Gala to Honor VU Coach Jay Wright

The V Foundation for Cancer Research, one of the nation’s leading cancer research fundraising organizations, will honor the head men’s basketball coach for Jay Wright at the Seventh Annual Dick Vitale Gala presented by Mountain Dew. 

The Gala will be held on Friday, May 18 at the Ritz-Carlton in Sarasota, Florida, and will be hosted by ESPN’s Hall of Fame Sportscaster Dick Vitale.

It will also honor former head men’s basketball coach for the University of Maryland Gary Williams, Hall of Fame college football coach Lou Holtz.

Net proceeds for the event will help fund pediatric cancer research.

“Celebrities from the sports world will focus on raising $1 million for pediatric cancer research,” said Vitale. 

“This year’s gala will have a new twist as we will end the evening with music and dancing to the Motown sound of The Spinners. Nothing excites me more than the preparation for my annual Dick Vitale Gala. It is so gratifying to see everyone uniting and demonstrating a keen sense of pride and passion to help raise dollars for kids battling cancer."

Since its inception in 2006, the event has raised over $6.5 million for pediatric cancer research. This year, net proceeds from the Gala will benefit pediatric cancer research initiatives at All Children’s Hospital in St. Petersburg, the Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa and Shands Cancer Center in Gainesville through The V Foundation. The V Foundation has awarded $6.16 million in research grants in the state of Florida.