Leaders from the Construction, Development, and Real Estate Industries Gather at St. Mary’s Largest Fundraiser to Help New York’s Sickest Children.
Top executives and leaders from the real estate, construction, and development industries in the metropolitan New York area gathered at Cipriani Wall Street on Tuesday, November 5th for St. Mary’s Annual Tribute Dinner, honoring Frank Sciame, Chairman and CEO of Sciame Construction. The signature event celebrated St. Mary’s Kids and was hosted by TV personality Donny Deutsch. The event raised over $700,000 to support the essential programs and services that St. Mary’s provides to 2,000 children and their families each day.
Frank Sciame founded Sciame Construction in 1975, leading the firm to its current position as one of the tri-state’s (NY-NJ-CT) leading construction management firms, with current projects underway valued at over one billion dollars. With the help of the Sciame staff, some of the best construction executives in the City, he has steadily grown the firm over this period by producing consistently high-quality projects – such as the Shed, The High Line, Trinity Church and Performing Arts Center at the World Trade Center.
“St. Mary’s greatly appreciates the support and friendship of Frank Sciame, a true champion for our children,” remarked Dr. Edwin Simpser, St. Mary’s President and CEO. “Funds raised through this year’s Tribute Dinner will help us provide hope and healing to New York’s sickest children and their families. These philanthropic dollars allow us to provide specialized support and innovative programs.”
Dr. Simpser’s appreciation was reaffirmed later that evening through the moving words of grateful parents, Teresa & Stefano Amodio, who has benefitted from St. Mary’s Medical Day Health Care Program (MDHC). At two and a half years old, Michelle was diagnosed with autism, an intellectual disability and a seizure disorder. Her parents were in shock and didn’t know what to do because, at the time, there was limited information about her diagnosis. They realized that they needed to make a difficult decision about Michelle’s life, especially her future. Since her acceptance into the MDHC Young Adult program, there has not been one day that Michelle and her parents have had any reason for concern. For Michelle’s parents, having St. Mary’s support has enriched their lives. For them St. Mary’s has become a second home and an extension of their family.
Other highlights of the evening included a special performance of a Temptations Revue singing from Broadway’s “Ain’t Too Proud To Beg” featuring our very own and very talented, St. Mary’s Kids! The children performed “My Girl” on iPads accompanied by the five singers which was a remarkable performance.
The event was co-chaired by St. Mary’s Board Directors, Jeffrey Levine of Douglaston Development / Levine Builders and Vincent Riso of the Briarwood Organization. Additional committee members included Stuart Acker, Alliance Media Group; Georgiana Reese Benatti, New York Community Bank; John Cahill, II, Jones Lang LaSalle; David Clarke, M&T Bank; Steven Colletta, Sciame Construction; Fionna Elliot, Sciame Homes; Michael Elliot, Sciame Homes; Brad Gerla, CBRE; Joseph Gallitto, DJ Ambulette Service; Stephen Gianotti, Arcadia Electrical Co.; Richard Gilden, Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel; Cyrus Izzo, Syska Hennessy; William Lerner, iPark; Joseph Mizzi, Sciame Construction; Steven Squitieri, DJ Ambulette Service; Andrew Sciame, Sciame Homes; Frank Scaime, III, Sciame Homes and Ralph Thompson, Sciame Construction.
A heartfelt thank you to all our generous supporters for this event.
