Co-host and singer Tony Orlando (rear center) shares a moment at the 2003 Wings Over Wall Street with the founders of the event, Toni Diamond (front center) and her husband Warren Schiffer, as well as Theresa Beier (rear left), widow of former Wings Chairman Michael Beier. Photo courtesy of Jim Bulgatz Photography.
Actor William Baldwin at the 2002 Wings Over Wall Street with the late Michael Beier and family

New Yorkers will again join to raise money for MDA's ALS research program at the 2004 Wings Over Wall Street.

The fourth annual Wings gala will be held from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Sept. 29 at the New York Marriott Marquis in New York's Times Square. The event is a VIP cocktail reception featuring live, silent, and research-minute auctions.

The Wings event is a favorite of the financial and Wall Street communities, and has raised more than $3.6 million since its inception in 2001.

The 2003 event raised over $1 million for MDA's ALS Division, and was highlighted by several celebrity appearances, including those of actor and event host William Baldwin, singer Tony Orlando, and baseball great David Cone.

This year's Wings event will include presentations of three awards to honor some of those heavily engaged in the battle against ALS.

Andrew T. Knipe of Oceanside, N.Y., will receive the Spirit Award, an honor given to those with outstanding commitment to finding a cure for ALS. Knipe, senior vice president and creative director of the advertising agency BBDO, received a diagnosis of ALS in 2000.

Knipes' efforts to promote ALS awareness include producing six film tributes on notable sports figures as a fund-raiser for ALS awareness. His life with ALS was the subject of a feature on ABC's "Good Morning America."

David Memmott of Rumson, N.J., will receive the Michael P. Beier Award for motivating others to find a cure. The award is named in honor of former Wings Chairman Michael Beier, who was a longtime friend of Memmott's and died of ALS in 2003 at age 40.

Memmott is managing director at Morgan Stanley, and a key member of the event's organizing committee.

Stanley H. Appel is the recipient of the Diamond Award, given to a scientific leader dedicated to the eradication of ALS. Appel, a member of MDA's Board of Directors, is professor and chairman of the Neurology Department at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, and is director of the Ronny & Linda Finger MDA/ALS Center and the Vicki Appel Neuromuscular Clinic (named for his late wife) at Baylor.

The Diamond award is named for Wings event founder Toni Diamond, a former United Airlines flight attendant with ALS.

To purchase tickets for the 2004 Wings Over Wall Street, call (212) 689-9040, or visit www.wingsoverwallstreet.org.