2024 celebrity guest list set for Derby Eve Gala benefiting UK's Barnstable Brown Diabetes Center
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (April 29, 2024) – It is Derby Week in Kentucky and that means dozens of celebrities are heading to Louisville’s Churchill Downs - many of them spending Friday night at the Barnstable Brown Kentucky Derby Eve Gala.
The gala benefits UK HealthCare’s Barnstable Brown Diabetes Center to help combat a disease that disproportionally affects Kentucky. The center was established in 2008 by twin sisters Patricia Barnstable Brown and Priscilla Barnstable along with their late mother, Wilma. Together, they pledged the initial funding to support the center in memory of Patricia Barnstable Brown’s husband, David, who passed away in 2003 from complications of diabetes.
“Support from the Barnstable Brown family has allowed for rapid growth of the Barnstable Brown Diabetes Center. The need for specialized care is greater than ever," said Simon Fisher, M.D., Ph.D., director of the Barnstable Brown Diabetes Center. "The number of patients seen at the Barnstable Brown has doubled in the past few years. Each year we are seeing nearly 25,000 Kentuckians receive specialized medical care at Barnstable Brown.”
The gala is internationally recognized as the “premier” Kentucky Derby gala and counted among the “10 Best Parties in the World” by Condé Nast. Organizers are proud of the celebrity lineup making up the guest list for their 35th annual gala.
- Cole Hauser
- Kid Rock
- Tracy Morgan
- Aaron Rodgers
- Josh Groban
- Sheryl Lee Ralph
- Smokey Robinson
- Jack Harlow
- Wynonna Judd
- Tina Knowles
- Daryl "DMC" McDaniels
- Clay Walker
- Boyz II Men
- Joey Fatone
- Bobby Brown
- Lee Brice
- Pepa of Salt N' Pepa
- Mickey Guyton
- Travis Tritt
- Eddie Montgomery
- Doug E. Fresh
- Billy Gilman
- Stephen Amell
- Devante Adams
- Randall Cobb
- Larry and Dannielynn Birkhead
- Holly Robinson Peete
- Jordan Smith
- Nappy Roots
- Martha MacCullun
- Natalie McQueen
- A.J. Hawk
The star-studded bash is held at the Louisville, Kentucky home of Patricia Barnstable Brown. “Our historic 35th year will be extraordinary,” said Patricia. “We’re so excited to celebrate with all of our friends!”
UK HealthCare is the hospitals and clinics of the University of Kentucky. But it is so much more. It is more than 10,000 dedicated health care professionals committed to providing advanced subspecialty care for the most critically injured and ill patients from the Commonwealth and beyond. It also is the home of the state’s only National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center, a Level IV Neonatal Intensive Care Unit that cares for the tiniest and sickest newborns, the region’s only Level 1 trauma center and Kentucky’s top hospital ranked by U.S. News & World Report.
As an academic research institution, we are continuously pursuing the next generation of cures, treatments, protocols and policies. Our discoveries have the potential to change what’s medically possible within our lifetimes. Our educators and thought leaders are transforming the health care landscape as our six health professions colleges teach the next generation of doctors, nurses, pharmacists and other health care professionals, spreading the highest standards of care. UK HealthCare is the power of advanced medicine committed to creating a healthier Kentucky, now and for generations to come.