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 Press Release 
For immediate release 5th Annual Sunshine From Darkness Dinner Dance in Palm Beach At Morning Symposium, Prominent Scientists Reported on Latest Developments in Mental Health Research Held at The Mar-a-Lago Club, the gala’s attendees were ushered into a tropical paradise hosted by Committee Chairpersons Jean and Whitney Pidot, Sallie and Alex Van Rensselaer, Karen and Jerry Callahan, and Mary and Mike Wallace. (Mrs. Wallace currently serves on NARSAD’s board of directors; Mrs.Van Rensselaer is a director emerita.) Kiliaen Van Rensselaer, also a member of NARSAD’s board, served as Junior Committee Chair. Honorary Chair was Dr. Kathryn W. Davis, who just celebrated her 101st birthday. Guests experienced an exotic evening replete with authentic Thai dancing, a Cirque du Soleil acrobat and monkey tricks; all of which was set in a colorful bazaar atmosphere with pages dressed in Thai costumes. Mrs. Van Rensselaer and her son Kiliaen presented an award to special guest Director Joseph Greco, who was honored for his contributions to improving the public’s understanding of mental illness. Mr. Greco wrote and directed “Canvas,” a film portraying his experiences growing up with a mother who has schizophrenia. “There is no cure for mental illness,” Mr. Greco said. “One in five Americans lives with mental illness every day of their lives. They are heroes in my opinion.” “Canvas” stars Emmy-Award winner Joe Pantoliano and Oscar winner Marcia Gay Harden. The acclaimed film is now available on DVD and can be purchased via the NARSAD Web site. World-Leading Experts Present Latest Research Findings at Public Symposium Earlier that day, more than 400 local residents and mental health professionals attended NARSAD’s Sunshine From Darkness Mental Health Research Symposium, held at the Palm Beach Convention Center. Free and open to the public, the symposium offered insight and hope as attendees learned about new research developments from four of the world’s most prominent experts on schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and depression. The symposium was co-sponsored in part by educational grants from AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals, Bristol-Myers Squibb and Eli Lilly & Company. The featured presenters, all members of NARSAD’s Scientific Council and recipients of NARSAD grants and research prizes, included:
(More detailed summaries of the presentations will be available on this Web site in several weeks.) Each of the investigators credited NARSAD for its role in helping to advance the pace of research on mental disorders. The symposium was moderated by Dr. Jack D. Barchas, also a member of NARSAD’s Scientific Council, who is chair of psychiatry at Cornell University and psychiatrist-in-chief of New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center and Payne Psychiatric Clinic. |
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