UNICEF celebrates 10 years of Hope Gala

The Event: To celebrate a decade of aiding children around the world, the 10th annual United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) Hope gala drew more than 500 supporters to the Geraghty in Chicago on April 29.

Since 1946, UNICEF has helped to save more children’s lives than any other humanitarian organization by focused on providing clean water, vaccinations, nutrition; preventing child trafficking; promoting child safety; and education throughout more than 190 countries and territories.  Ninety-one cents of every dollar they receive goes to programming. 

Cause Célèbre: “We are thrilled to see how this event has grown,” said Rob Brown of Park Ridge, UNICEF Chicago board chairman and the first Hope Gala chairman, along with his wife and UNICEF committee member and co-chairman of UNICEF USA’s Youth activists, Amy Brown.

“Right now there are several major crises going on in the world,” explained Brown citing the famine in sub-Saharan Africa currently affecting South Sudan, Nigeria, Somalia and Yemen. Additionally, “The war-torn regions of the Middle East have created a refugee crisis that has rippled throughout the world so much of our focus right now is in those two areas,” explained Brown.

As a trained pediatric psychologist, event chairman and Midwest board member, John Luce of River Forest, was drawn to UNICEF because of its focus, “Not just on education and poverty but also on child protection and emergency relief – all the things that I believe we should be focused on in terms of helping children get from very vulnerable kids to self-sustaining and self-sufficient adults.”

“Every child has the right to a childhood and in our global communities, your child born in Somalia might someday be your next-door neighbor so we need to love everyone,” said Amy Brown.

Bottom Line: The event raised more than $1 million dollars for UNICEF.