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On Saturday, May 10th, 2014, jewelry designer
and philanthropist Joan
Hornig , five
time Heavyweight Champion of the World Evander
Holyfield, hit reality series So
You Think You Can Dance creator
& celebrity judge Nigel
Lythgoe, FOX Business Network Anchor and Global Markets
Editor Maria
Bartiromo, U.S.
Representative Ed Royce, Fashion Designer Elie
Tahari, Admiral
Harry B. Harris, Jr. Commander - U.S. Pacific Fleet, Secretary
of State Senior Advisor and Former United States Ambassador
to Italy David Thorne, National Guard Bureau Chief, General
Frank J. Grass, USA, TV host and humanitarian Yue-Sai
Kan, Tim
Zagat, co-Founder, co-Chair and Chief Executive Officer
of Zagat Survey and more than 100 other distinguished
Americans gathered to receive the Ellis Island Medals of
Honor.
Following 20 years as a Wall Street
professional, in 2003, jewelry designer Joan Hornig launched
a jewelry collection with a distinct concept that has
impacted the way people select jewelry in better stores
throughout America.
Her idea was to design statement pieces that enhance a
woman's beauty by making her feel as beautiful as she looks.
Joan donates 100% of her profits 100% of the time to the
charity of the customer's choice. This unique business model
enables women of all ages, means, and taste to join Joan in
combining passion for beauty, individuality and giving back.To
date, the Joan B. Hornig Foundation has donated to more than
800 worthy initiatives around the world addressing issues
such as education, medical research, social services, the
arts, animal rights, and environmental protection.
Herunique
creations and her mantra �Philanthropy is beautiful� have
made her a favorite of
the young socially conscious Hollywood set including such
fashion trend-setters as Cameron
Diaz, Jennifer
Lopez, Meg Ryan, Elizabeth Moss, Eva Mendes, Zoe Saldana,
Hayden Panettierre,
Elizabeth Olsen and
Oscar Golden Girl Lupita
Nyong�o.
Hornig created a special collection of
pendant, pin and cufflinks to support the efforts of NECO in
preserving Ellis
Islandbased on the torch held by The Statue of
Liberty.
British-born Nigel
Lythgoe received
the International Medal for his charitable and educational
efforts on behalf of the arts. In an impassioned speech,
Lythgoe reminded his fellow recipients and the nearly 900
invited guests that the arts are a critical part of a
child�s education and encouraged their support of all
school-based creative activities which provide kids with
alternatives to guns and idleness.
Yue-Sai Kan,
known as �China�s
Oprah�, spoke eloquently about how America was
the only country she felt embraced her Chinese heritage and
fully accepted her into American culture.
Commissioner Joshua R. Laird of
the National Parks of New York Harbor which includes Liberty and Ellis Islands
represented the National Parks Service and thanked NECO in
his remarks for their commitment to Ellis
Island�s restoration and recent gift of a
restored elevator that had been severely damaged by
Hurricane Sandy in 2012.
The awards are presented by the National
Ethnic Coalition of Organizations (NECO) and followed by a
Gala Dinner in the historic Great Hall. Emmy-winning WPIX-11
Senior Correspondent Marvin
Scott and
renowned entertainer Tom
Dreesen served
as the Masters of Ceremony. Ms. Bartiromo shared
a very personal story about growing up in Brooklyn,New
York and
her grandparents� journey to America to
pursue the promise of great opportunity and freedom. Evander
Holyfield ended
the ceremony with a heartfelt tribute to his mother,
crediting her for his strong moral values and determination.
According to Nasser
J. Kazeminy, Chairman of NECO, �NECO is about investing
in the power of caring, where people from all cultures and
walks of life stand together arm in arm to make a real
difference in our world through shared compassion and
philanthropy�.
The Ellis Island Medals of Honor embody the
spirit of America in
their celebration of patriotism, tolerance, brotherhood and
diversity. The Awards recognize individuals who have made it
their mission to share with those less fortunate their
wealth of knowledge, indomitable courage, boundless
compassion, unique talents and selfless generosity; all
while maintaining the traditions of their ethnic heritage as
they uphold the ideals and spirit of America.
NECO remains dedicated to the maintenance and
restoration of America�s
greatest symbol of its immigrant history, Ellis
Island. Since the Medal was founded in 1986,
they have honored such distinguished and diverse Americans
including: six Presidents of the United States; Nobel Prize
recipient Elie
Wiesel, Generals Norman Schwarzkopf and Colin
Powell, Hon. Hillary Rodham Clinton, Sen. John McCain,
Muhammad Ali, Frank Sinatra, Barbara Walters, Mike Wallace,
Quincy Jones, Mia Farrow, just to name a few � all who
have distinguished themselves through their significant
contributions to this country. The Ellis Island Medal of
Honor ranks among the nation�s most prestigious awards. The
U.S. Senate and House of Representatives have officially
recognized the Ellis Island Medals of Honor, and each year
the recipients are listed in the Congressional Record. To
date, more than 1,800 American citizens have received Ellis
Island Medals of Honor.
As always, the majestic evening was capped
off with a spectacular fireworks display provided by
Fireworks by Grucci over the Statue of Liberty as the
ferries headed back to Battery Park.
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