Nashville CARES honors exceptional contributions at Community Appreciation Celebration

James Grady
17 August 2021

Nashville CARES held a Community Appreciation Celebration event at Fat Bottom Brewery on August 10, 2021. Local businesses, foundations, community partners, donors, volunteers and staff were recognized for their generous contributions to Nashville CARES.

L-R Dr Christopher Ott Board Chair - Patrick Lee of Gilead - Amna Osman CEO

Community Appreciation Celebration honorees

Some of the honorees included:

  • The Iris Buhl Philanthropy Award was created in 2020 to celebrate Iris Buhl’s legacy and generosity. This year’s award goes to Anne Carr., a former Board President, fundraiser, and event attendee. She has donated more than $85,000 since 1993.
  • The Emerging Excellence Award honors an organization who has been a new and strong supporter of CARES. AllianceBernstein was awarded for contributing more than $22,000 since partnering with the agency in 2019.
  • The Impact Excellence Award honors a longtime supporter of CARES. This year Gilead Sciences was awarded for contributing $360,000 since 2004.
  • The Community Partner Award was awarded to Dell Technologies who has consistently engaged with CARES through individual and group volunteering initiatives, employee giving and event sponsorship and participation. They have donated over $30,000 since 2005.
  • Dining Out For Life Legacy Award presented to Suzy Wong’s House of Yum. They have participated in Dining Out For Life since 2003 and have donated over $62,000 to Nashville CARES.
  • The Thomas J Powell Award is given in memory of Nashville CARES founder, Tommy Powell, to honor his work as founder and volunteer. This year’s award goes to Ron Balcarras, a Senior Project Manager at Deloitte, serves Nashville CARES as an active board member, and is an advocate in the community. He not only is a passionate fundraiser, he has personally donated more than $30,000 since 2005.

Other awards given at the Community Appreciation Celebration included top AIDS Walk fundraisers, longevity awards for staff and volunteers and staff achievement awards.

L-R Dr Christopher Ott Board Chair - Beth-Ann Martorello of AllianceBernstein - Amna Osman CEO

“We are so appreciative of the Middle Tennessee community who supports our work in moving the needle toward ending the HIV epidemic,” says Amna Osman, Nashville CARES CEO. “We have the ability in our lifetime to see the HIV epidemic END and these awards honor those ambassadors who have made this reality possible. We look forward to our continued partnership as we further this critical work of bringing inclusion and equity to healthcare in our community.”