200
avid supporters attended the Second Annual Best Buddies Hamptons Gala
at the Water Mill home of Anne Hearst and Jay McInerney on Friday, August
21, 2009. The Gala, which was presented by UBS, raised nearly $275,000
cash and in-kind for Best Buddies International, a vibrant organization
founded in 1989 by Anthony Kennedy Shriver to establish a global volunteer
movement that creates opportunities for one-to-one friendships, integrated
employment and leadership development for people with intellectual and
developmental disabilities.
Tatiana & Campion Platt, Anne Hearst & Jay
McInerney, and Haley & Jason Binn served as co-chairs for the Western-chic
themed event. The Gala drew out many New York and Hamptons notables,
including: New York Governor David Paterson, Kick Kennedy, Sharon Bush,
Amanda Hearst, Alejandro Santo Domingo, Nacho Figueras and Delfina Blaquier,
Countess Luann de Lesseps, Princess Yasmin Aga Khan, Kathy and Rick Hilton,
Pamela Fiori, Cornelia Bregman, Diandra Douglas, Somers and Jonathan
Farkas, Margo McNabb & Jimmy Nederlander, Katharina Otto Bernstein,
Drew and Derek Riker, Marlyne Sexton and her daughter Nicole, Lydia and
Rudy Touzet, Tommy Quick, Holidae Hayes, Patty Raynes, Susan Shin, Robert
Zimmerman and more.
Highlights of the evening included a compelling speech
about growing up with a disability and the importance of inclusion by
Governor Paterson, and a heartwarming speech by Buddy Ambassador Rachel
Lipke, who motivated the crowd to contribute generously - $28,000, to
be exact - to the Sponsor-a-Buddy to Leadership Conference program, which,
for a donation of $1,000 or more, sponsors a Buddy to attend the annual
Best Buddies International Leadership Conference. Event co-chair and
Best Buddies Board Member, Tatiana Platt, who kicked off the evening
and thanked supporters, said, "We were touched with the great turnout
and generosity of friends old and new as we continue to build awareness
for Best Buddies and its unique programs."
