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Brooklyn Org honors local heroes at annual Changemakers Ball
BROOKLYN — On Wednesday, Oct. 23, Brooklyn Org celebrated the inaugural Brooklyn Org 25 at the annual Brooklyn Org Changemakers Ball. The Ball, which was attended by more than 600 guests and raised a record $1.2 million to support nonprofits that are driving change throughout the borough, was held at the award-winning Powerhouse Arts.
“The Brooklyn Org Changemakers Ball is all about celebrating the work that our nonprofit leaders are doing every single day to address the most urgent issues across Brooklyn,” said Dr. Jocelynne Rainey, President and CEO of Brooklyn Org. “We are so grateful for the overwhelming support our community members have shown for our changemakers this year. Together, we will help fuel transformative change in our communities.”
The 2024 Brooklyn Org Changemakers Ball honoree was former Brooklyn Org Board Co-Chair Harsha G. Marti. Marti is managing director, general counsel and a member of the Executive Management Group at Warburg Pincus.
The Ball was hosted by iconic New York DJ and broadcaster Stretch Armstrong and featured a special performance by the Jamel Gaines Creative Outlet dancers. Following the event, DJ Stretch Armstrong hosted an afterparty on the Powerhouse Arts dancefloor.
The Changemakers Ball featured presentations by Lynn Nottage, the two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, and the TONY-nominated actor and singer Constantine Maroulis. Brooklyn luminaries were also in attendance, including New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso and Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez.
Like the “Time 100” list, the Brooklyn Org 25, presented by The Stardust Fund, shines a spotlight on nonprofit leaders who represent the very best of Brooklyn, including community stalwarts and emerging leaders, movement builders and direct service providers, as well as the 2024 winners of the Just Brooklyn Prize.
The inaugural Brooklyn Org 25 honorees are Brittany Bellinger of Youth Design Center, for empowering young multi-media creators in Brownsville; Carolyn Butts of Reel Sisters + African Voices, for amplifying the voices of writers, filmmakers, and artists of color; Chino Hardin of Center for Nu Leadership, for shifting the focus from criminal justice to Human Justice; Christine Yvette Lewis of Domestic Workers United, for building power and demanding respect for domestic work; Coleen Stevens Porcher of Power of Two, for healing trauma and strengthening bonds between caregivers and children; Derrick Hamilton of Friends and Family of the Wrongfully Convicted, for supporting the wrongfully convicted in their fight for justice and exoneration; Fernando Soto of After Hours Project, for preventing the spread of HIV, HCV, and STIs through harm reduction in Brooklyn and Queens; Hizam Wahib of Arab-American Family Support Center, for equipping immigrants and refugees with culturally and linguistically competent resources;
Ivy Gamble Cobb of The Family Center, for guiding families through crisis and loss across New York City; Jeremy Saunders of VOCAL-NY, for building power among low-income New Yorkers affected by HIV/AIDS, the drug war, and mass incarceration; Jo-Ann Yoo of Asian American Federation, for empowering the pan-Asian American community through advocacy and support services; Kelvin Taitt of East Brooklyn Mutual Aid, for addressing food insecurity with community-driven grocery delivery; Kenrick Ross of Brooklyn Community Pride Center, for fostering LGBTQ+ liberation through inclusive programs, partnerships, and advocacy;
Maxime Valbrune of Haitian Women for Haitian Refugees, for providing Haitian refugees and immigrants with critical resources and political education in Flatbush; Mohammad Razvi of Council of Peoples Organization; for supporting Brooklyn’s South Asian, Arab, and Muslim families with community relations and comprehensive social services; Nicole Huang of Parent-Child Relationship Association, for strengthening Brooklyn’s immigrant families with parenting workshops and a sense of belonging; Nowshin Ali of People in Need, for fostering community resilience for immigrants in Flatbush through food relief and women’s empowerment; Rob Solano of Churches United For Fair Housing, for mobilizing BIPOC communities to champion housing rights and economic justice; Susan Stamler of United Neighborhood Houses, for nurturing future leaders in settlement houses across the city; Tené Howard of Sadie Nash Leadership Project, for equipping gender-expansive youth of color with the skills and resources to advocate for change in their communities; Tiffiney Davis of Red Hook Art Project, for nurturing creativity in Red Hook’s youth through free arts education;
Tonya Gayle of Green City Force, for empowering frontline communities to lead in urban environmental justice; Tuulikki Robertson of The Black Institute, for advancing racial equity by shaping policies that uplift Black families and immigrants; Rev. Dr. Valerie Oliver Durrah of Neighborhood Technical Assistance Clinic, for facilitating collaborations among philanthropists and faith-based institutions to address community needs; and Wes Jackson of BRIC Arts Media.
About Brooklyn Org
The Brooklyn Org Changemakers Ball celebrated 15 years of Brooklyn Org, established in 2009 as Brooklyn Community Foundation by chairman emeritus Alan Fishman.
Brooklyn Org is a champion for Brooklyn bringing together community changemakers — the families and businesses, the grassroots leaders and growing companies, and local nonprofits and the communities they serve — to be a new model for local philanthropy, built from the ground up, in pursuit of a more equitable and just borough.
Since its founding, the organization has moved over $120 million to nonprofits through its strategic grantmaking and Donor Advised Funds, while driving action to address urgent crises and long-term change in Brooklyn. Each year, Brooklyn Org partners with Brooklyn residents to invest more than $5 million in high-impact nonprofits advancing racial justice at every level across the borough. Brooklyn Org ensures that Brooklyn’s challenges are met with solutions, ideas are met with resources, and inequality is met with justice.