Photo Flash: Billboard Honors Light of Day Foundation

Billboard Magazine honored Bob Benjamin and the Light of Day Foundation with the Humanitarian Award last night at the 2014 Billboard Touring Conference & Awards, honoring the concert industry's top artists, venues and professionals of the year. The 11th annual event was held at the Edison Ballroom in New York City and also featured an appearance by Lionel Richie to accept the Legend of Live Award, and a rousing performance by Kool & the Gang to close out the evening. Scroll down for photos!

Benjamin, an artist manager and music industry veteran, has been living with Parkinson's since 1996, two years before he co-founded Light of Day with Tony Pallagrosi president of UMT PRESENTS, and musician Joe D'Urso. Pallagrosi accepted the award last night with Benjamin and fellow board member Jean Mikle.

The Humanitarian Award honors outstanding individuals whose vision and leadership have helped address the world's greatest challenges and make a difference through live entertainment. Light of Day Foundation Founder Bob Benjamin is "thequintessential music fan and he was enthusiastic about the music back when I met him and he's still the same way today," as his friend Bruce Springsteen has said. "He's a great man." Benjamin has roots as a manager and founder of his own label, Schoolhouse Records. After being diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 1996, Benjamin turned his annual birthday celebration into a marquee Asbury Park, NJ music festival raising funds to benefit research into the cure and treatment for Parkinson's disease and ALS. The event has raised more than $2 million since 2000, drawing the biggest names in the industry, including Springsteen, Michael J. Fox and Jakob Dylan. Springsteen has brought the organization international notoriety with surprise appearances in 10 of the previous 14 years.

The Award caps a year in which Benjamin and the Light of Day Foundation raised a record $425,000 at LIGHT OF DAY WINTERFEST 2014 to combat Parkinson's disease, by far the most of any previous year. In honor of the 15th anniversary LIGHT OF DAY WINTERFEST 2015, being held Jan. 9-19, 2015 in Asbury Park with additional shows in New York and North and South Jersey, the push is on to exceed a half million dollars, which would bring the 15-year total above $3 million. LIGHT OF DAY WINTERFEST is the anchor event of a global initiative that brings benefit concerts annually to Canada, Australia, and all throughout Europe.

"The Light of Day Foundation and I are proud to be recognized by the Billboard Touring Conference & Awards," says Benjamin. "Live music has been an inspirational force in my life for nearly 40 years. With the help of the Light of Day board members, we have turned the power of live music into a healing force in the search for a cure for Parkinson's disease. Our concerts in Asbury Park this January will mark our 15th year of bringing people together with live music. We hope to continue rocking the world and raising awareness of Parkinson's disease and related movement disorders for many years to come."

The Billboard Humanitarian Award is the second major honor for the Light of Day Foundation this fall. In October, the non-profit foundation was honored by CurePSP, the foremost organization working toward curing and preventing Parkinson's related diseases such as CBD and PSP. Pallagrosi's mother, Dolores, died in 2002 from the effects of PSP.

LIGHT OF DAY WINTERFEST 2015, presented by the Asbury Park Press, will bring over 150 music acts to 30 venues over 10 days in three New Jersey cities and New York City. Willie Nile, Gary US Bonds, Guy Davis, John Easdale, Joe Grushecky and the Houserockers,Steve Conte NYC (led by the New York Dolls guitarist), James Maddock, John Eddie, Joe D'Urso & Stone Caravan, Billy Hector, Bruce Tunkel, Slim Chance & the Gamblers, and the Billy Walton Band, comprise the first wave of acts to be announced for the Asbury Park shows. Suzanne Vega will be headlining the multi-act New York City event (Jan. 14 at the Cutting Room); Garland Jeffrey's tops the bill for the North Jersey show (Jan. 10 in Montclair), and Dramarama's John Easdale heads the cast for the South Jersey concert (Jan. 9 in Burlington).

Tickets for Light of Day Winterfest 2015 in Asbury Park are available through Ticketmaster (www.ticketmaster.com), Ticketmaster charge-by-phone at 1-800-745-3000, and all Ticketmaster outlets (including select Walmart stores). A wide variety of combination ticket packages -- as well as single tickets to each show -- will be available. Further ticket information and more on the Light of Day Foundation at www.lightofday.org.

Photo Credit: Randex Communications