The Danny Fund, a charity dedicated to helping families with children who struggle from serious illness or injuries, will host its 32nd annual gala fundraiser tomorrow night, February 7, at the Surf Club in New Rochelle. This year’s honorees are Michael Volpe, former mayor of the Village of Pelham, and Philip Kiamie, a lifelong resident who has supported the fund since its inception.

In a town that prides itself on its high level of community support, the Danny Fund occupies a special place. The charity takes its name from Danny Potocki, who was diagnosed at the age of four in 1992 with a rare and fatal form of leukemia. Over the following year, a number of local groups, including the Pelham Civics, the Junior League, the Girl Scouts, the Knights of Columbus and others, joined forces to raise money for Danny’s family to pay for an experimental treatment at Memorial Sloan Kettering, according to the charity’s website .

Danny was in remission by the time he began kindergarten at Colonial Elementary School. He thrived in school and beyond and today is the proud father of two healthy daughters, according to the website. Since then, the Danny Fund has supported multiple families who struggle to get proper treatment for their children in need.

Phillip Kiamie has been a donor to the Danny Fund  since the beginning. “For the past 30 years my family real estate company, Kiamie Corp., has made annual financial contributions, and I have donated my band to perform at every annual gala fundraiser.”

Kiamie plays the drums in his band–the Phillip James Orchestra– and loves performing each year. “It is a huge honor to be able to help a legendary philanthropic organization, which has a fantastic track record of saving and improving lives,” he said.

In 1940, Kiamie’s grandmother bought a home on Jackson Avenue in Pelham Manor. The house had 25 rooms so three Kiamie families were able to reside there all at once. Since then, three generations of the Kiamie family have grown up in Pelham. Kiamie said that his family loves the town.

His son Phillip Kiamie Jr. joined the  family’s property management business after serving as a sergeant first class in the US Army. The younger Kiamie has also put down deep roots in the community, raising his family in town and volunteering with the Pelham Civics and American Legion Post 50.

When asked about how he felt to be honored at the annual gala, the elder Kiamie stated, ” The Danny Fund is important to my family because of its legendary history of saving and improving lives. I am overwhelmed to be honored. My goal is to keep helping this great organization.”

Tomorrow’s fundraiser won’t be just about the Kiamie family.  Michael Volpe, who served on Pelham’s Town Council and was a trustee in the Village of Pelham before being elected mayor in 2015, will also be honored.  Volpe has been an active member of the Pelham Civics for three decades, founded the Hooperstown basketball program in Mt. Vernon and was honored by the Pelham Civics in 2022.

Volpe is delighted to support the charity. “The Danny Fund is important to my family and I because we are good friends with Potocki family,” he said. “Our kids went to school together and it was our lifelong honor to help them through their trying time and assist and support other Danny Fund families through their trying times.”