Youth INC raises a record $4M at its 28th Annual Celebration Gala

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‍NEW YORK – Youth INC, a leading venture philanthropy organization in New York City, hosted its 28th Annual Celebration Gala honoring David Mussafer, Chairman and Managing Partner, Advent International, with the John C. Whitehead Leadership Award, and recognizing Trail Blazers, its long-standing Nonprofit Partner, with its inaugural Partner in Impact Award.  

The event achieved historic results raising $4 million to equip hundreds of nonprofit leaders with the tools and resources needed to build strong and sustainable youth development organizations.

“I am honored to receive the John C. Whitehead Leadership Award and congratulate Youth INC on the success of its Celebration Gala,” said Mussafer. “While potential is equally distributed among young people, access to opportunity is not. Through its unique venture philanthropy model, Youth INC aims to change that. By strengthening impactful youth development nonprofits, Youth INC ensures that young people across New York City are given every opportunity to grow and thrive.”

Kevin Callaghan, managing director, Berkshire Partners, presented the John C. Whitehead Leadership Award to Mussafer in recognition of his philanthropic leadership and Advent International’s commitment to creating stronger communities. During the event, Mussafer was recognized by Jon Weiss, CEO, Corporate and Investment Banking, Wells Fargo, and was commended in a tribute video featuring industry leaders James Brocklebank, managing partner, Advent International; Lauren Young, managing director, Advent International; Glenn Murphy, founder and CEO, FIS Holdings; Sandra Lopez Burke, managing director, Community and Government Relations, GBH;  Mary Barra, chair and CEO, General Motors; Gov. Charlie Baker of Massachusetts and first lady Lauren Baker; Ken Moelis, chairman and CEO, Moelis & Company; Doug Hertz, president and CEO, United Distributors; and John G. Quigley, KEWCO, LLC.  

The event highlighted the work of Youth INC’s Nonprofit Partners with the presentation of the inaugural Partner in Impact Award by Katrina Huffman, associate executive director, Ramapo NYC, and Youth INC Board member. Riel Peerbooms, executive director, Trail Blazers, accepted the award, noting the significant impact that Youth INC had on Trail Blazers over the past 15 years. For over a century, Trail Blazers has advanced equitable access to the outdoors for young people that face significant barriers to accessing greenspaces. Trail Blazers’ partnership with Youth INC has helped scale its work, accelerating its operating budget from $400,000 to $5 million and expanding the number of young people served from 300 to over 1,800. 

“As our organizations faced a changing landscape of financial and operational needs, Youth INC and Trail Blazers responded with innovative approaches,” said Peerbooms. “At times, our evolutions happened simultaneously. Often, they happened in close collaboration with each other. As Youth INC congratulates Trail Blazers, we salute and congratulate Youth INC. We truly are proud to be partners in impact.” 

“Sharing our work with Trail Blazers with David Mussafer and his family was one of the highlights of this year. Everyone who sees our work in person immediately understands that our Nonprofit Partners are creating access to opportunity for all young New Yorkers to thrive just like we do for our own families,” said Rehana Farrell, executive director of Youth INC. “We are incredibly grateful to David and all of our supporters for making this year’s Celebration Gala the most successful in our history.” 

Youth INC’s Celebration Gala brought together a slate of influential business leaders who served as vice chairs, helping to make this event a tremendous success:

• Will Boothby, Partner, Kirkland & Ellis LLP 
• Kevin Callaghan, Managing Director, Berkshire Partners 
• John Connaughton, Global Head of Bain Capital Private Equity & Co-Managing Partner of Bain Capital 
• Mark Fedorcik, Co-Head of Investment Bank, Deutsche Bank 
• Adena Friedman, President & CEO, Nasdaq 
• Jon Gray, President and Chief Operating Officer, Blackstone 
• Jeff Holzschuh, Chair of the Institutional Securities Group, Morgan Stanley 
• Julie Jones, Chair, Ropes & Gray 
• Chris Kanoff, Global Head of Investment Banking, Jefferies & Company 
• Thomas H. Lee, Founder & Chairman, Lee Equity 
• Gregg Lemkau, Chief Executive Officer, MSD Capital 
• Ros L’Esperance, Co-Head of Global Banking, UBS Investment Bank 
• Ken Moelis, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, Moelis & Company 
• Steve Orr, Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Orr Group 
• Kevin Penn, Managing Director, American Securities 
• Richard Schifter, Senior Advisor, TPG Capital 
• Alan Schwartz, Executive Chairman, Guggenheim Partners 
• David Solomon, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Goldman Sachs 
• Paul J. Taubman, Founder, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, PJT Partners 
• Ted Virtue, Founder and CEO, MidOcean Partners 
• John Waldron, President & Chief Operating Officer, Goldman Sachs 
• Robert Weaver, Managing Director & Global Co-Head of Limited Partner Services, Advent International 
• Jonathan Weiss, CEO of Corporate and Investment Banking, Wells Fargo 
• Mrs. John C. Whitehead 
• Noah Wintroub, Global Chairman, JPMorgan Chase & Co. 
• Barry M. Wolf, Executive Partner, Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP 

Event Co-Chairs include:

• Anu Aiyengar, Co-Head of Global M&A, JP Morgan Chase & Co. 
• William Derrough, Managing Director and Co-Head of Recapitalization and Restructuring Group, Moelis & Company 
• Stratton Heath, Partner, Oak Hill Capital 
• Douglas Kaden, Managing Partner, SDC Capital 
• Barbara Marcin, Youth INC Board Vice President 
• Emmett McCann, Managing Director, Oaktree Capital Management 
• Robert McCooey, Vice Chairman, Nasdaq 
• Dhananjay Pai, President and COO, P. Schoenfeld Asset Management 
• Daniel Pine, Managing Principal, CS Capital Advisors 
• Kenneth Prince, Head of Capital Markets, Americas, Advent International 
• Adrianne Shapira, Managing Director, Eurazeo 
• Wray Thorn, Partner, Focus Impact Partners 
• Evan Wildstein, Partner, Kohlberg & Company      

Celebration Gala was made possible through the generous support of its community of supporters, including: 

Beacon Sponsors: Advent International; Jefferies LLC; J.P. Morgan, Kirkland & Ellis LLP; Barbara Marcin; David & Marion Mussafer; OLAPLEX; PJT Partners; Ropes & Gray LLP; Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP. 

Vanguard Sponsors: AlixPartners, LLP; Wells Fargo.

Champion Sponsors: 3i Group; Antares Capital; Bain Capital Community Partnership; Kevin & Julie Callaghan; Citi; Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP; Deutsche Bank; Freshfields; Goldman Sachs; Gray Foundation; Rhonda & Stratton Heath; Chris Kanoff; Knighthead Capital; Latham & Watkins LLP; Emmett McCann; Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP; Nancy & Alan Schwartz; Amanda & John Waldron; Barbara Asch & Jonathan Weiss.

For more information, visit www.youthinc-usa.org/Celebration