WORLD BRIDGE BLOG

On an incredible evening at the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium in Washington, DC, Refugees International celebrated our 31st anniversary and our first-ever ‘green’ gala. Sam Waterston, our favorite emcee and newly-appointed vice-chair of our Board of Directors, welcomed over 500 guests who gathered to recognize humanitarians for the passion they have shown and the change they have achieved in tackling the world’s humanitarian needs.

Guests paid tribute to the impressive contributions of Former Senate Majority Leader and physician Bill Frist, RI’s 2010 McCall-Pierpaoli Humanitarian Award recipient. The evening also included a touching tribute to RI’s former president Ken Bacon, and the introduction of our newly-appointed president Dan Glickman.

Honorary Chairs, His Excellency the Ambassador of Finland Pekka Lintu and Mrs. Laurel Colless emphasized the important link between climate change and displacement crises, and informed guests of the ‘green’ gala’s environmentally-friendly touches, including menu cards printed on plant-able wildflower seed paper.

Gala Chairs Vicki and Roger Sant led a moving tribute to their lifelong friend and Refugees International’s former president, Ken Bacon, who lost his battle to cancer last year.  The Sants read quotes from late Senator Edward M. Kennedy, President Barack Obama, former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan, and many others.  Ken’s wife, Darcy, spoke of Ken’s profound commitment to generating lifesaving solutions for the world’s most vulnerable people, and she thanked the attendees for their support of Refugees International.

Our new president, Dan Glickman, thanked RI’s departing Board Chair Farooq Kathwari for his tireless work on behalf of refugees, and noted how honored he feels to follow in Ken’s footsteps to lead Refugees International.  Farooq introduced Dan, saying “With Dan’s extensive network and his gift for recognizing a compelling story, he is helping shine that same spotlight on displaced people around the world.”

The event concluded by recognizing the contributions of the 2010 McCall-Pierpaoli Humanitarian Awardee, former Senator Bill Frist.  Ambassador Richard Holbrooke, who presented the award to Senator Frist, recognized his humanitarian leadership in Congress and his on-the-ground work providing medical assistance and counsel in times of crisis.  As a physician, Senator Frist has conducted more than a dozen medical missions to war-torn Sudan and performed hundreds of lifesaving surgeries following the Haiti earthquake.  

Senator Frist, upon accepting the award, spoke of his continuing humanitarian work and told a story of a trip to a refugee camp in Chad where he ran into a Refugees International team assessing camp conditions.  He spoke warmly of the work that RI does, and the crucial role we play in informing and advising policy-makers based on the from-the-ground information and assessments that we produce.

The dinner was our most successful, raising over $725,000 to provide crucial support for the lifesaving work of Refugees International, and Benefit Co-Chairs Cathy Brentzel and Gay Cioffi, alongside our very first Global Partnership Initiative chaired by Lisa Barry and Jodi Bond, played a tremendous role.  Thank you to so many wonderful guests who made our 31st Anniversary another exquisite evening.


View more photos from the evening.