On
September 23, 2009, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, columnist Liz Smith,
Mayor’s Fund Board chair Rob Speyer and president Megan Sheekey
kicked off the Sixth Annual Fete de Swifty benefit in Manhattan. The
event, founded by Liz Smith and hosted by the Mayor’s Fund to Advance
New York City, raises money to support the Family Justice Center Initiative,
administered by the Mayor’s Office to Combat Domestic Violence.
The initiative reduces barriers faced by victims of domestic abuse, allowing
them to access a variety of services, such as prosecutorial, counseling,
housing and financial assistance, under one roof. Mayor Bloomberg opened
the first Family Justice Center in Brooklyn in 2005. In 2007, a second
center opened in Queens, and the City’s third center will open
in the Bronx this winter 2010.
This year’s Fete de Swifty Honorary
chairs were Tim Gunn, Mariska Hargitay and Nicole Kidman. The steering
committee included Liz Smith, Stephen Attoe, Robert Caravaggi, David
Patrick Columbia, Deborah Krulewitch, Christopher Meigher, Gillian Miniter
and Peter Rogers. Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly, Mayor’s
Criminal Justice Coordinator John Feinblatt and Commissioner Yolanda
Jimenez of the Mayor’s Office to Combat Domestic Violence were
also on hand for the event.
Since 2004, Fete de Swifty has raised more
than $3.6 million to support public programs through the Mayor’s
Fund to Advance New York City. This year’s event also featured
an online auction hosted by CharityBuzz. The auction, which runs until
October 1st, includes items such as: exclusive New York sports event
packages, a first class trip to see Bette Midler in concert and meet
her after the show, and a variety of fashion and luxury items. The auction
is online at www.charitybuzz.com/fetedeswifty.
Event partners also donated
a wide array of items and services for the carnival-themed Fete. LVMH
Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton Inc provided champagne and spirits and
Brooklyn Brewery provided beer, Build-a-Bear donated prizes for the Family
Justice Center Children’s Rooms, and Quest and Estée Lauder
donated the door gifts. Matthew David Hopkins, owner of 360 Design Events,
Ltd., an eco-friendly design company, designed the event and Glorious
Food hosted the raw bar.
