Westwood Resident Honored At Joslin's High Hopes Gala

Will Matthews, 13, of Westwood was recently honored with the 2018 Spotlight on Hope Award at Joslin Diabetes Center’s black tie High Hopes Gala. More than 500 supporters gathered at the Westin Copley Hotel for the fête, including Red Sox legend Jason Varitek and NBC Boston’s J.C. Monahan, both of whom have a family connection to diabetes. Varitek showed off his World Series ring and gave a signed baseball to Matthews, who is a patient at Joslin, and shared how diabetes as a cause “hits home” for him, as both of Varitek’s parents were diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and his brother is living with type 1. The event, which raised over 1.5 million dollars for Joslin’s High Hopes Fund, was also attended by Dr. Peter S. Amenta, President and CEO of Joslin Diabetes Center, and his wife Edna, Billy Costa of Kiss 108, Jerry Rossi of The TJX Companies, Dale Pyatt, President and CEO of Jay Cashman, Inc. and Massachusetts Health and Human Services Secretary Marylou Sudders, among others.