Our History

Jill Sorensen, a former fashion model for the Elite and Ford agencies in Paris and New York, and her friend Cheryl Davis Masri, owner of a Washington DC based advertising agency, founded Knock Out Abuse Against Women in 1993. Their vision was to create a non-profit organization to build public awareness and financial support to eradicate domestic violence and to help women and children whose lives have been shattered by abuse, poverty and homelessness. Now, in its 17th year, Knock-Out Abuse Against Women has raised over $7 million.

• 1993 – Event debuts at Café Milano. Approximately 30 people attend.
• 1994 – Event held for a second year at Café Milano and approximately 100 people attend. Proceeds benefit House of Ruth and Joy Behar provides entertainment.
• 1995 – The event gains momentum and moves to The Ritz-Carlton, now the Westin Fairfax, and funds are again donated to House of Ruth.
• 1996 – In its 4th year, the fundraiser is held again at The Ritz-Carlton to benefit House of Ruth.
• 1997 – Jack Ford and Jodi Applegate of NBC and Robin Leach of "Lifestyles of the Rich & Famous" are celebrity hosts for the event, held at the ANA Hotel.
• 1998 – Event moves to the Capitol Hilton. Actress Karen Duffy and news correspondents Joe Johns of WRC-TV and Rene Knott of WJLA-TV are hosts. Carolyn Sapp, Miss America 1992, and author Nansook Hong are the keynote speakers. The Honorary Committee includes Alma Arrington Brown of Chevy Chase Bank; Elizabeth Dole of American Red Cross; Robyn Sachs of RMR & Associates; Wendy Walker Whitworth of CNN.
• 1999 – Event again held at Capitol Hilton. The hosts are Congresswoman Mary Bono, ABC's Sam Donaldson, WJLA-TV's Rene Knott, and "Lifestyles of the Rich & Famous" Robin Leach. The honorees are actress Anne Archer, YMCA President Alexine Clement Jackson, Barbara Harrison of WRC-TV, and Gucci President Patricia Malone.
• 2000 – Event held at the new Ritz-Carlton at 22nd & M with keynote speaker Barbara Dehl. Honorees are Jan Fox of WUSA-TV and Barbara Dehl. Hosts include: Sam Donaldson, Rene Knott, and Fabio.
• 2001 – Sam Donaldson and Frederique Van Der Wal host the event at The Ritz-Carlton. Honorees are Mary Bono and Karen Duffy.
• 2002 – Sam Donaldson and Bo Derek host the event at The Ritz-Carlton with keynote speaker Connie May Fowler, author of When Katie Wakes. Honorees are Kim Wells of Corporate Alliance to End Partner Violence and Dr. Ludy Greene of Second Chance Employment Services.
• Spring 2003 – The members of the Knock Out Abuse Executive Committee help renovate and decorate the Bethany House Shelter as part of a project named Sharing Spaces. Members of the committee lend a fresh coat of paint to the seven-bedroom house, donate all types of furniture, provide interior design services and enlisted the services of a handyman to take care of all household repairs.
• 2003 – Sam Donaldson and Cynthia Steele Vance host the event at The Ritz-Carlton. Honorees are Virginia's Attorney General, The Honorable Jerry Kilgore, Melanne Verveer, chairwoman of Vital Voices Global Partnership and the First Lady of Virginia, Lisa Collis Warner.
• Mother's Day 2004 – Members of the Knock Out Abuse Executive Committee host a Mother's Day brunch for those living in the Bethany House shelter. The mothers enjoyed their special Day with omelets prepared by "Mr. Omelet" himself and the kids dined on McDonald's Happy Meals. Entertainment was provided by Daisy the Clown for the little ones and makeovers were given to the moms.
• 2004 – In honor of the 11th anniversary, Sam Donaldson once again hosts the gala at The Ritz-Carlton. Event Chair is Holidae Hayes of Morgan Stanley. Eleven amazing honorees are honored on 11/11. Special guest honorees include Lesley Jane Seymour, Editor-in-Chief of Marie Claire magazine and recording artist Rachel Proctor. The other nine "angels" of Knock Out were Lisa Bartolomei, Patricia Coleman, Patti Cumming, Roya Kingdom, Franco Nuschese, Norma Ramsey, Linda Roth, Jim Ryan and Dina Roll (in memoriam).
• 2005 – Celebrating its 12th anniversary, Gwen Ifill and Michele Norris join the Knock Out Abuse team and host this year's gala at the downtown Ritz-Carlton. The year's chairwoman was Ann Walker Marchant of The Walker Marchant Group and guests were treated to "An Evening in Paris". Honorees included Senator Debbie Stabenow and Congresswoman Juanita Millender-McDonald, for their support of the 2005 Violence Against Women Act. DC City Councilmember Kwame Brown was also honored for his work to fight domestic violence.
• 2006 - Knock Out Abuse celebrated their lucky 13th anniversary with a kick-off at the legendary Café Milano where Knock Out Abuse all began. Holly Muldoon chaired the year's gala, "Polo Argentina" at the Ritz-Carlton, Washington, DC where guests were dazzled with a team of Argentine polo players on horse back. The event honored Prince Georges County domestic abuse victim Yvette Cade. Proceeds from the event benefited six local domestic abuse support groups. Each year the event sells out and fills The Ritz Carlton Ballroom to capacity with over 750 women in attendance.
• 2007 - Celebrating its 14th anniversary, Debra Lee, CEO of BET Networks steps up to the plate as chairwoman and guests were treated to "Sizzling Hot South Beach". Andrea Wong of Lifetime Television was honoree and the crowd went WILD when Leeny Kravitz performed as the evenings after-party entertainment. He was amazing and it was night to remember!
• 2008 - In honor of the 15th anniversary all five past chairwomen come together to host another spectacular evening. We were lucky to have five phenomenal women leading the charge: Norma Ramsey, Holidae Hayes, Ann Walker Marchant, Holly Muldoon, and Debra Lee. Celebrated actress Kathleen Turner served as emcee and Kevin Michael performed as the headline entertainer at the after-party.
• 2009 - Knock Out Abuse celebrated their 16th anniversary with an evening of "Peace Love & Harmony". Gina Adams, Vice President of Government Affairs for FedEx, chaired the year's gala. Guests dressed in groovy 60's attire and hippies were on hand. Andrea Roane from WUSA TV served as emcee and actress Robin Givens shared her own poignant story of abuse. After, guests danced the night away.