The Business Council of Westchester will host its second annual Dancing with the Rising Stars charitable competition on Wednesday at the White Plains Performing Arts Center.
The event, which will run from 5:30 p.m. to 9 p.m., will feature as a guest judge J.R. Martinez, a wounded U.S. Army veteran and winner of ABC’s Dancing with the Stars. Other judges include Business Council of Westchester president and CEO Marsha Gordon; Kurt Kannemeyer, chief development officer of  St. Christopher’s Inc.; Jerry McKinstry, managing director of The November Team; and Andrew Castellano, owner and CEO of Sharc Creative Inc.
The competition will include five couples, all of whom were winners of the council’s annual 40 Under 40 award. They are: Jamell Scott and Jill Ortiz representing Arthur Murray Dance Studio in Mount Kisco; John White III and Regina Simonetti representing Fred Astaire Tarrytown; James Giangrande and Marie Herrero representing the Greenwich Ballroom; Megan Gann and Robert Cioffi representing On My Toes Dance Academy; and Kevin Langtry and Diane Seo representing Arthur Murray Dance Studio in White Plains.
Funds raised will go to The Furniture Sharehouse in White Plains, a nonprofit that provides donated furniture to economically disadvantaged Westchester residents. Tickets for the event cost $50.
Maria Bronzi, chair of the business council’s Rising Stars Leadership Council, said it was an honor to have Martinez, who survived a roadside bomb attack while serving in Iraq and later went on to win Dancing with the Stars’ Mirror Ball Trophy in 2011.
To purchase tickets or for more information, visit www.thebcw.org or call 914-948-2110.
