Grammy Winner Jermaine Dupri and Actress Lynn Whitfield Join UNCF’s Virtual Mayor’s Masked Ball
ATLANTA – While the pandemic has much of the world on lockdown, the adage, “the show must go on,” requires innovation that keeps audiences and supporters interested and in touch with their favorite events and programs, and when it comes to educational programs that support the future of our youth, The Mayor’s Masked Ball is the hottest ticket in December.
The 37th Annual Ball, scheduled for December 19th at 6 p.m., is Atlanta’s premiere fund-raising gala benefitting UNCF-member institutions, and is designed to raise public awareness and generate large corporate and individual donations to support deserving students through UNCF. This year’s event will be presented in a virtual customized platform. Ticket holders will have access to the ball via the digital platform.
“2020 has been a challenging year, so much has changed but our mission has remained the same,” states Justine Boyd, UNCF’s Regional Development Director. “The Mayor’s Masked Ball has always been our largest event of the year. Creating an experience that would bring the familiarity of the “live” ball with the comfort and safety of a large gathering was the challenge. The Virtual even this year will bring that familiarity but also some new experiences that guests will remember for many years to come,” adds Boyd.
Atlanta’s Mayor, Keisha Lance Bottoms, alumnae of Florida A&M will once again host the event. Emmy and NAACP Image Award winner, Lynn Whitfield, from the hit series Greenleaf seen on the Oprah Winfrey Network will be the Mistress of Ceremony. Entertainment will be provided by Grammy Winner Jermaine Dupri with Special Performances by 105 Voices of History HBCU National Concert “Virtual” Choir (Renata “Toni” Roy, Founder and Executive Director); and Timothy Boyd Miller, Vocalist, (Morehouse College Alumnus and Assistant Professor of Voice).
Co-chairs for the event are Charles Johnson, Managing Director, Truist Securities and Andrea Carter, Senior Executive Vice President, Chief Human Resources Officer, Global Payments. The Billye Suber Aaron Masked Award Honors will go to Helen Smith Price, retired Vice President, Global Community Affairs and President, The Coca Cola Foundation, and Eduardo Martinez, retired President, the UPS Foundation, UPS Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer.
The Balls’ Presenting Sponsor is Chick-Fil-A. Marquis Sponsors include Coca-Cola, Home Depot, Truist Securities, Global Payments and UPS. Tickets are $750 and the dress code for this virtual experience includes anything from Glam PJs to gowns and tuxedos.
The Mayor’s Masked Ball founded by Billye Aaron, wife of baseball great Hank Aaron and Ambassador Andrew Young, former Mayor of Atlanta, is hosted by a diverse group of corporate sponsors and local businesses and involves celebrities, dignitaries, civil leaders, public officials, alumni and others who support UNCF’s mission of investing in Better Futures for us all by getting students to and through college.
The fund-raising success of The Mayor’s Masked Ball over the years has enabled thousands of students to receive financial support to complete their studies. There are 37 UNCF schools; four are located in Atlanta (Clark Atlanta University, Spelman College, Morehouse College and interdenominational Theological Center Paine College in Augusta. During the 2019-20 school year, UNCF Atlanta awarded 700 students over $9 million in scholarships.
For more information, visit UNCF.org/Atlanta or call 404.302.8623.
About UNCF
UNCF (the United Negro College Fund) is the nation’s largest and most effective minority education organization. To serve youth, the community and the nation, UNCF supports students’ education and development through scholarships and other programs, supports and strengthens its 37 member colleges and universities, and advocates for the importance of minority education and college readiness. UNCF institutions and other historically black colleges and universities are highly effective, awarding 21 percent of African American baccalaureate degrees. UNCF administers more than 400 programs, including scholarship, internship and fellowship, mentoring, summer enrichment, and curriculum and faculty development programs. Today, UNCF supports more than 60,000 students at over 1,100 colleges and universities across the country. Its logo features the UNCF torch of leadership in education and its widely recognized trademark, ‟A mind is a terrible thing to waste.”® Learn more at UNCF.org or for continuous updates and news follow UNCF on Twitter at @UNCF.
