Enrique Iglesias to Perform and Emilio Pucci's Spring 2013 Fashion Show to be Featured at The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis' Destination Fashion 2012

Tom Brokaw, Tommy Lee Jones and Nacho Figueras team up for star-studded event at Bal Harbour Shops in South Florida

MIAMI, Sept. 5, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis, the fundraising arm of The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis, is proud to announce that iconic musical star Enrique Iglesias will perform in concert and Saks Fifth Avenue Bal Harbour presents Emilio Pucci's Spring 2013 Fashion Show Designed by Peter Dundas which will be featured at Destination Fashion 2012 on Saturday, November 10^th at Bal Harbour Shops.  This musical legend and designer extraordinaire will join Master of Ceremonies Tom Brokaw, one of the most trusted and respected figures in broadcast journalism and a special correspondent for NBC News.

Honorary Co-Chairs, Academy Award winner Tommy Lee Jones and his wife Dawn Jones, along with International Polo sensation Ignacio "Nacho" Figueras and his wife Delfina Blaquier, will join a who's who of celebrities, philanthropic icons, business leaders, fashionistas and other South Florida notables for this star-studded celebration.

This event remains the only time in Bal Harbour Shops' history when its doors are closed to host this truly one-of-a-kind, high-profile, private celebrity-styled affair. In addition to the Enrique Iglesias concert and Emilio Pucci's Spring 2013 Fashion Show presented by Saks Fifth Avenue Bal Harbour, guests will travel their way through "The Destinations" showcasing the sights and sounds of each Destination.  Partygoers will experience the Tiffany & Co. Blue Box Wall, have the opportunity to bid on the magnificent "Too Good to Keep Silent Auction" items donated by the Bal Harbour Shops, and witness the 2012 Women of Substance and Style walk down the runway with their Celebrity Presenters, and end the evening dancing to the musical stylings of DJ Irie.

The November 10^th affair will also include the presentation of the Inspiration Award to Micky and Madeleine Arison, the Champion for a Cure Award will go to Edie Laquer and the Laquer Foundation, the Humanitarian Award to Christine E. Lynn, The Buoniconti Fund Award to Paul and Swanee DiMare, and the Philanthropist Award to Beatrice and Dr. Sanford Ziff.

The Buoniconti Fund will salute its 2012 Women of Substance & Style, including: Norma Jean Abraham, Raphael Bastian, Trish Bell, Yolanda Berkowitz, Lauren Book, Adrienne Bosh, Chanin Carlin, Roberta O. Chaplin, Wendy Crawford Boardman, Andi Edelstein, Lian Fanjul-Azqueta, Ingrid M. Fatio, Katherine Fernandez-Rundle, Mary Frank, Dorothy Hamill, Sheila Hollo, Cathy L. Jones, Irene Korge, Judy Lefton, Linda Levy Goldberg, Maria-Rosa Lopez-Munoz, Nicole Lozano, Lilliam Machado, Judi Prokop Newman, Silvia E. Rios Fortun, Michelle Simkins Rubell, Ann Rubino, Frances Aldrich Sevilla-Sacasa, Millinda Sinnreich, Sheila Slewett, Penny Stamps, Jennifer Stearns Buttrick, Dara Torres, Lesley Visser, and Pat Wallace.

Each woman will be escorted down the runway by Celebrity Presenters. Past Presenters have included: NFL Hall of Famer Jerry Rice, Golf Legend Jack Nicklaus, actor Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, NBA Hall of Famer Scottie Pippen, Indy Car Champion Helio Castroneves, Miami HEAT President and NBA HOF Coach Pat Riley, NFL Winningest Coach Don Shula, Super 8 film star Kyle Chandler, Grammy Award Winner Emilio Estefan, NBA Hall of Famer John Havlicek, NFL Pro Bowl safety Ed Reed, Olympic Gold Medalist Carl Lewis, and Friday Night Lights television star Brad Leland, to name a few.

Proceeds from Destination Fashion 2012 will directly benefit The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis, the fundraising arm of The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis.  The Miami Project is the world's most comprehensive spinal cord injury research center located in the Lois Pope LIFE Center and is a designated Center of Excellence at the University of Miami's Miller School of Medicine.

"Each year we are amazed by the level of entertainment and support we receive from our friends around the globe, and this year is no different.  We are thrilled to have Peter Dundas, the world renowned Emilio Pucci designer, share his Spring 2013 fashions with us thanks to Saks Fifth Avenue Bal Harbour, and to have international music star Enrique Iglesias headline our event," said NFL Hall of Famer and Miami Project Founder Nick Buoniconti. "With the support of our long-time friend and outstanding journalist Tom Brokaw, who will emcee this phenomenal affair, and involvement from Academy Award Winning Actor Tommy Lee Jones, Dawn Jones, Nacho Figueras and Delfina Blaquier, it will certainly be a night to remember that will go a long way in helping us raise much-needed funds for our efforts to cure paralysis."

Destination Fashion 2012 is presented by Micky and Madeleine Arison. Destination Fashion Champion for a Cure: Edie Laquer and The Laquer Foundation join Event, Continent and Ocean Sponsors including Bal Harbour Shops, Bal Harbour Village, Barton G., Carnival Corporation & plc., Roberta and Harvey Chaplin, Coastal Construction Group, Susan and Mark Dalton, Wayne Gaunce, Kim and James Pallota, and Warren Henry Auto Group. Scene Sponsors Anthony R. Abraham Foundation, Aventura Worldwide Transportation Service, Bunny Bastian, Trish and Dan Bell, Chanin and Adam Carlin, Swanee and Paul DiMare, The Fairholme Foundation, Mary and Howard Frank, Richard Gray, Gretchen and Jay Jordan, Kandy and Jeffrey Kramer, Krupnick Campbell Malone Buser Slama Hancock et al, Lauren's Kids, Christine E. Lynn, Robert and Judi Prokop Newman, Victoria Ranger Nunez and Mike Nunez, Simkins Rubell Family, Southern Wine and Spirits, Stamps Family Charitable Foundation, Laura and Irwin Tauber and Beatrice and Dr. Sanford Ziff. Sponsors including Comcast, FranklinDodd Communications, Ocean Drive Magazine, One Bal Harbour Resort and Spa, and Quarzo Bal Harbour Boutique Hotel, Saks Fifth Avenue Bal Harbour, Selecta Magazine, The St. Regis Bal Harbour Resort and Tiffany & Co.

For more information about Destination Fashion, please call Stephanie Sayfie Aagaard, Director of Major Gifts, Corporate Relations, Marketing & Events at 305-243-4656 or email [email protected] For more information about The Buoniconti Fund, please visit: www.thebuonicontifund.com, Facebook, or Twitter.

About The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis and The Buoniconti Fund: In 1985, Barth A. Green, M.D. and NFL Hall of Fame linebacker 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 most comprehensive spinal cord injury research center, and a designated Center of Excellence at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.  The Miami Project's international team is housed in the Lois Pope LIFE Center and includes more than 250 scientists, researchers and clinicians who take innovative approaches to the challenges of brain and spinal cord injury.  Committed to finding a cure for paralysis resulting from spinal cord injury and to seeing millions worldwide walk again, the Buoniconti family established The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis in 1992, a non-profit organization devoted to assisting The Miami Project achieve its national and international goals.

The Miami Project's Christine E. Lynn Clinical Trials Initiative is designed to take discoveries found to be successful in laboratory studies and fast track them to human studies, like our FDA approved Schwann cell transplantation trial.  The Miami Project is well positioned and confident that we have the expertise, knowledge and drive to continue to navigate through the process and initiate new clinical trials.  Since its inception, The Miami Project has worked carefully and diligently towards these goals and the results show that the time is right to continue to make these important steps into humans. For more information, please visit: www.thebuonicontifund.com.

Media Contact:
5W Public Relations, Jocelyn Kahn
212.999.5585 / [email protected]
The Buoniconti Fund, Scott Roy
305-243-8939 / [email protected]

SOURCE The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis