A week ago Friday, November 19th was the night of The White Cross Ball of New York City at The Metropolitan Club. The Ball welcomed His Eminence Timothy Cardinal Dolan and Ball patron HSH Prince Charles-Henri de Lobkowicz.
The Ball raised money for three of the Order of Malta’s international humanitarian works: The Holy Family Hospital of Bethlehem Foundation; Maltese International, Order of Malta Worldwide Relief; and The Order of Malta’s summer camps for disabled youth.
There was dinner and dancing with music by DJ Ana Boo, as well as portraits by Deanna First. The auction included luxury items and experiences from Mikimoto, Louis XIII, Stubbs & Wootton, and more.
Chairs for the evening were Mercedes de Guardiola and Jason Pelletier. Additional guests include Co-Founder of the White Cross Ball Dr. Michael Espiritu, Co-Founder of the White Cross Ball Niccolò Falez, Lizzie Asher, Francesca Vuillemin, Jessica Markowski, Julia Kananovich, Dr. Michael Espiritu, Casey Kohlberg, Viscount and Viscountess de Vimal, Allison Ecung, Antoine Verglas, Nicholas Kalikow, Claire Ngai, Olga Duchniewska, Linda Wessels, Major General Tom Wessels, Ravi Tripptrap, Serena Woodward, Alessandra Ojetti, Carlo Vitalini Sacconi, Karina Rabayeva, Anastasia Bondarenko, and Kat Filipovic.
The Ball Committee operates under the aegis of the Order of Malta American Association, which is registered in the United States as a tax-exempt §501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation. Donations are tax-deductible to the fullest extent allowable by law. For more information, visit: www.whitecrossballnyc.com
The Wednesday night before, the 18th of this month, The New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (The NYSPCC) held its annual Fall Gala at The Stavros Niarchos Foundation Library in Manhattan. Stephanie Ruhle served as the evening’s host, and introduced the program for the evening.
The Stavros Niarchos Foundation was honored with the Strength of Our Society Award, presented by The NYSPCC board member Karl Wellner.
The Gala raised $811,000, a record for the event, to fund critical programs for The NYSPCC. The Gala is one of two fundraising events for The NYSPCC; the other being the annual Spring Luncheon, slated for Spring 2022.
The most important thing to remember about all this is there are many many children out there who are suffering deeply in their domestic situations. Their experience with goodness and care NOW in these early years are what will determine their experiences and roles in the future lives as friends, fathers, mothers. Everything we can do to rescue, assist, care for these children is a blessing on all of us.
Among those attending were Mrs. Wellner, Deborah Norville, Jamee and Peter Gregory, Steve Schwarzman, Hillary Geary and Wilbur Ross, John Catsimatidis, and more.
The New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NYSPCC) is one of the most highly respected child protective agencies in the world. It was a 2019 recipient of funding from the New York Times’ highly-selective Neediest Cases Fund Endowment.
Founded in 1875, the NYSPCC helps the most vulnerable children of our community recover from trauma. And, most importantly it helps prevent child abuse through its work with parents, teachers, children and foster care agencies.
The NYSPCC’s amazing work is used as a model for child abuse prevention centers across the nation. The NYPSCC has investigated more than 650,000 cases on behalf of over two million children and has educated over 47,000 professionals working with children on child abuse and neglect issues. www.nyspcc.org.
Photographs by David Benthal & Yvonne Tnt/BFA (White Cross); Patrick McMullan (NYSPCC).
