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| Fountain House, the world's leading treatment center for people living with serious mental illness, celebrated its Sixth Annual Fall Fête on November 6, 2013. The event educates an audience of young professionals about Fountain House's unique "working community" treatment model for mental illness and its mission to fight the stigma associated with it. Event Chairs Byrdie Bell, Madeleine and Alexandre Desmarais, Jeremy L. Goldstein, Kathleen and Reha Kocatas, Katherine Lipton and Alex Lipman, Jennifer Oken, Lil Phillips, Sarah Simmons, Katie Tozer, Kiliaen Van Rensselaer, and Katie Zorn were joined by over 200 guests. |
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| The event was generously sponsored by Alex Roepers and Lilly USA, LLC. The Associates presented the Fountain House Advocacy Award to filmmaker, physician, and mental health advocate Delaney Ruston, MD. Dr. Ruston grew up in the shadow of her dad’s schizophrenia and has spent years caring for the underserved. Her award-winning film, Hidden Pictures, weaves her story and those of individual families in India, China, Africa, France and the U.S. dealing with bipolar illness, depression, schizophrenia, and anxiety. The documentary will air on PBS in May of 2014. |
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| Two Fountain House members, whose college educations were temporarily interrupted because of their illness, received The Danny Zorn Scholarship. Co-Chair Katie Zorn presented the awards and one of the members shared their personal story. The Scholarship is named after Katie’s brother, Danny, who tragically lost his battle with mental illness in October 2012. Serious mental illness affects 23 million people in the United States each year. The stigma, rejection, and isolation that accompany mental illness are often as damaging and debilitating as the illness itself. Fountain House reduces the devastating social impact of mental illness. Every day, hundreds of members choose to come to Fountain House to contribute their talents, learn new skills, access opportunities, and forge friendships. |
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| Members and staff operate successful employment, education, wellness, and housing programs and work as partners to perform all the functions that keep our community going. Our activities and programs are designed to provide opportunities while producing the desire and confidence to pursue them. Working together, we create a culture that transforms lives. The Fountain House model has been replicated in more than 400 locations in 30 countries and 32 states and currently serves more than 55,000 people with mental illness worldwide. As originators of this approach, we provide leadership by constantly advancing the practice and by leading the conversation around mental health recovery. |
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| The 23rd annual Glamour Women of the Year awards was held Monday night at Carnegie Hall and featured stars as both honorees and presenters, including Barbra Streisand and Katie Couric. The awards aim to showcase women for their outstanding work in entertainment, philanthropy, education, fashion and politics. The hit of the evening was Malala Yousafzai, the young Pakistani education activist who survived being shot in the head by the Taliban a year ago this past October. The awards and gala, which raises money for charities, will direct its monies this year to The Malala Fund, which supports programs that directly impact the quality and accessibility of education for girls. Barbra Streisand won the Lifetime Achievement award. Among her philanthropic projects was funding a cutting-edge research center for heart disease at the Barbra Streisand Women's Heart Center at Cedars-Sinai hospital in Los Angeles. Katie Couric presented the award. |
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| Despite the entertainment star power in the room such as Streisand and her 21st century successor, Lady Gaga, the heroine and real star of the evening was Malala -- "The Girls' Hero" and honoree of the the Women of the Year Fund Initiative. Now 16, she was shot by the Taliban because of her outspoken advocacy for educating girls. Rushed to Britain for treatment, she has recovered and become the world's leading advocate for girls' rights, wrote a memoir, and even was one of the youngest people ever nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. She got her award from America Ferrera. |
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| Other winners included Lady Gaga, for her anti-bullying campaign; Christy Turlington Burns and Liya Kebede, for their foundations to support better maternal health care around the world, and the "Couple of the Year," Gabby Giffords and Mark Kelly, who received their award for their gun-safety campaign after the former Arizona congresswoman nearly died in a shooting in Tucson. "Each of these women is a force individually, but combine them and you have something magical — a group of leaders who can change the world," said Cindi Leive, editor-in-chief of Glamour. |
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| This past Monday night at the Mandarin Oriental, Pratt Institute held its annual Legends 2013 gala honoring interior designer David Easton, journalist/novelist Pete Hamill, Margaret Russell, Editor-in-Chief of Architectural Digest, and contemporary artist James Turrell. The gala raises funds for merit and need-based scholarships. Eighty percent of Pratt students receive financial aid to pursue their education and creative ambitions. Pratt's programs are recognized internationally and are perennially listed among the best in top-tier national rankings. |
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| BROOKLYN — Dr. Leonard Polonsky and his wife Dr. Georgette Bennett hosted an Elizabethan-styled dinner on Sunday, November 10, prior to a performance of Theatre for a New Audience's inaugural production of A Midsummer Night's Dream, directed by multiple Tony Award-winner Julie Taymor with original music composed by Academy Award and Golden Globe-winning Elliot Goldenthal. A Midsummer Night's Dream opened November 2 at the Theatre's newly-named building, Polonsky Shakespeare Center, 262 Ashland Place between Lafayette Avenue and Fulton Street, Brooklyn. |
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| The Polonsky Shakespeare Center is named in recognition of a $10 million gift from the Polonsky Foundation. A Midsummer Night's Dream features a cast of 36 led by Tina Benko as Titania, Max Casella as Bottom, David Harewood as Oberon and Kathryn Hunter as Puck. |
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| Elie Wiesel has written 36 books. Among his prizes are the Nobel Peace Prize and the Congressional Gold Medal. When he praises a book, we should listen. Last Wednesday, he hosted a book party for Michael Alexiades’s highly praised first novel Night Harvest.The book is being heralded as the best medical thriller in the last 35 years. Wiesel wrote, “For all those who love medical thrillers will find in Michael Alexiades’s first novel a source of great pleasure and satisfaction.” Wiesel is not the only one to praise the novel. Within the first week of publication Night Harvest has four 5-star reviews on Amazon, has been selling rapidly at The Corner Bookstore, the Mysterious Bookshop, Barnes & Noble and the usual websites. At press time, four film companies including Mandeville Films producers The Fighter, which was nominated for seven Academy awards in 2011, are in discussion with Marianne Strong, the author’s agent. |
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| Alexiades has followed the universal advice given to writers: write about what you know. He is a celebrated attending Orthopedic Surgeon at three of New York’s top hospitals, Special Surgery, Weill-Cornell Medical Center and Lenox Hill Hospital. He is also an assistant professor of Orthopedic Surgery at Cornell Medical School. The handsome 6’2 foot doctor has been a guest specialist on CBS TV’s The Doctors and is scheduled to return in December. Before that Dr. Thomas Sculco, Surgeon-in-Chief Hospital of Special Surgery will host a book party at the Hospital. Sally Grossman hosts one in Woodstock at the Bear Café, The New York Athletic Club will hold one for members only. In December, Alexiades will join Nelson DeMille for the Union League Club’s Annual Book Fair. |
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| The publication-day signing was held at Weill Cornell Medical Center’s Griffis Faculty Club. Over 120 appeared to cheer the Doctor and to buy and have him autograph copies of the book. Among those celebrating were Anne Eisenhower, Anthony Haden-Guest, Maggie Norris, Rosalyn and Irwin Engelman, Alyce Faye Cleese, Anita Meltzer, Dr. Noel Armanakas and his wife Dr. Macrene Armanakas (sister of the author), film producer GeorgeStephanopoulos and wife Elena, dress designer Carter Smith with public relations executive Debbie Dickinson, Patty Owen the fashion model who has just finished penning her memoirs, Massey Knakal’s Robert Burton, Iris Gordon Rossi, Lord Colin Campbell, the Diary’s Jill Lynne, URN’s Marcy MacDonald, Pierre Van Goethem and theauthor’s wife Dr. Patrice Buonocore. When the dapper Doctor is not in the operating room, teaching, or writing, he can be seen tooling around on his Ducatti. |
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Photographs by Patrick McMullan (Glamour); Jimi Celeste/Patrick McMullan (Night Harvest) ; Jack MIller (A Midsummer Night's Dream) |