Golf With Jack Nicklaus, Super Bowl XLII and Masters Package and Other Exclusive Items Up for Auction at Great Sports Legends Dinner

    NEW YORK, Sept. 10 /PRNewswire/ -- More than 1,300 guests will have the
 opportunity to bid on rare sports memorabilia and fantasy experiences, as
 well as travel and entertainment packages, at the 22nd annual Great Sports
 Legends Dinner, held at the Waldorf=Astoria Hotel on Monday, September
 17th. Cocktails and a silent auction begins at 6:00 p.m., followed by
 dinner and the live auction at 7:30 p.m. Last year's Dinner raised $4.5
 million to benefit The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis; during the last
 21 years, the annual Dinners have raised more than $34 million for The
 Miami Project to Cure Paralysis' spinal cord injury research programs.
     Among the big-ticket sports items on the auction block: an opportunity
 to play golf with Jack Nicklaus in the Sixth Annual Buoniconti Fund
 Celebrity Golf Invitational in South Florida, a Super Sports Package
 containing premium tickets to four major sporting events including the
 Super Bowl and The Masters; a Notre Dame Home Game Package, allowing seven
 people to travel to Indiana and see a home game with NFL great Nick
 Buoniconti on the 50-yard line; and a Wine Connoisseur's Dream Package.
     At the fundraiser, sports superstars, philanthropic icons and business
 leaders will join Nick Buoniconti and his son Marc, who sustained a spinal
 cord injury during a college football game over 21 years ago, leading his
 father to establish the Miami Project to Cure Paralysis. Hosted by Tom
 Brokaw, who will be joined by special guest Bob Costas, this year's event
 will turn the spotlight on nine Sports Legends:
     -- Earvin "Magic" Johnson - Five-time NBA champion with the Los Angeles
        Lakers
     -- John Elway - Denver Broncos Hall of Fame NFL quarterback
     -- Mark Messier - New York Rangers two-time MVP & future Hockey Hall of
        Fame inductee
     -- Gary Player - Winner of nine major golf championships, including three
        Masters, three British Opens, two PGA Championships and the U.S. Open
     -- Kelly Slater - ASP (Association of Surfing Professionals) world
        champion title holder an unprecedented eight times
     -- Joe Morgan - Former Cincinnati Reds second baseman and National
        Baseball Hall of Fame member
     -- Janet Evans - Five-time Olympic medalist for swimming
     -- Gil de Ferran - Winner of the 2003 Indianapolis 500 and two-time winner
        of the Champ Car World Series
     -- Lesley Visser - Sportscaster and the first woman to receive the Pro
        Football Hall of Fame's Pete Rozelle Radio-Television Award.
     An additional highlight will be the presentation of The Outstanding
 Philanthropist Award to Lois Pope and The Buoniconti Fund Award to The
 Bantle Family, whose contributions and dedication to the cause will be
 recognized.
     Over the course of the past two decades, the Great Sports Legends
 Dinner has honored 226 of the world's greatest athletes and individuals.
 They are recognized for their contributions to the world of sports and
 acknowledged for their commitment to high ethical standards, dedication to
 their community, worthy causes and achievements as positive role models.
 Former honorees include Lance Armstrong, Michael Jordan, Mickey Mantle,
 Jack Nicklaus, Muhammad Ali, Wayne Gretzky, Patrick Ewing, Mia Hamm, Dan
 Marino, Joe DiMaggio, Walter Cronkite and Gloria Estefan.
     In 1985, Barth A. Green, M.D. and Nick Buoniconti helped found The
 Miami Project to Cure Paralysis after Nick's son, Marc, sustained a spinal
 cord injury during a college football game. Today, The Miami Project is the
 world's largest, most comprehensive spinal cord injury research center and
 is based at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. Its
 international team of over 200 scientists, clinicians, technicians and
 support staff takes innovative approaches to the challenge of spinal cord
 injury. Committed to finding a cure for paralysis resulting from spinal
 cord injury, the Buoniconti family established The Buoniconti Fund to Cure
 Paralysis in 1992, a non-profit organization devoted to assisting The Miami
 Project achieve its goals.
     Tickets for the Great Sports Legends Dinner can still be purchased by
 phone at (305) 243-4656, (212) 245-6570 or online at
 www.thebuonicontifund.com
 
 

SOURCE The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis