February 25 & 26, 2006
Third Annual Mission Possible Gala & Symposium
Washington, D.C.

View summaries of symposium presentations

NARSAD hosted its third annual Mission Possible gala and symposium in Washington, D.C., on February 25 and 26, offering up a full weekend of art, celebration and science.

The weekend opened on Saturday with a champagne reception and gala evening of dinner and dancing at the magnificent Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium. The evening featured a silent auction of riveting paintings from NARSAD Artworks and a raffle, which included the grand prize of a silver pearl necklace with matching stud earrings courtesy of Adeler Jewelers.



NARSAD’s Paul Wellstone Leadership Award was presented to former First Lady Rosalynn Carter for her ongoing commitment to educational mental health symposia and to Oregon Senator Gordon Smith for his work in promoting mental health awareness and enhancing suicide-prevention efforts through better education and improved outreach services. The award was established in 2005 in memory of the late Minnesota senator Paul Wellstone, who actively supported mental illness legislation throughout his career.

Frank Sesno, vice president and Washington bureau chief for CNN, generously emceed the event, which raised $618,000 for NARSAD. The chairs of NARSAD’s Washington, D.C. committee were Sheila and Tom Rabaut and Wendy Adeler-Hall and Greg Hall.



On Sunday afternoon, a free public symposium on childhood brain and behavior disorders took place at George Washington University’s Lisner Auditorium. The symposium, which was moderated by Dr. Thomas Insel, director of the National Institute of Mental Health and a former member of NARSAD’s Scientific Council, featured nationally recognized experts who spoke on current developments in the understanding and treatment of such childhood disorders as autism, eating disorders, bipolar disorder, anxiety and depression. Click here to read a detailed summary of the symposium presentations.