Point Foundation Honors LAIKA At 2019 Los Angeles Gala

Event Raises Critical Funds for LGBTQ Students, Features Performance by Debbie Gibson

News provided by

Oct 15, 2019, 14:13 ET

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 15, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- More than 400 guests and celebrities filled the Beverly Hilton Hotel to support lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) students at Point Honors Los Angeles. Point Foundation (Point), the evening's beneficiary, is the nation's largest scholarship-granting organization for LGBTQ students of merit; currently assisting 85 scholarship recipients.

> Click for hi-res images of arrivals. Credit: "Getty Images for Point Foundation"

> Click for hi-res images of program highlights. Credit: "Getty Images for Point Foundation"

At the gala, the award-winning stop-motion animation studio LAIKA received the Point Impact Award, President of ASIFA Hollywood and Animation Historian Jerry Beck presented the award, noting the ability of LAIKA President & CEO Travis Knight to use the power of art to uplift diverse voices and create community.

In accepting the award Knight said, "We live in a world that's fractured and entrenched, a world that seems bent on burnishing the rough edges and straightening the crooked lines, on silencing dissonant voices. But those voices need to be heard. Tonight at this beautiful event, we have a chorus of those voices: the Point scholarship recipients. You are the voices the world needs to hear. You are leaders, artists, advocates, champions. The work you've done, the work you continue to do, and the work that's yet to come will find its way into people's lives. It'll help them, it'll inspire them, connect them. It will make a difference."

Chris Butler and Arianne Sutner, the writer/director and producer, respectively, of LAIKA's latest film, Missing Link, also accepted the award.

Comedian and writer Rhea Butcher hosted the inspiring evening, which included a special performance by Debbie Gibson. Celebrity participants and attendees included Theo Germaine, Rahne Jones, Kiran Deol, Pete Nowalk, Tracie Thoms, Blair Imani, and Vincent Rodriguez III. The evening also welcomed the newest class of Point Scholars, celebrating and highlighting the accomplishments of the 16 new student leaders. For Jorge Valencia, Executive Director and CEO of Point Foundation, highlighting the new class of Point Scholars meant the audience at the Beverly Hilton saw first-hand how each of these young leaders are learning from their difficult pasts and are dedicated to creating a better future for others in their community.

"The world can be a daunting place for young people these days. They face mounting student loan debt, their planet is in peril, and their rights are increasingly under assault. Yet they still have found ways to engage in dialogue with those with whom they may disagree," Valencia said. "If these leaders of tomorrow can find that place and endeavor to make a brighter future, certainly we can too."

Presenting Sponsors: Hilton, Wells Fargo
Principal Sponsor: Cadillac
Friends of Point: J.Crew, Shelter PR
National Media Sponsor: OUT
Local Media Sponsor: Los Angeles Blade

About Point Foundation: Point Foundation empowers promising LGBTQ students to achieve their full academic and leadership potential – despite the obstacles often put before them – to make a significant impact on society. Point Foundation promotes change through scholarship funding, mentorship, leadership development, and community service training. www.pointfoundation.org | #PointHonors

Media Contact:
Jessica Rozycki, Point Foundation,
(914) 776-4163, [email protected]

SOURCE Point Foundation