What a night! One week later and I’m still proud, humbled and honored by the success of the Hispanic Federation’s 2016 Annual Gala. This year’s gala included a number of big changes including an important change of venue. After years at the Waldorf Astoria, we headed across town to the American Museum of Natural History and its famed Millstein Hall of Ocean Life. Hispanic Federation is the first Latino nonprofit to host its signature event at the museum and, as anyone who was there could attest, the room was bursting with energy and excitement about our honorees, the amazing network of 100 community-based organizations we serve, and the important work we do collectively to inspire and uplift Latino communities.
Our honorees— actress and activist America Ferrera, philanthropist and entrepreneur Luis Ubiñas, Amanda Bennett and Donald Graham of TheDream.US, Toyota, and HF member agency Sure We Can —reflected the important efforts of individuals, businesses and nonprofits to improve the lives of millions of Latinos.
Once again this year, we were grateful to count on the support of hundreds of individuals and institutions. Thanks to their investment in us, we were able to raise the largest sum in the history of the gala, $1.6 million. That’s money that will go to support Latino nonprofits through our Latino CORE Initiative, one of the nation’s most important and respected Latino-led grant-making programs.
None of this would have been possible without the support of hundreds of supporters. I want to especially thank our Gala Committee and overall Board of Directors. Under the leadership of our Gala Chair Nathalie Rayes and Board Chair Ramón Pineda, the volunteer members of the board worked tirelessly to make the gala a great success. And, of course, our staff was just simply amazing! They always work exceptionally hard to make us look good.
Every movement has its time and place. Ours is now.
In this crucial time in our nation’s history, we’re determined to inspire a far-reaching movement to mobilize more of our people to vote, help more Latinos graduate from college, strengthen more Latino nonprofits and help more immigrants achieve the American Dream.
Thank you for sharing our values and dreams. Thank you for empowering us to take bold action on what matters most. You have my word that together, we’ll continue to inspire a Latino movement full of power, purpose and promise for generations to come.
To view photos from the evening, click here!
