JACKSON, MS (Mississippi News Now) -
How do you raise money to battle a devastating illness? Roast a celebrity, of course. And the man on the hot seat Friday night was second district Congressman Bennie Thompson.
It's the annual gala called "An Enchanted Evening with the Sickle Cell Stars" Celebrity Roast.
Sickle cell disease affects thousands of Mississippians each day.
Pat Brunson is Chairperson of the Mississippi Sickle Cell Foundation.
"We are here to bring awareness to the public about sickle cell. There is about three thousand people living in the state of Mississippi with the disease. There is about one in five hundred African Americans in the us with sickle cell," said Brunson.
The gala event was held at the Country Club of Jackson and included a silent auction followed by special recognition of Congressman Thompson.
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