The Women’s Dinner Party 2009

More than 1,000 lesbians, transgender and bisexual women and their friends and supporters turned out on March 14, 2009 to make the 18th annual Women’s Dinner Party a huge success.  More than $600,000 in cash, pledges and in-kind support was raised to support care and services at Fenway Health, a record for the Women’s Dinner Party. 

Started in 1992, The Women’s Dinner Party helps ensure that every woman who comes through Fenway’s doors has access to high-quality, culturally competent care, regardless of ability to pay.

Comedian Lily Tomlin received the Dr. Susan M. Love Award, which recognizes an individual and/or organization that has made a major contribution to the field of women’s health. The Love Award is given in honor of its founding recipient, Dr. Susan M. Love, a pioneer in the fields of women’s health and breast cancer. Love helped found the Revlon/UCLA Breast Center in 1992 and currently heads up the Dr. Susan Love Research Foundation which is dedicated to eradicating breast cancer.

Lily Tomlin is one of the best-loved women in America.   Born in Detroit, she has won -- over a 40-year career -- two Tonys, two Peabodys, six Emmys, a Grammy, the Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle awards, an Oscar nomination, plus the Mark Twain Prize for American humor.

Lily and her partner, Jane Wagner, are also committed to furthering the cause of LGBT health generally and women’s health in particular.  Lily was instrumental in the campaign to build Fenway’s 7 Haviland Street home--the Goosebump Garden there was named in her honor.  Lily is a member of Fenway’s Board of Visitors, and she and Jane are National Honorary Co-Chairs of Fenway’s 10 Stories capital campaign. 

Lily Tomlin joined emcee Kate Clinton on stage during the program’s live auction, putting on a show that had the audience in stitches and helped fuel the evening’s record-breaking fundraising success.

We’d like to thank all of our Table Captains and Event Team, our corporate sponsors, Lily Tomlin, Kate Clinton, Dr. Susan Love and DJ Kristin Korpos.  And we’d especially like to thank Keri Aulita and Katherine Truscott, our Event Chairs, and Katherine Patrick, Honorary Event Chair, who were the driving force behind the success of this year’s Women’s Dinner Party.  We also want to acknowledge Fenway’s Women’s Health team, who went out of their way to support our efforts.

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