Several elected officials attended the gala, including State Sen. Iwen Chu; Councilmember Alex Aviles; Winnie Greco, senior advisor to the mayor and director of Asian affairs; and former Assemblymember Peter Abate.

Maggie Gu, owner of Park Asia, and sponsor and organizer for the benefit, told the Brooklyn Eagle that she was “beyond pleased” with the turnout.

“It’s wonderful to see a lot of familiar faces from last year and the year before, and also many new people – all coming together for this very special night,” Gu said.

“Once again Maggie (Gu) is showing her true roots to the community with this charitable event,” explained Abate. “And I’m here to support her and Maimonides as well for such an amazing cause.”

Donna-Marie Manasseh, chief of breast surgery at Maimonides, noted that her hospital diagnoses over 600 cancers per year – “and these donations will go a long way helping women to be treated and screened in an effective manner,” Manasseh said.

Councilmember Alexa Aviles pointed out that it’s extremely imperative to raise awareness so that women are checking themselves.

“Prevention is so important,” Aviles said. “Every family has probably been touched by some form of cancer – my family has been touched by breast cancer. Of course, to eradicate all forms of cancer would be amazing, but it all starts with events like this.”

“I’m very familiar with breast cancer, and I work very closely with Maimonides, which is a wonderful facility,” State Sen. Iwen Chu said, noting that tonight has been a “very successful, productive, and educational experience.”

Yiwu Huang, program director, hematology/oncology at Maimonides, added “If breast cancer is caught in the early stages, more than 90% can survive. So don’t be afraid to seek help if you need it — to get screening — especially if you have a family with a history of the disease. It could save your life.”