Click on photo to see our gala album!
Thank you for making Sakhi’s “Building Bridges” Gala a success!
Our gala last Thursday was truly a memorable night as our guests were transported to a spring wonderland at the beautiful Guastavino’s! Namita Luthra, our Master of Ceremonies, set the tone for the evening by speaking about the importance of building bridges across different constituencies, including men and boys, in our work against violence, after which we then premiered our video highlighting the contributions of males in Sakhi’s work.
We heard from the First Lady of New York City, Chirlane McCray, as she presented an award to Penny Abeywardena, NYC’s Commissioner for International Affairs. “The effort to combat the domestic violence crisis is a team effort.” – Chirlane McCray
Ms. Abeywardena then shared her story of growing up in a home with violence and dedicated her award to her mother. “I am truly humbled by tonight’s award. What resonates with me is Sakhi’s focus on the survivor.” – Penny Abeywardena
On every table, there were stories of survivors to keep us connected to why we were gathered together. Former Sakhi Board Chair, Tamseela Tayyabkhan, shared her memories of her volunteer days with Renuka Nayar while presenting an award to the Nayar Family. We were honored to have the Nayar daughters, Meera and Megha, speak on behalf of the family. They captured and inspired the audience with their courage, determination, and poise.
That kicked off the live pledge drive for our Women’s Health Programming, where we raised over $54,000, enabling Sakhi to deepen our work by increasing survivors’ access to both mental and physical health services.
In total, we raised over $400,000 at this year’s gala of 400 guests, strengthening our ability to eradicate domestic violence and work together to create strong and healthy communities.
We would like to give special thanks to Preethi Krishna and Ram Sundaram, our Gala Chairs, and our Benefit Committee, Sponsors, Honorees and Master of Ceremonies for their generous support. We would also like to convey our deepest gratitude to all of our guests, volunteers, and supporters. You are vital to Sakhi’s mission to end violence against women.
We hope to see you at events throughout the year!
Sincerely,
Sakhi Board and Staff