Every year, the Advisory Board of the O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center honors outstanding ambassadors and advocates in our community. This year, we are not only honoring advocates but the family for which the Cancer Center is named.

The O’Neal family’s profound experience with cancer drives their extraordinary philanthropy. Having endured the loss of loved ones to the disease, their commitment to combating cancer is deeply personal — Craft O’Neal lost his father, Emmet; his mother, Mary Anne; and his brother, Kirk. Lisa, Margaret, Penny and David lost their father, David, and their mother, Libby, was a breast cancer survivor. In honor of their struggle and their hope for change, O’Neal Industries, Inc. and the O’Neal Family named the UAB O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center in 2019. Their unique commitment to not only UAB but to the people of Birmingham and Alabama fuels groundbreaking research, patient care, education and prevention, all of which are instrumental as we work towards cancer’s eventual cure.

As four generations of O’Neals have grown the company, their commitment to the Birmingham community has never wavered. Their volunteerism and philanthropy have always been a primary consideration within their family. The O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center stands as a testament to their enduring legacy.

We are proud to honor this extraordinary family this year on the 40th anniversary of our ArtBLINK Gala. We will hold a special reception an hour before the event to celebrate the O’Neals, and we hope you will join us February 1, 2025, to toast both their incredible family legacy and their focus on a future without cancer.

The ArtBLINK Director’s Circle is a membership program that offers people an opportunity to invest in and engage with the O’Neal Cancer Center. Members’ investments support high-priority initiatives at the O’Neal Cancer Center, including research projects and patient navigator programs. Join the Director’s Circle or make a personal gift in honor of the O’Neal family online via Touchnet.