PRESS RELEASE: (New York) – The recently merged charity K.I.D.S./Fashion Delivers will honor Heidi Klum, Tom Kingsbury and Carl Banks at its 2014 annual gala on Wednesday, November 5th at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. The charity expects more than 700 attendees, with cocktails from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m. and dinner and an awards ceremony from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. The gala’s theme is #GiveWarmth, with a goal to collect 1 million pieces of cold weather items for people in need this winter.
K.I.D.S./Fashion Delivers serves as a strong and effective charitable force both in the United States and around the world by providing new clothing, children’s products and household items to victims of disasters and families in need. In 2013 alone, 392 companies donated $179 million of product, helping 816 community partners. This year the charity’s annual gala recognizes the charitable efforts of three exceptional individuals:
• Heidi Klum, Project Runway Emmy Winning TV Host, Executive Producer & Entrepreneur – Klum is a top model, making great impact for clients and appearing on the covers of pop-culture mainstays including the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. Klum is the Emmy winning host and executive producer of the ten-time Emmy-nominated Project Runway and a judge on NBC’s hit show America’s Got Talent. Other ventures include active wear for New Balance, a collection for Babies“R”Us called Truly Scrumptious and campaigns for Jordache, Coty and Dr. Scholl’s. Klum’s charity involvements include work with the American Red Cross, UNICEF and God’s Love We Deliver.
Related Stories
• Thomas A. Kingsbury, President and CEO, Burlington Stores, Inc. – Throughout his career, Kingsbury has been a champion of philanthropic causes, and brought that spirit to Burlington. His charitable activities include supporting The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s Light the Night Walk and the Red Dress Event to benefit WomenHeart. Working with K.I.D.S./Fashion Delivers, he also established Burlington Gives Back to donate new merchandise to local nonprofits at store openings, and has partnered with ABC’s Good Morning America and the charity to collect more than 1.2 Million coats to help those in need.
• Carl Banks, President, G-III Sports – Banks rose to fame as an NFL Football player; the All-Pro outside linebacker helped bring the New York Giants back into prominence winning Super Bowls XXI and XXV. He began to design outerwear sized to fit himself and his teammates before joining the team at G-III Apparel in 1992. Banks is still closely affiliated with the Giants as an analyst on the team’s radio broadcasts. He supports charities helping children of incarcerated parents and efforts to research and treat brain injuries and autism. For his ceaseless efforts to help people in so many areas, specifically children, Banks was selected as the Giants Alumni Man of the Year in 2010.
Gala tables start at $15,000, and a limited number of individual tickets will also be available at $1,250. For additional information, please contact Camy Calve Events at 212-218-4080 or rsvp@KIDSFDgala.com. There is also information about the gala online at www.KIDSFDgala.com.
Past gala participants include President Barack Obama, Madonna, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, President Bill Clinton, Silas Chou, Kenneth Cole, Simon Doonan, Gayle King and Vivica Fox. Previous gala honorees include: Abbey Doneger, Doneger Group; Jerry Storch, ToysRUs; Neil Cole, Iconix Brand Group; Tommy Hilfiger; Liz Sweney, JCPenney; Gary Simmons, Gerber Childrenswear; Oscar Feldenkreis, Perry Ellis Corporation; Tom Johnson, Aeropostale; Pamela Lifford, Disney Consumer Products; Joe Shamie, Delta Children’s Products; Lauren Bush Lauren, FEED; Stephen Ross, Related Companies; and Daisy Fuentes, Fashion Entrepreneur.
#Give Warmth — A Gala Theme With a Purpose: 1 Million Pieces of Winter Product
The annual gala is the highlight of the K.I.D.S./Fashion Delivers’ holiday season, and the charity is calling on retailers, manufacturers and industry leaders to support the #GiveWarmth campaign this season. The goal is to donate 1 million pieces of new warm apparel and blankets by November 5, 2014. Last year was America’s coldest winter in 25 years, putting the poor and homeless at terrible risk. This year K.I.D.S./Fashion Delivers wants to provide as many coats, sweaters and cold weather items as possible for those in need through the Give Warmth campaign.
The companies and brands of the gala honorees are participating in product donations as well. Follow #GiveWarmth to see the campaign’s progress at twitter.com/donateproduct, facebook.com/donateproduct, instagram.com/donateproduct or pinterest.com/donateproduct.
The results of #GiveWarmth campaign will be announced at the gala on November 5, 2014. The donations will help the charity’s community partners #GiveWarmth to hundreds of thousands of people in need across the United States.
K.I.D.S./Fashion Delivers, Inc., a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, unites retailers, manufacturers, foundations and individuals to provide new merchandise to families and people impacted by poverty and tragedy. Excess product, including apparel, accessories, shoes, home furnishings, toys, books, school supplies and other items, deliver hope and dignity to people in need through a network of community partners. To date, over $1.2 billion of donated products have been distributed, serving the poor and disadvantaged worldwide. For more information, please visit www.DonateProduct.com.