May 13, 2005

Bands, bidding and bowling benefit MGH YouthCare

MGH YouthCare's fifth annual "Give Children a chance" gala took place May 5 with a crowd of more than 300 guests at King's Lanes in Boston. The event was co-chaired by David Long, chief operating officer of Liberty Mutual, his wife Stephanie, Tom Hamilton of the rock band Aerosmith and his wife Terry. Doug Flutie — the famous returning New England Patriots player — provided the evening's entertainment with the Flutie Brothers Band.

Hamilton treated the guests to a jam session with the Fluties and joined Kasey Kaufman of CBS, Channel 4, as co-master of ceremonies. Other guests and auctioneers for the evening's live auction included Patti Kraft of the Kraft Group, Olivia English from the renowned Olives Restaurant, Sean Hennesey of WHDH, Channel 7, and Susan Wornick of WCVB, Channel 5. Auction items included a catered dinner for eight by English; a weeklong stay at a cottage in the Captiva Islands; an autographed Doug Flutie Patriots jersey; and an electric guitar autographed by Aerosmith members.                        Flutie, left at drums, with Hamilton

More than 16 corporate teams also took part in a friendly but fierce bowling tournament. Brit Nicholson, MD, chief medical officer of the MGH, and Jerrold Rosenbaum, MD, chief of MGH Psychiatry, were on hand to lend their support. The evening helped raise funds for YouthCare, a program based out of MGH Charlestown, that serves children with Asperger's syndrome and high functioning autism. For more information, visit www.mghyouthcare.org.