NEW YORK CITY-When it comes to giving back to the community, it takes a lot of heart—and a little bit of “faith.” Nine women from the commercial real estate and construction industry were honored for their charitable works and improving the lives of the city’s less fortunate during St. Francis Food Pantries and Shelters’ 10th Annual “Women of Valor” Awards tea and luncheon at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel on Aug. 2.
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“We’ve come a long way, and we thought about doing something very special,” said Faith Hope Consolo, chairman of retail leasing at Prudential Douglas Elliman, who told the 1,000+ attendees that all donations from Thursday’s luncheon will be matched by Consolo’s foundation, Real Estate Has A Heart, a new organization that she launched earlier this year to aid the city’s underprivileged population. “The economy has changed,” she said, adding: “Now the pantry has a very big responsibility.”
St. Francis Food Pantries & Shelters, which supports 22 nonprofit food pantries, soup kitchens and shelters throughout Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bronx, Long Island, Westchester and New Jersey, serves 9,000 families and 1.5 million meals a year.
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Highlighting how women in the industry can make a difference, television host, entrepreneur and health & wellness advocate Joan Lunden, keynote speaker and honorary chair of the event, stressed that all women – no matter their profession or background – can make a positive impact right in their own backyard.
“I always love the opportunity to talk about women today and how much our roles have changed over the last decade, and also the importance of passing on to the next generation the importance of feeling empowered and in-charge of our lives, and also to be impassioned and committed to making a difference in our communities,” she told the audience. “Over the last several decades, we have made incredible strides.”
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Recognized for their service in helping New York’s hungry, honorees included guest of honor Ellen Canny-Goldberg, senior business development managers at HAWORTH; Macy’s Community Star Award recipient Frances A. Resheske, senior vice president of public affairs at Con Edison; humanitarian award winners Michelle Cooper, program and capital project manager at Columbia University Medical Center and Tina Vasan, senior project manager at CBRE; Clarisa Award recipients Cynthia M. Boyea, property manager at Paramount Group Inc.; Christine Chipurnoi, senior vice president real estate and construction practice, Wells Fargo Insurance Services USA, Inc.; Diane DeChiaro, who most recently served as vice president of asset management for Zurich; Karen Dome, senior associate at Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services; and Cindy Feinberg, partner JFK&M Consulting Group. Other special guests included Fox 5 News Anchor Ernie Anastos.
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