This year’s Pulse of the City Gala, held on October 22 at the Waldorf=Astoria's historic Starlight Roof, honored a special member of the CRF family, Martin B. Leon, MD. More than 400 guests gathered to pay tribute to Dr. Leon for the decades he has spent mentoring young physicians and educating the interventional cardiology community.
The Gala also honored the accomplishments of the dynamic and growing medical field and highlighted the importance of training the next generation of physicians. The successful event raised more than $750,000 for CRF’s medical research and educational programs to improve the lives of people with cardiovascular disease.
Former New York Mayor Ed Koch along with actress Tovah Feldshuh and her mother, Lilian Feldshuh, were among the guests who dined and danced under the warm glow of the ballroom’s art deco interior. Mrs. Feldshuh received a state-of-the-art transcatheter aortic valve under Dr. Leon's care.
"As my brother would say, every day that she smiles, he thanks God," said Ms. Feldshuh about her mother’s transformation during a special video shown during the evening’s program.
Jeffrey W. Moses, MD, and Gregg W. Stone, MD, presided over the evening as co-chairs, while 2008 Gala honoree Eric A. Rose, MD, served as this year's honorary chair.
"It has meant a lot to me to be able to work with Marty over the last decade or so," said Dr. Stone in his welcoming remarks. "And when I think of what typifies him, I come up with two words: compassion and passion."
Dr. Leon is the founder and chairman emeritus of CRF and serves as associate director of the Center for Interventional Vascular Therapy at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center. Widely regarded as one of the most influential physicians in interventional cardiology, Dr. Leon has performed upwards of 10,000 catheter-based procedures, coauthored over 1,500 publications, acted as principle investigator for more than 25 clinical trials, and guided the early development of stents and transcatheter valves.
