The 2014 Leukemia & Lymphoma Society Man & Woman of the Year Campaign came to a close on Saturday at a Grand Finale Gala at the 
West End Ritz Carlton. Twenty candidates and their teams celebrated ten weeks of hard work and fundraising dedication towards a collective goal of $1.25 million for LLS’s mission: to cure leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin’s disease & myeloma, and improve the quality of life of patients and their families.
Guests enjoyed a cocktail reception, silent auction (sponsored by GovPlace), dinner, and a program emceed by Alison Starling of ABC7/WJLA-TV and Scott Smith of My Fox 5 DC/WTTG. Boy & Girl of 
the Year, Vishav Chopra & Rylie Richards, young cancer survivors who have provided inspiration to the candidates, were on hand to help present awards and share their talents. Chopra entertained with a stand up comedy routine while Richards belted out “Roar.”
Gary DePreta (2014 Man of the Year) and Evelyn Smallwood (2014 Woman of the Year) came away as the big wiinners of the evening, followed in thier fundraising by Alex Perdikis (1st Runner Up for Man of the Year) and Jamie Graham (1st Runner Up for Woman of the Year), and then Blair Nottingham (2nd Runner Up for Woman of the Year) and David Shapiro (2nd Runner Up for Man of the Year).
*Images provided courtesy of LLS
