Lilac Ball 2009 Tops $2 Million

The 2009 Lilac Ball raised more than $2 million and attracted over 1,000 guests to the Waldorf=Astoria Hotel on Monday, June 8. The gala was a tribute to longtime Prep Trustee Ronald Blaylock, Managing Partner at GenNx360 Capital Partners, and to the 134 members of Prep’s high school Class of 2009.  Former NBA stars Alonzo Mourning, Dikembe Mutombo, and Herb Williams were on hand to congratulate both the Honoree and the high school seniors.

 

Blaylock told the assembled guests, “I am truly humbled by this honor. Prep not only holds a special place in my heart; it is a part of my heart.” He encouraged the seniors to “raise their desires and determinations to new heights … and to blaze an uncharted path.” Over 90% of this year’s Prep high school class were admitted to colleges characterized as "Most Competitive" or “Highly Competitive,” according to Barron’s 2009 Profiles of American Colleges.  For the second year in a row, Yale is their number one college of choice, with seven students attending from this year’s class.

 

Since 1986, the Lilac Ball has served as Prep’s keystone event. It not only honors a corporate leader with a commitment to education and young people, but also celebrates the hard work and the acheivements of our high school seniors. Proceeds from the event support Prep’s mission of creating a more diverse national leadership pool by providing New York’s most promising students of color access to a superior education and life-changing opportunities.