Recap: Our 2023 Live It Up! Gala

Our annual Live It Up! gala is one of the highlights of our year—and our 11^th annual event on October 26, 2023, did not disappoint.

If you missed this in-person celebration of hope, service, and impact, here’s a recap.

The 2023 Live It Up! award recipients Nicole Henry, Brad Marsh, and Rev. Dr. Lorina Marshall-Blake with co-founder Patricia Kolff, Executive Director Kelly L Green, emcee Cherri Gregg, and board member Ron Siggs. All are in formal attire in a carpeted ballroom setting.

Whether you celebrated with us at The Drexelbrook or supported the festivities from afar, thank you! Our 2023 Live It Up! gala was a HUGE success!

Over 350 people came together to celebrate.

Thanks to our sponsors, guests, staff, clients and team members, honorees, and supporters like you:

We raised $140,000 to support Help Hope Live’s mission.

The guests at the 2023 Live It Up! gala give a standing ovation next to their tables. They are dressed in suits or cocktail dresses.

Who doesn’t love looking through photos of a festive, hope-filled night? We think the night’s impact is evident in our photos from Jeff Anderson Photography.

Three guests are seated at their table at the 2023 Live It Up! gala. The first guest is client Ambassador Linda Jara with light skin and a teal and tan vibrant geometric patterned formal shirt. To her left is sister Maggie with light skin, shoulder length blonde hair, and a blue dress. To Maggie's left is Nicole Henry, award recipient and client family member, who has brown skin, curly shoulder-length brown hair, and a purple cocktail dress.

See them now on Facebook:

Photos

We were thrilled to celebrate 40 years of service at Live It Up! this year.

Since our founding in 1983, our nonprofit has helped raise more than $181 million to cover unmet medical expenses of over 20,000 families—saving and improving thousands of lives.

Mark Chilutti is seated in his wheelchair in a black suit visible from the back as he points into the crowd during the live Call to Fund portion of the 2023 Live It Up! gala. Before him are dozens of tables with white tablecloths and teal napkins in a carpeted ballroom with glowing chandeliers.

As Executive Director Kelly L. Green puts it:

“In a world marred by chaos and suffering, tonight, we gather to celebrate something extraordinary—hope.”

Help Hope Live Executive Director Kelly L Green is speaking at the podium at the 2023 Live It Up! gala. Kelly has light skin, a teal sleeveless halter ruffled cocktail dress, and dark staight hair past her shoulders. She is visible past the blurry partial outlines of two guests in the crowd listening.

Hope means different things to each of our clients and their communities.

In some cases, it means having a choice in care—like less-invasive treatment that fits your goals for the future.

In others, it means access to an accessible van, a key home modification, or a life-sustaining medication.

Our mission impacts thousands today, meeting clients where they are in their pursuit of hope. And it all started in 1983 with a tiny spark—a brilliant idea by our founders, Dr. Jack and Patricia Kolff.

They put their hope in a novel concept now widely known as “medical crowdfunding.”

They were dedicated to helping local heart patients in PA access life-saving transplants then considered “experimental” and rarely covered by insurance.

“Our founders relied on the idea that in times of crisis, we can look to our neighbors—our communities—to lift us up and see us through life’s most challenging times.”

And they were right.

In a carpeted ballroom, the crowd of guests seated at white-tablecloth-covered tables at the 2023 Live It Up! gala are in the process of standing to give co-founder Patricia Kolff a standing ovation. Pat is standing at her table. She has light skin, white straight short hair, black pants, and a gray and white patterned formal blouse.

For 40 years, thanks to abundant community support of our own, we’ve stayed true to that vision.

Just last year, we onboarded 750 new client families, fulfilled 4,300 fund requests, and provided nearly $7 million in direct financial support to meet clients’ medical needs.

These aren’t just numbers: they are real people whose lives have been transformed.

Ongoing support for our mission is the reason that transformation can take place year after year.

Mark Chilutti is seated in his wheelchair with Help Hope Live Ambassador Bill Soloway beside him at the 2023 Live It Up! gala. They are in a carpeted ballroom with tables and a projector screen visible behind them. Both men have black suits and navy ties, light skin, and short gray hair. Bill wears glasses. Mark holds a drink with a straw in a glass in his right hand.

Today’s network of support for the Help Hope Live community includes client Ambassadors, 9,000 medical professionals who recommend Help Hope Live to patient families, and Compassion Funds that honor the legacies of loved ones by helping others through their personal health journeys.

“Let this evening remind us that even in the face of adversity, even on some truly dark days, our collective compassion can light up the world.”

Before we tell you about our 2023 awardees, a shoutout to our exceptional emcee—returning for her third Live It Up! appearance—Cherri Gregg. We love you, Cherri!

2023 Live It Up! gala emcee Cherri Gregg is speaking at the podium. She has brown skin, curly black hair to her shoulders, and a black long-sleeved formal outfit with red lipstick.

Our Help Hope Live Awards are our favorite part of the annual gala’s program. Here’s who we honored in 2023—see the video recaps here on YouTube.

Our Help Award looked a little different this year: each of our gala attendees received their own mini Help Award for the role they play in our mission.

We thanked our attendees for being a part of our extraordinary journey: our past, present, and future success.

Rev. Dr. Lorina Marshall-Blake accepts her award at the podium at the 2023 Live It Up! event. Rev. Dr. Marshall-Blake has brown skin, glasses, a black long-sleeved dress, and a large eye-catching black hat with tulle detail.

Our Hope Award recognizes an individual or group who is improving and saving lives by promoting health equity and access to quality care. Our 2023 awardee is Rev. Dr. Lorina Marshall-Blake.

Rev. Dr. Marshall-Blake exemplifies community leadership in her work with the Independence Blue Cross Foundation and makes a direct impact on nonprofits like Help Hope Live. Together with partners like Rev. Dr. Marshall-Blake, we are building healthier communities.

Tables of guests at the 2023 Live It Up! gala applaud as Rev. Dr. Lorina Marshall-Blake stands at her table. Rev. Dr. Marshall-Blake has brown skin, glasses, a black long-sleeved dress, and a large eye-catching black hat with tulle detail. The tables are set with crystalware, vibrant centerpiece flowers in magenta and light green, and white tablecloths.

Our Live Award recognizes an individual or group who is living a life of inspiration and purpose. There could be no better recipient for our 2023 Live Award than KJ Henry.

As an Ambassador of Help Hope Live, KJ embodies our nonprofit’s core values of teamwork, accountability, and commitment and leads by example on and off the field.

KJ helped raise over $100,000 in honor of his father, a Help Hope Live client and grateful transplant recipient. Since then, the impact of his partnership has been a continuous blessing. With every action he has taken—a social share, a media mention, a call for support—our community has grown in size and strength.

The award was accepted by mom Nicole Henry.

Award recipient Nicole Henry meets Help Hope Live co-founder Patricia Kolff and award recipient Rev. Dr. Lorina Marshall-Blake. Standing a head taller than Rev. Dr. Marshall-Blake, Nicole has brown skin, curly shoulder-length brown hair, and a purple cocktail dress. Rev. Dr. Lorina Marshall-Blake has brown skin, glasses, a black long-sleeved dress, and a large eye-catching black hat with tulle detail. Patricia Kolff has light skin, short white hair, black pants, and a formal gray white patterened blouse.

Brad Marsh is in mid-speech with his Live It Up! 2023 gala award on the podium in front of him. He has light skin, a bald head, glasses, and a black suit with an argyle tie.

Our Rainey Award for Volunteer of the Year is named in memory of two exceptional Help Hope Live supporters, Art and Nancy Rainey. The award honors individuals who embody their commitment to philanthropy and volunteerism.

Brad Marsh of the Flyers Alumni Association is our 2023 awardee.

As the president of the Flyers Alumni Association, Brad’s volunteer efforts with the Every Child Deserves a Bike partnership have set hope in motion for dozens of local children with special mobility needs—providing joy, better health, and independence through our adaptive bike giveaways.

It has been our great pleasure to partner with Brad and the Alumni to give children access to the custom equipment they need to enjoy a classic childhood pleasure that allows them to create more meaningful connections with their families and communities.