Record-Breaking $31 Million Raised At UJA-Federation Of New York's Wall Street Dinner

David M. Solomon and Anton J. Levy honored for philanthropic leadership

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Dec 13, 2018, 13:10 ET

NEW YORK, Dec. 13, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- UJA-Federation of New York's Wall Street Dinner raised a record-breaking $31 million – a total of $2 million more than last year's dinner. The sold-out, December 10 event drew more than 2,000 Wall Street leaders who came to honor David M. Solomon, chief executive officer of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., and Anton J. Levy, managing director and global head of technology of General Atlantic.

The event featured Lloyd C. Blankfein, chair of UJA's Wall Street & Financial Services Division, offering a spirited tribute and presenting the Gustave L. Levy Award to his friend and Goldman successor Solomon. From the stage, Blankfein shared his deeply personal experiences growing up in the projects of East New York, Brooklyn, and finding solace and opportunity through UJA services at his neighborhood community center and summer camp.

Solomon accepted his award by expressing gratitude to Blankfein – his friend of more than 25 years and mentor at Goldman. Solomon revealed that his engagement with UJA started when he was just ten or 11 years old and his parents brought him to help volunteer at a UJA phone-a-thon. He was amazed when all the people he called actually agreed to give money to UJA.

For Anton Levy, who received the Alan C. Greenberg award from Lee Fixel, the most recent UJA moment that "stuck with him" came during a 2017 UJA trip to Israel where the group met with Israel Defense Forces veterans who formed "Brothers for Life," a UJA-funded program in which injured soldiers help other injured soldiers.

Keynote speaker Adam Neumann, co-founder & CEO of WeWork, described how his life changed for the better by becoming more deeply connected to Jewish traditions, and connecting more with his loved ones by unplugging from technology.

UJA unveiled its new effort to help fight poverty, called "Upward New York." This strategic and dignified response to Jewish poverty includes digital food pantries and wrap-around social services (mental health, legal, etc.) at two community hubs currently being built that will help both Jews and all New Yorkers in need.

The effort was lauded by UJA Chair of the Board Robert S. Kapito, who encouraged guests to continue their commitment in 2019 to "fight for people who do not have enough to eat or a safe place to sleep," and by UJA President Jeffrey A. Schoenfeld, who promised UJA's support in "stepping up to combat poverty, supporting the neediest Holocaust survivors, and helping provide critical trauma care around the world after crises."

Other featured guest speakers were Goldman Sachs' Esta Eiger Stecher and J.P. Morgan's Solita Marcelli.

Stecher described her support for UJA and revealed that UJA partner HIAS helped save her father, a Holocaust survivor, by bringing him to the United States and providing continued support.

Marcelli grew up in a small Jewish community in Turkey where it was challenging to be openly Jewish, attended her first Wall Street Dinner almost two decades ago, and divulged that her time with the UJA community is when she feels most "at home in the 22 years I have lived in this country."

About UJA-Federation of New York
For more than 100 years, UJA-Federation has brought New Yorkers together to solve some of the most pressing problems facing our community. Through UJA-Federation, more than 50,000 donors impact the issues that matter most to them, pooling their resources to care for Jews everywhere and New Yorkers of all backgrounds, respond to crises close to home and far away, and shape our Jewish future. Working with a network of hundreds of nonprofits, UJA-Federation extends its reach from New York to Israel to nearly 70 other countries around the world, touching 4.5 million people each year. For more information on how to donate or volunteer, please visit our website at www.ujafedny.org.

SOURCE UJA-Federation of New York