NORWALK, CT - Olympic gold medalists Donna deVarona of Greenwich and Rafer Johnson of Los Angeles will be Guests of Honor at “One Golden Night” Le Bal d ’Ecole 2011, a black-tie fundraiser to benefit Norwalk Community College scholarships, student success and academic advancement.
Hosted by the NCC Foundation, the gala will be held at 6 p.m. on Saturday, October 29, 2011, adjacent to the new Center for Science, Health and Wellness on the West Campus of Norwalk Community College.
The theme of Le Bal d ‘Ecole 2011 is “One Golden Night” in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the founding of Norwalk Community College. NCC was established on September 21, 1961 as the first community college in Connecticut.
Approximately 500 guests are expected to attend Le Bal d’ Ecole, which will include a cocktail reception, dinner, dancing and a live auction. The biennial fundraiser has been held every two years since 1993. Since then, the event has raised more than $6 million in support of NCC, its students and faculty.
Donna deVarona
Donna deVarona, a Greenwich resident, won two gold medals in swimming at the Tokyo Olympic Games in 1964 at the age of 17. The same year, she was named the Most Outstanding Woman Athlete in the World by the Associated Press and the United Press International. She went on to become an award-winning journalist and a major force in shaping the face of women’s sports as the first president of the Women’s Sports Foundation. She is President of DAMAR Productions, a marketing, consulting and events advisory company.
In 1960, at age 13, deVarona qualified for her first Olympic swimming team. She already held the world record in the 400-meter (m) individual medley (IM), her specialty, but the event would not be added to the Olympic schedule until the 1964. In Rome, she competed in the trials of the 4X 100m freestyle relay, which in the finals, captured the Olympic gold medal.
Four years later, after she was well on her way to setting a career total of 18 world-best-times and world records, deVarona won Olympic gold medals in the 400 m (IM) besting her competition by a margin of six seconds and setting an Olympic record. She also earned a second gold medal as a member of the world record setting 4X 100 freestyle relay team.
In 1964, after having graced the covers of Sports Illustrated, Look and Life magazines, deVarona was voted the “Most Outstanding Woman Athlete in the World” by the Associated Press and United Press International.
In the 1960’s, deVarona retired from her sport and began her journey into the male dominated world of sports broadcasting. At the age of 17, she appeared on ABC’s “Wide World of Sports,” becoming the youngest and one of the first women sportscasters for a national network. Her groundbreaking career has earned her an Emmy, two Gracies and the opportunity to cover a wide variety of sports events including 17 winter and summer Olympic games.
A promoter of women in sport, in the mid-1970’s deVarona joined Billie Jean King in establishing the Women’s Sports Foundation.
She is a member of the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame and recipient of the Olympic Order, the highest honor presented by the International Olympic Committee. In 1999, Sports Illustrated for Women ranked her on its list of the “100 Greatest Athletes.” In 2004, deVarona was inducted into the Women’s Hall of Fame in Seneca Falls, NY.
Rafer Johnson
Rafer Johnson is a two-time Olympic medalist, humanitarian and philanthropist.
He won the gold medal in decathlon at the 1960 Olympic Games in Rome, where he was captain and flag bearer of the USA Team. He also won the silver medal in the decathlon in the 1956 Olympic Games in Melbourne.
Johnson was selected to light the Olympic Cauldron to open the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games. He was the founder of the Special Olympics Southern California chapter and is a member of the National Track and Field and U.S. Olympic Halls of Fame. He was Sports Illustrated magazine’s 1960 “Athlete of the Year.”
Along with a small group of volunteers, Johnson founded California Special Olympics in 1969 by conducting a competition at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum for 900 individuals with disabilities. His involvement in Special Olympics began the year before, when he attended the first Special Olympics competition, conducted by Special Olympics founder Eunice Kennedy Shriver.
After the first California games in 1969, Johnson became one of the original members of the Special Olympics Board of Directors. He was elected president of the organization and served in that capacity until July 1992, when he was named Chairman of the Board of Governors. Johnson played an integral part in bringing the 2015 Special Olympics World Summer Games to Los Angeles.
He and his wife Betsy reside in Southern California. His son, Josh, was a Javelin Thrower for UCLA and his daughter Jenny competed at the 2000 Sydney Games in Beach Volleyball.
Le Bal d’ Ecole Tickets
Individual tickets to Le Bal d ‘Ecole range from $300 to $2,500 each; and opportunities for corporate sponsorship begin at $2,500.
The Norwalk Community College Foundation, Inc. is a 501 (c) (3) corporation that raises funds for the benefit of Norwalk Community College, its students and faculty, to further the college’s mission of providing comprehensive, innovative and affordable learning opportunities to diverse populations throughout southwestern Connecticut. Donations to the Foundation provide student scholarships, finance capital projects, improve academic advancement and develop community initiatives in Fairfield County.
