Kenny and Sharon Sonenshine will be honored at the 33rd annual Torch Gala as Volunteers of the Year for their work to raise funds for and awareness of IBD (inflammatory bowel disease), which includes Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis.
“Crohn’s disease can be so emotional,” says Kenny. “When my son Stephen was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease as a freshman in college, it was a blow to our family. Years later, Stephen’s son Dylan was diagnosed at age seven. Steven explains, "My family is the reason that I ultimately got involved with Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation.”
“After marrying Kenny and becoming a member of his family, I learned of Stephen’s struggle with Crohn’s disease,” says Sharon. “I had known no one with Crohn’s and didn’t know too much about it. As years passed and our grandson Dylan started to show signs of the disease, our family realized the impact this disease would have on us. Kenny and I both took this as a challenge to help fight this terrible disease.”
Since 2015, Kenny has chaired the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation’s annual golf classic and has served as a board member for the Georgia chapter of the foundation. Sharon works countless hours behind the scenes on the golf tournament, spearheading everything from the banquet to the set-up of the event each year.
The Torch Gala is the largest fundraiser of the year for the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation’s Georgia Chapter. It is being held on November 4 at 6:30 p.m., at the Intercontinental Buckhead Atlanta.
The goal is to raise $725,000, with proceeds going to better diagnose and ultimately cure IBD, which includes Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. Most people develop the diseases between the ages of 15 and 35.