Photos courtesy of Martin Regusters, Leaping Lion Photography
The Philadelphia chapter of the United Negro College Fund (UNCF) presented its MASKED Award to Independence Blue Cross (Independence) President and CEO Daniel J. Hilferty at its annual Mayor’s Masked Ball on Saturday, March 18.
The annual event, which raises scholarship dollars for minority students, also honored Julie Coker Graham, president and CEO of the Philadelphia Visitors and Convention Bureau, and Bishop Gregory G.M. Ingram and Rev. Dr. Jessica Ingram, both from the First Episcopal District of the African Methodist Episcopal Church. UNCF chapters bestow the MASKED Award each year to individuals who demonstrate extraordinary commitment to helping children obtain a quality education.
“I am pleased to accept this award on behalf of everyone at Independence Blue Cross,” said Hilferty. “Independence is proud to support the mission and programs of UNCF to make each generation of American leaders more diverse and more representative of this great nation than the generation that came before — Education opens doors, and UNCF is giving out the keys.”
The Mayor’s Masked Ball is UNCF’s signature fundraising event to support students attending UNCF-member colleges and universities and nearly 1,100 other colleges across America. Hosted by a diverse group of corporate sponsors and local businesses, the event involves celebrities, dignitaries, civic leaders, volunteers, public officials, alumni, and others who support UNCF’s mission of investing in better futures for everyone by getting students to and through college. Since its inception in 1944, UNCF has raised more than $4.7 billion and has helped more than 430,000 students attend and graduate college.