Hedge Funds Care, an international non-profit organization which raises funds and awareness for programs to prevent and treat child abuse within the hedge fund industry, raised $2.2 million at its 14th Annual Hedge Funds Care New York Open Your Heart to the Children Benefit last night at Cipriani on 42nd Street, the highest amount in the history of the organization. The gala, the largest event that Hedge Funds Care holds worldwide, brought together 1,000 executives from across the hedge fund industry, including representatives from Marathon Asset Management, Pershing Square Capital Management, Claren Road Asset Management, and many more.
After an elegant cocktail reception and silent auction, Joe Torre, the former manager of the New York Yankees, received the Hedge Funds Care Founder’s Award. Torre, who experienced abuse as a child growing up in Brooklyn, was honored for his efforts to end the cycle of abuse through the work of the Joe Torre Safe at Home Foundation.
“The hedge fund industry’s support of our charity has enabled us to serve over 46,593 children in 2011. Thanks to the funds raised, we hope to make an even larger impact this year,” said John Budzyna, Chairman of the Board of Hedge Funds Care.
“Despite the recent attention that the Penn State scandal has brought to the problem of child abuse, it remains an issue that few speak of and even fewer are willing to address,” added Kathryn Conroy, Executive Director of Hedge Funds Care. “The powerful philanthropy of the alternative investments community is helping Hedge Funds Care provide grants to organizations that shine a light on this issue in an effort to prevent it from happening in the first place, and to help those heal who have been hurt.”
The flagship New York Gala raised $2 million in 2011. Funds from this year’s event will go to for child abuse programs in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. In addition to the NY Gala, Hedge Funds Care raises funds through events in more than 11 cities in the US, the UK, Canada, and Cayman Islands. Hedge Funds Care is the only grant-making public charity that focuses exclusively on preventing child abuse.
