Feb 10, 2016

Party for Life celebrates 24 years of fundraising for HIV/AIDS education and research

More than 500 partygoers attended the 24th annual Party for Life, which took place Monday, February 1 in conjunction with NY NOW. The stately event featured a strolling dinner, beverages, a silent auction and music in the Loeb Boathouse in New York City’s Central Park. An opportune networking event mixed with fun, the party raised more than $200,000 benefitting Design Industries Foundation Fighting AIDS (DIFFA).

DIFFA works closely with several HIV and AIDS charities and its mission is to educate, treat and irradiate HIV and AIDS. According to the CDC, 35 million people worldwide are living with HIV/AIDS and 39 million people—the approximate combined populations of New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas and Atlanta—have died from the infection. Nearly 50,000 people are infected each year, and one in four new infections are youth ages 13-21 years old, with 60 percent of those having no idea that they are infected. Education, awareness and social change is what will stop this disease from spreading, and Gift for Life and DIFFA are doing what they can to support the cause. Florida, California, New York, Texas and Georgia are the states with the highest rates of infection, and many of those states are home to some of this industry’s largest gift shows and trade marts.

Three honorees were awarded for their work with the charities: Howard Henschel, president and CEO of The Norman Group, was awarded with the Chuck Yancy Lifetime Achievement Award; Suzy Batiz, creator and CEO of Poo-Pourri, was the recipient of the Norman Glassberg Trailblazer Award; and Arun Agarwal, CEO and director of Nextt, took home the Bert Tonkin Gift of Giving Award.

“This very well may be the best attendance we’ve seen in 24 years. This year’s group of award recipients is such a wonderful trio and is truly some of the most deserving business people in our industry,” said Frank Joens, Gift for Life’s chair. “In addition, they have been and continue to be, extremely generous to Gift For Life in both donations and industry support. I was truly honored to be a part of recognizing their outstanding contributions.”

Save The Date: Gift for Life will hold its silver anniversary Party for Life on February 6, 2017. The special 25th annual event promises to be extra spectacular.