who has lived with T1D for 18 years, spoke about this disease, how it impacts her daily life and how her family has helped her over the years.

Also recognized for his work in our community was Dr. Steven T. Kaufman who received this year’s Distinguished Service Award. Dr. Kaufman is the Division Head of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism at Cooper University Hospital and an Associate Professor of Medicine at the Cooper Medical School at Rowan University (CMSRU) in Camden, NJ. His eye-opening speech, focused on the disparities in healthcare through the different zip codes in our area.

Other speakers included our honorary emcee that night, Karen Rogers of 6ABC news and auctioneer Steve Katz, both long time supports of JDRF.

The excitement continued until midnight, when Mister Softee and Classic Cake surprised those that stayed until the very end with some late night treats and dancing to the wonderful sounds of The Heartbeats. But the final piece of the night left to “unmask” is thanking the supporters and sponsors who helped to raise $450,000 to further research to turn “Type One into Type None”.

While the event was a successful and wonderful evening, we did not reach our Fund A Cure goal. If you would like to make a donation in honor of George & Chrissie, you’re support is greatly appreciated. Donations in honor of George & Chrissie can be made here.

View more photos from the evening on our Facebook Page.