Gospel Concert Raises $127,797 for Maya Angelou Research Center

January 6, 2005

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – A gospel music concert sponsored by Oprah Winfrey and Maya Angelou in November raised $127,797 for the Maya Angelou Research Center on Minority Health at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center. Proceeds from the concert will be used to fund the research center’s endowment.

Nearly 2500 people attended the concert by singer Joshua Nelson on Nov. 26 at St. Peter’s World Outreach Center.

“We were delighted with the amount of support from the public and area corporations,” said Kristy F. Woods, M.D., director of the center. “In addition to the ticket sales, cash contributions and corporate sponsorships, we received a tremendous number of in-kind gifts and services that made the fund raiser possible.”

At a private reception following the event, artist Jon Kuhn presented Winfrey with a glass sculpture valued at $26,000. Kuhn, who lives in Winston-Salem, donated the sculpture to the research center for the fund-raising event. One of the leading glass artists in the world, his works are featured in the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the White House permanent collection.

The Maya Angelou Research Center on Minority Health was established to close the gap in health, quality of life, and lifespan differences between minority populations and the general population. It is a collaborative effort between Wake Forest University, its medical school, Winston-Salem State University, and Forsyth County.

The research center’s focus includes advancing research on health issues affecting minorities, developing health care approaches based on research findings, promoting medical career development among underrepresented minorities, and providing outreach programs and national symposia to promote these objectives.

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Media Contacts: Jim Steele, jsteele@wfubmc.edu, Shannon Koontz, shkoontz@wfubmc.edu, or Karen Richardson, krchrdsn@wfubmc.edu, at (336)716-4587.

About Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center: Wake Forest Baptist is an academic health system comprised of North Carolina Baptist Hospital and Wake Forest University Health Sciences, which operates the university’s School of Medicine. The system comprises 1,298 acute care, psychiatric, rehabilitation and long-term care beds and is consistently ranked as one of “America’s Best Hospitals” by U.S. News & World Report.

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