UJA-Federation of New York's Wall Street Dinner Raises More Than $31 Million

Barbara G. Novick and Adam R. Schwartz honored for philanthropic leadership

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Dec 12, 2019, 16:30 ET

NEW YORK, Dec. 12, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- UJA-Federation of New York's Wall Street Dinner on December 9, 2019, raised more than $31 million for UJA-Federation's annual campaign. Two thousand financial professionals, prominent business leaders, and philanthropists attended the sold-out event at the New York Hilton Midtown to celebrate BlackRock's Barbara G. Novick, the first female recipient of the Gustave L. Levy Award, and Angelo Gordon's Adam R. Schwartz, recipient of the Alan C. Greenberg Young Leadership.

Attendees included Lloyd C. Blankfein; Robert S. Kapito of BlackRock; Richard J. Mack of Mack Real Estate Group; UJA Chair of the Board David L. Moore of Moore Holdings; Daniel S. Och of Willoughby Capital Holdings, LLC; John A. Paulson of Paulson & Co. Inc.; Suzanne F. Peck of BlackRock; and Larry Robbins of Glenview Capital Management.

Ms. Novick, vice chairman and co-founder, received this year's high honor for leading the way in professionalism, philanthropy, and commitment to the community. She was praised as a pioneer in the industry by her BlackRock co-founder Robert S. Kapito, who has worked with Novick for more than 30 years, and by colleague Suzanne F. Peck, who described Novick as a person of tremendous accomplishment and a pillar of inspiration to so many women at BlackRock.

In her acceptance remarks, Novick shared her gratitude that more women now work on Wall Street than when she started her career and first started attending UJA's Wall Street Dinner. "I'm happy to say we've come a long way," she said, after asking the women in the room to stand. Novick also discussed the importance of mentoring and sponsoring young talent. "As with candles, when one gives light to another, it loses nothing of its own light. In fact, when one wick lights a second, the emerging light is even brighter and stronger," she said. Novick also revealed that she has seen firsthand the significance of the generosity of UJA's donors when she navigated the challenges associated with elder care and encountered numerous nonprofits supported by UJA.

For Schwartz, co-chief investment officer and head of real estate, understanding the importance of philanthropy came easy, as his family led by example. He told of his stepfather, who worked tirelessly to help Russian and Ethiopian Jews relocate to Israel over a 25-year period as chairman of United Israel Appeal's Government Relations Committee. Schwartz received his award from Angelo Gordon's chief executive officer, Michael L. Gordon.

During the program, guests heard about UJA's work from Lloyd C. Blankfein, chair of UJA's Wall Street & Financial Services Division, who expressed his pride in the philanthropic Wall Street community, which enables UJA to fight poverty, promote Jewish experiences of all kinds, provide rich and meaningful summer camp experiences for children, combat the BDS movement, and fund security enhancements for local Jewish institutions.

Former Chair of UJA's Wall Street & Financial Services Division John A. Paulson paid tribute to the late philanthropist Allan Glick and announced the creation of the Allan Glick Leadership Award at UJA, which will annually recognize an individual who has committed years of dedicated service to UJA or a UJA nonprofit partner.

The evening's keynote address, delivered by Andrew Ross Sorkin, financial columnist for The New York Times and co-anchor of Squawk Box on CNBC, focused on how business can be a powerful force for good in our community.

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