On Saturday, May 6, philanthropic Atlanta residents raised nearly $850,000 for the Alzheimer's Association, Georgia Chapter at Dancing Stars of Atlanta. The event took place at the Cobb Galleria Centre and mirrored the popular TV show Dancing with the Stars, pairing local Atlanta residents with professional dancers to raise money by gaining votes in a one-night gala dance competition.

Star dancer Teri Schneider and professional dancer Matthew Gann took home the Judges' Choice Award after earning a perfect score of 30/30, while star dancer Suzanne Dansby with professional dancer Jay Varnedoe took home the People's Choice Award for raising the most money, totaling over $170,000. In total, the 13 Georgia-based celebrities collectively raised nearly $850,000.

"It was an honor to dance for the Georgia Chapter of the Alzheimer's Association in Dancing Stars of Atlanta," said People's Choice Winner Suzanne Dansby. "When they announced that I had won the People's Choice Award, I was dumbfounded! I was even more stunned when I heard I also raised the most money of any individual dancer to date. It could not have happened without the support of loving family members, friends, and longtime contributors to this organization. Although each one of us dancers worked so hard individually for months, we came together that evening as a team for the common goal of helping take a step closer in research for the prevention and cure of Alzheimer's disease," added Dansby.

Dancers of the 2017 Dancing Stars of Atlanta included Susan Carroll, Ken Covers, Suzanne Dansby, Kenneth Dawson, Chris Foster, Tara Byrne Garner, Nick Hagelin, Sandra Hutto, Teri Schneider, Dr. Robert Stoltz, Dino Thompson-Sarmiento, Dr. Nino Valishvili and Dr. Farzana Virani.

Celebrity judges for this year's event were Brenda Wood, 11Alive former anchor, and Jack Sawyer, president of the Southeastern Region of Wilmington Trust's Wealth Advisory Group. Professional dancer Christjohn Batters was the third judge.

"We were truly blessed with these 10 dancers and how much they raised for the Georgia Chapter of the Alzheimer's Association," said Susan Aldana, vice president of development - Alzheimer's Association, Georgia Chapter. "Georgia will be hit especially hard over the next year with new diagnoses, and the money raised from this year's event will not only go toward a research for a cure, but it will help fund the free programs and services we offer to those affected by Alzheimer's in the Metro Atlanta area."