The National Multiple Sclerosis Society’s 35th Annual Dinner of Champions to Honor Summit Entertainment’s Rob Friedman

Dinner to be held Wednesday, September 16, 2009

LOS ANGELES, April 16 /PRNewswire/ — Rob Friedman, Co-Chairman and CEO, Summit Entertainment, will be honored at the 35th annual Dinner of Champions, sponsored by and benefiting the Southern California Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. The gala event will take place on Wednesday, September 16, 2009 at the Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles. The event raises funds that support National MS Society’s vital programs and services to improve the quality of life for the MS community, as well as cutting-edge research worldwide for better treatments and a cure.

Under the guidance of Chair Tom Sherak, the Dinner of Champions has raised $37 million in the last 16 years. Sherak will once again chair the 2009 Dinner. Commenting on this year’s event, he said, “Rob Friedman actively volunteers and supports numerous local charities, including efforts to benefit the MS community. I have known Robbie as a friend and colleague for over twenty five years. He honors me, my family and all who suffer with MS by accepting this honor.” Previous honorees have included such distinguished individuals as Sir Howard Stringer, Steven Hilton, Peter Chernin, Joe Roth, Amy Pascal, Jim Gianopulos, Bob and Harvey Weinstein, Tom Rothman, Michael Lynton, Rob Moore and most recently Oren Aviv.

The Dinner of Champions makes an enormous contribution in the movement to end multiple sclerosis, not only in raising funds for research, programs and services, but also in raising awareness about MS itself. With the continuing commitment of its supporters, especially the unprecedented generosity within the entertainment community, the Southern California Chapter’s “Dinner of Champions” has become the most successful Dinner held by any chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. Last year’s event raised $2.5 million.

Multiple sclerosis affects 2.5 million people worldwide. MS interrupts the flow of information from the brain to the body and stops people from moving. It is a chronic, often disabling disease that affects people in the prime of their lives, targeting twice as many women as men. The progress, severity and specific symptoms of MS in any one person cannot yet be predicted, but advances in research and treatment are giving hope to those living with the disease.

The National Multiple Sclerosis Society, established in 1946, supports more MS research, offers more services for people with MS, provides more professional education programs, and furthers more MS advocacy efforts than any other MS organization in the world. The Southern California Chapter serves 14,500 people living with MS plus their loved ones in Los Angeles, Ventura, Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Kern, San Bernardino, Riverside, Inyo, Fresno, Kings, Madera and Tulare counties.

MS stops people from moving. We exist to make sure it doesn’t.

For additional information about the “Dinner of Champions,” please call Olivia Wu or Pamela Thompson, NMSS at 310-479-4456. Donations can be made to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Southern California Chapter, 2440 S. Sepulveda Blvd., Suite 115, Los Angeles, CA90064.

SOURCE The National Multiple Sclerosis Society