NARSAD Florida's 11th Annual Sunshine from Darkness Gala at the Sarasota Ritz-Carlton, Sunday evening, Jan. 13, raised more than $600,000 for mental health research, boosting the chapter's fundraising total to more than $4.5 million.

NARSAD Florida honored Emmy Award-winning actor Joe Pantoliano and Mental Health America President David L. Shern each with a Luminary Award at the Jan. 13 black-tie fundraiser for their advocacy of mental health issues in the United States.

Past Luminary Award honorees include journalist Mike Wallace, the late Pulitzer writer Art Buchwald, Broadway star Barbara Cook, Nobel Laureate John Forbes Nash and his wife, Alicia Nash, and Sarasota philanthropist Virginia Toulmin.

Special guests also included Gwill Newman, the first president and a co-founder of NARSAD, NARSAD President Geoff Birkett and film director Joseph Greco. Greco wrote and directed Canvas, which examines the effects of mental illness on a family. Pantoliano produced and co-stars in Canvas. A NARSAD grant supported the release of the film.

Following the Luminary Award presentations and gourmet dinner, the 350 gala guests enjoyed dancing to the Don Juceam Orchestra and a performance by Circus Sarasota quick-change artists Olga and Vladimir Smirnov.

"The long-term devotion of our donors and sponsors warms our hearts and speaks to their enduring belief in NARSAD's mission. "We are overwhelmed by the response of our local donors and sponsors," said Lee Peterson, who co-founded NARSAD Florida with her husband, Robert, in 1996.

Northern Trust, Sarasota Memorial Health Care System, The Observer Group, Scene Magazine and Manatee Memorial Hospital & Health System sponsored NARSAD Florida 2008.

On Saturday, Jan. 12, three of the nation's leading scientists presented their latest research findings on mental illness and brain disorders to an estimated 900 people who attended the NARSAD Florida 2008 Mental Health Research Symposium at the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall in Sarasota. The symposium presenters were:

• Herbert Meltzer, M.D., professor of psychiatry and pharmacology at Vanderbilt University, who discussed "New Research on Effectiveness and Cardiovascular/Metabolic Safety of Antipsychotic Drugs for Schizophrenia and Bipolar Disorder;"
• David Shern, Ph.D., M.H.A., the president and chief executive officer of the Mental Health America, who presented "Recognizing a Competent Service System:  What Does the Science Say?" and,
• James F. Leckman, M.D., the Neison Harris Professor of Child Psychiatry, Psychiatry, Psychology and Pediatrics at Yale University, who discussed his research on "Primary Parental Preoccupations - Revisited: Genes, Circuits and the Crucial Role of Early Experience."