Napa in Newport Raises $1 Million to Help Find a Cure for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–#CureDuchenne–More than 400 people gathered at the Ritz-Carlton on Saturday, March 4,
to enjoy the nectar of top Napa Valley wineries and help find a cure for
Duchenne muscular dystrophy. The third annual Napa
in Newport
wine auction, powered by Karma, raised $1 million to
support CureDuchenne’s
mission to extend and improve the lives of those affected by Duchenne, a
fatal genetic disease that causes muscle degeneration in children,
typically boys. Those with Duchenne often lose their ability to walk by
their mid-teens and the disease claims their lives by their mid-20s.
Over the years, CureDuchenne has become the force behind considerable
advances in Duchenne treatment, made possible by the help of gracious
supporters. At this time, there is no cure for Duchenne.

The deLeuze Family of ZD
Wines
served as honorary chair for this year’s sold-out Napa in
Newport event. Founded in 1969, ZD Wines is committed to crafting wines
of quality, consistency, and style. Other participating wineries
included Anomaly
Vineyards
, Arkenstone,
Arrow&Branch,
Blackbird
Vineyards
, BOND
Estates
, Bure
Family Wines
, Continuum
Estate
, Crocker
& Starr
, Darioush,
David
Arthur Vineyards
, Davis
Estates
, Fairchild
Napa Valley
, Fait-Main
Wines
, Freemark
Abbey Winery
, Gandona
Estate
, Gemstone
Vineyard
, Handwritten
Wines
, Hill
Family Estate
, Hundred
Acre
, Italics
Winegrowers
, JCB
by Jean-Charles Boisset
, Joseph
Phelps Vineyards
, Melka
Wines
, Memento
Mori Winery
, Morlet
Family Vineyards
, Nellcôte,
PATEL
Napa Valley
, Quintessa,
Realm
Cellars
, Relic
Wine Cellars
, Reynolds
Family Winery
, Sodhani
Vineyards
, Sojourn
Cellars
, St.
Supéry Estate Vineyards & Winery
, Truchard
Vineyards
, Trujillo
Wines
, and Vineyard
29
.

Napa in Newport featured a meal created exclusively for the occasion by
Chef Amar Santana of the celebrated Broadway
by Amar Santana
and Vaca
restaurants. The dinner included a trio of baby Heirloom beets; crisp
pear, candied walnuts, goat cheese, cocoa nib vinaigrette; blue cheese
crusted filet mignon; smoked carrots, bordelaise sauce, curry granola;
bourbon vanilla bean panna cotta; and Tarragon gel, compressed
strawberries and chocolate pearls. Chef Amar has traveled the world
collecting inspiration and accolades, including a position in the final
round of Bravo’s Top Chef. A private dinner with Chef Amar Santana with
wine pairings at Broadway by Amar Santana was auctioned off at the event.

The live auction also featured luxury travel experiences, rarely
available wines and custom, once-in-a-lifetime Napa Valley experiences.
Wine auction items included a vintner premier collection of more than 30
large format bottles of wine; St. Supéry and Davis Estates weekend that
included a Formula 3 Racing experience; a day at the vineyard with famed
winemaker Luc Morlet at Morlet Family Vineyards; a tasting at Vueve
Clicquot and stay in a castle in Champagne, France; and VIP passes to
the ZD Abacus winter wine escape.

As great wine and good company surrounded guests throughout the night,
they were reminded of the true reason behind the event when Hawken
Miller, a 20-year-old affected by Duchenne, took the stage. Hawken
shared with the audience his experience battling Duchenne and how the
disease has progressively made life more difficult.

“Just 10 years ago, I could play handball with my friends. Now I’m
afraid that if I walk too far I might fall,” said Hawken. “Simple
things, like getting out of a chair, making my bed, getting dressed, and
writing have gotten harder and harder. I fall more frequently, and
that’s one of the hardest parts of the disease. It makes me feel
helpless. Being 20 years old with Duchenne is scary. I’m not supposed to
have lived this long. The worst part is I don’t know how long I have
left.”

The event also featured an impactful video
that featured another young man with Duchenne, Jack Wolf, who joined
Hawken on stage.

Debra Miller, Hawken’s mother and CureDuchenne founder and CEO,
explained that every day the Duchenne community loses two people to this
ravaging disease. As the search for a cure continues, CureDuchenne
provided early funding for the first FDA approved drug to treat Duchenne.

“Our successes over the past year remind us how much we can accomplish
together. With the first treatments available, we are one step closer to
our mission of finding a cure for Duchenne, but we have a long way to
go,” said Miller.

The proceeds of the event will fund gene
editing
research that could be transformational for Duchenne
patients. It would be a one-time treatment using CRISPR/Cas9 technology
that would make a permanent correction of the mutation that causes
Duchenne.

Sponsors for Napa in Newport included Karma Automotive, 55°, Broadway by
Amar Santana, Fullmer Construction, Golden West Food Group, Integrated
Oncology Network, Kenny the Printer, Marathon Pharmaceuticals, Small
Luxury Hotels, UnionBanc Investment Services, Vaca, Wells Fargo, WHGC,
and ZD Wines.

About CureDuchenne

CureDuchenne is the leading nonprofit focused on funding research to
find a cure for Duchenne muscular dystrophy, a disease that affects more
than 300,000 boys worldwide. CureDuchenne’s mission is to extend and
improve the lives of those affected by Duchenne. With support from
CureDuchenne, nine research projects have advanced to human clinical
trials. CureDuchenne provides the Duchenne community with resources on
the best standard of care through its CureDuchenne Cares program. For
more information, please visit CureDuchenne.org
and follow us on Facebook,
Twitter,
Instagram
and YouTube.

Contacts

CureDuchenne
Karen Harley, 949-872-2552

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