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The Children’s Defense Fund- New York (CDF-NY)
hosted its annual benefit on Wednesday, March 12, 2014 at
the Pierre Hotel, celebrating 40 years of ensuring a level
playing field for children and celebrating students who have
overcome tremendous adversity, demonstrated academic
excellence, given back to their communities and
are attending college.
CDF-NY saluted three outstanding champions of
children: Leslie
Cornfeld, former advisor for Mayor Michael Bloomberg and
federal civil rights prosecutor, George
Gresham,President of 1199 SEIU, and Vicki
Fuller, Chief
Investment Officer of NYS Common Retirement Fund. Deborah
Cogut, Co-founder and Chair, The Polyphony Foundation
and CDF Board Member, and David
Pollak, Director of Marketing and Investor Relations,
Pegasus Capital Advisors, L.P., served as the gala’s
Co-Chairs.
This year’s event brought together over 350
guests to recognize eight deserving high school seniors who
“beat the odds.” Notable attendees included Marian
Wright Edelman, Richard Parsons, Geoffrey
Canada, NYC First Lady Chirlane McCray, Malaak Compton-Rock,
chef John DeLucie, Paulina Porizkova, chef Alexander Smalls,
and Ali Wentworth. WCBS-TV news anchor Maurice DuBois served
as the Master of Ceremonies.
Geoffrey
Canada, CDF Board Chair, said, “For 40 years, we have been
working to change the odds for children who face terrible
obstacles. This work has been the latest chapter in the
Civil Rights movement. We are disrupting the generational
cycle of poverty by making sure all children get a great
education and become self-sustaining adults. Forty years is
an incredible milestone for CDF and I have been proud to be
part of this work.”
This year’s Beat the Odds® recipients are Luigji
Camaj, Felicia Campbell, Joselyn Guzman, Moke Hein, Michael
Mazzeo, Craig Phillip, Benny Rodriguez, and Demeara Torres.
Five of the recipients received a $10,000 college
scholarship and three “rising stars” received a $1,000
scholarship, in addition to training in leadership
development and academic support.
“We are thrilled to be honoring eight
extraordinary students who have succeeded academically
against all odds and given back to their communities. And we
also honor Leslie, George and Vicki, three outstanding child
advocates dedicated to leveling the playing field for all
children. If we could bottle the strength, persistence and
resilience of our Beat the Odds honorees, we could inspire
and empower all of our children to reach their God-given
potential. Nobody has the right to give up on any child or
youth, and they are why we exist. They are the true role
models for our children and all of us,” said Marian Wright
Edelman, president of the Children’s Defense Fund.
“The Beat the Odds Scholarship is a
significant life changing experience for less fortunate
children who have gone through hardships in life and
provides hope for a prosperous future. After losing my
father I did not know who to make proud anymore and felt
like my hard work was for nothing. This scholarship has
shown me that even though life brings you down, you need to
persevere through and that there is light at the end of a
dark tunnel. I took these horrific life circumstances and
turned them into a launching pad shooting me throughout high
school and into a higher education,” said Luigji Camaj, one
of the 2014 scholarship recipients and a senior at
Christopher Columbus High School.
Honoree Leslie
Cornfeld, and CDF Board Member, said, “I am privileged to be
honored along side such extraordinary students who have
‘Beaten the Odds’ – they are the true superstars tonight,
and for our future. Their stories are critical because it
shines a light on the potential of all children,
and shows what those living in the most challenged
circumstances are capable of achieving for our city and
nation. I thank CDF for their transformative work on behalf
of all children for the past 40 years.”
CDF Board Member and honoree George Gresham,
President of 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East, said,
“The healthcare workers of 1199SEIU not only have a mission
to provide quality healthcare to children and families, but
we are also advocates for social justice, and that’s why the
work of the Children’s Defense Fund is so dear to us. Here
in the United States, one of richest countries in the world,
access to quality healthcare and education should be a right
for all children of every socio-economic level. It should
not be a privilege. We will continue our close partnership
with CDF to ensure that children and their families get the
support, guidance and opportunities
that they need.”
Honoree Vicki Fuller said, “I congratulate
the CDF on its 40th Anniversary.
I also want to congratulate all current and former
recipients of the Beat the Odds scholarships. You inspire me
and make me optimistic about our collective future. You are
so deserving of these important scholarships because of your
hard work and dedication
to your success.”
CDF-NY also paid tribute to the late Bill
Lynch Jr. for his support of CDF, serving as a board member
for 18 years, and to his tireless commitment to social
justice.
“My father was a champion of social justice
and was so proud of his ties to the Children’s Defense
Fund,” said Bill Lynch, III. “His legacy with the CDF will
be, among many, working to secure Haley Farm. The CDF and
its many programs have transformed Haley Farm into a vibrant
training ground for the next generation of leadership,
advocacy and service for children and families. I couldn’t
be more proud.”
About the
Beat the Odds® program
Started in 1990, the Beat the Odds program
identifies and rewards young people who have experienced
significant hardship in their lives and supports and trains
them to become future leaders in adulthood. CDF holds six
high-profile celebrations annually in Columbus, Houston, Los
Angeles, Minneapolis, New York, and Washington, D.C. to send
a clear signal that someone does care and understands what
it takes to stay in school and do well while coping with
adversity. More than 800 young people who have persevered
despite family breakdown, homelessness, parental
incarceration, drug and alcohol addiction, neglect and
abuse, have been able to go on to college and become
outstanding citizens. They are doctors and lawyers and
teachers and Peace Corps volunteers and responsible parents.
They are living proof that no one should ever
give up on a child.
About
Children’s Defense Fund- New York
The Children's Defense Fund-New York (CDF-NY)
is the New York office of the Children's Defense Fund, a
national, non-profit child advocacy organization that has
worked relentlessly for nearly 40 years to ensure a level
playing field for all children. CDF-NY champions policies
and programs that lift children out of poverty; protect them
from abuse and neglect; and ensure their access to health
care and
quality education.
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