amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research, will honor Dionne Warwick and Dee Ocleppo Hilfiger during its third annual fundraising gala in Palm Beach on March 2. The event will take place at the private residence of event chairs James and Lisa Cohen. Julianna Margulies will be the evening’s host, while seventeen-time Grammy Award-winning artist Sting will give a special performance at the event. Actress and singer Amber Riley will also perform a tribute for honoree Dionne Warwick.
The swanky event will include a cocktail reception, a seated dinner, a live auction of contemporary art and luxury experiences, and award presentations.
Inspired to act because of the loss of her valet to AIDS very early in the epidemic, Warwick embarked on a remarkable lifelong journey of activism. In 1985, Warwick invited Elton John, Gladys Knight, and Stevie Wonder to join her in a collaborative rendition of the song “That’s What Friends Are For” as a fundraiser for amfAR. All four artists, as well as songwriters Burt Bacharach and Carole Bayer Sager, donated every cent generated by the recording, which raised millions of dollars for AIDS research.
Philanthropist and activist Dee Ocleppo Hilfiger has actively supported a range of important social and humanitarian causes, including amfAR and several organizations focused on autism. She serves on the boards of the Breast Cancer Research Foundation and GLAM4GOOD, a nonprofit that empowers underserved communities through fashion and beauty. Ocleppo Hilfiger will receive amfAR’s Philanthropic Leadership Award, to be presented by celebrated filmmaker and fashion designer, Tom Ford.
For more information about the organization, visit amfar.org.
