Dear Friends, hank you for joining us for the 2018 Benefit Concert. This, of course, is a very Tspecial year for Highbridge Voices as we celebrate our twentieth anniversary. As such, we are delighted to honor three people who were instrumental to starting Highbridge Voices: Monsignor Sakano, Jorge Batista, and Bruno Casolari. We couldn’t be more thrilled to celebrate these three men, who have been so indispensable to our organization. Appropriately, the themes for tonight’s musical program are music and love, undoubtedly two of the most essential elements of Highbridge Voices’ success over the past two decades. We have long celebrated the ways in which music can not only inspire excellence in children, but also how it transforms the way they interact with the world around them. Music makes all of us more compassionate, more aware of environments outside our own. Just as important, Highbridge Voices has become a home-away-from-home for hundreds of students over the years. It is love as much as anything else that has propelled our organization. And it is love that will keep us going for the next twenty years (and beyond) as well. Our students have had an eventful year, to say the least. They visited El Museo del Barrio during a summer course on gender roles. They saw an acclaimed production of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” at Shakespeare in the Park. They sang the National Anthem before a Yankees playoff game (the Yankees won) and before a Knicks game at Madison Square Garden (predictably, the Knicks lost). And we recently returned from our spring tour to Quebec City where students not only performed some of the selections you will hear tonight, but explored French- Canadian culture despite frigid temperatures and an April snowstorm! But none of these experiences would matter without our guiding principles of music and love. Or, to put it more clearly, building a foundation of love through the teaching of music. And though we aren’t graduating any seniors this year, we are on pace to have a class of eleven in 2019, our biggest class ever and a testament to our continued efforts to foster a strong sense of community among our students. As Highbridge Voices continues to serve the children of our community, we look to you for support. Thanks to all who have already made this evening a success: our honorees, as well as our co-chairs, Joi & Sheldon S. Horowitz and Donna & Tom O’Brien. Many thanks as well to Highbridge CDC, the Benefit Committee, our Board of Trustees, and the Highbridge Voices staff. We aim to inspire excellence in our students throughout the year, and tonight, we hope to also inspire you. Please enjoy the concert. Sincerely, Mary Clementi Executive Director & Music Director 2018 JOURNAL AND YEARBOOK • 1 2018 EMCEE: JEANNIE GAFFIGAN ctress, producer, writer, philanthropist, mother of five HIGHBRIDGE VOICES WISHES TO THANK Aand all around comedic force ALL THOSE WHO SUPPORTED Jeannie Gaffigan is most well-known THIS YEAR’S BENEFIT CONCERT: for the comedy empire she created with her writing and producing part- ner as well as husband, Jim Gaffigan, BENEFIT CHAIRS one of the world’s premiere stand- Joi & Sheldon S. Horowitz up comedians and actors. Called “Comedy’s Quietest Power Couple,” was 2006’s “Beyond the Pale,” which Donna & Tom O’Brien by Vanity Fair, Jeannie and Jim have achieved Platinum sales for CD and developed a critically acclaimed TV DVD. Next was the highly success- EVENT COMMITTEE show, written bestselling books, and ful “King Baby” in 2009, which she Kevin Alger produced multiple sold out tours and co-wrote, executive produced, and platinum status comedy albums. wrote the opening sequence in the Chip Dineen Recently, Jeannie was executive special directed by Troy Miller. She Susan & Steven Eckna producer and writer on the TV Land also helped co-write and executive Nancy & Chris King comedy “The Jim Gaffigan Show.” produce Jim Gaffigan’s latest comedy The show was well received by crit- specials, “Mr. Universe” in 2012 and Eileen & Thomas Lamberti ics, with Newsday proclaiming it as “Obsessed” in 2014. Jeannie was also Nina & Neal McElroy “A must see comedy smash,” People the story editor for Jim’s books, Dad Magazine calling it “One of TV’s Is Fat and FOOD: A Love Story, two Andrew O’Keefe bright spots,” and The Los Angeles New York Times best sellers. Dana & Jim Randall Times calling the show, “Fun and In addition to performing in the- Laura & Glenn Tobias Funny.” ater, film and television, Jeannie was Last year, Gaffigan directed her the founder and executive director of Natalia & Charles Torres husband’s Netflix comedy special “Shakespeare on the Playground,” a Catherine Vaughn & Markus Deutsch “Cinco”, which premiered in January not-for-profit theater company that 2017 and has directed his upcoming produced Shakespearean plays for special, “Noble Ape” due out July inner city teenagers with a focus on 2018. literacy and production skills. She The first comedy special Jean- lives in New York with Jim and their nie co-wrote and executive produced five children. 2 • HIGHBRIDGE VOICES 2018 JOURNAL AND YEARBOOK • 3 2018 BENEFIT CHAIRS: 2018 BENEFIT CHAIRS: JOI & SHELDON S. HOROWITZ DONNA & TOM O’BRIEN oi and Sheldon Horowitz reside organizations, including: the Ameri- onna and Tom O’Brien have in New City, New York with can Heart Association, Rockland been supporters of High- Jtheir 3 children, Jason, Lexi County Historical Society, Helen Dbridge Voices for many years and Brett. Sheldon is President of Hayes Hospital Foundation, New and were Benefit honorees in 2013. Safe Harbour Group, Ltd, an insur- City Rotary, Rockland County Sher- Dating back to 1992, Donna ance agency in New City. Joi and iff’s Reserve Force, and the Mon- was involved in the early stages of Sheldon are Bronx natives. They are mouth University Business Council. the redevelopment of Highbridge, strong proponents of Highbridge Joi and Sheldon are commit- helping to plan for the healthcare Voices. ted to promoting education. They and social service needs of the newly Sheldon has been intricately have established and funded mul- redeveloped community. Working involved with the Highbridge tiple scholarships. They created the with Monsignor Donald Sakano organization for many years. He was Robert H. Finkelstein Memorial and Jorge Batista of the Highbridge the 2016 honoree at the Highbridge Scholarship in honor of Sheldon’s Community Development Corpo- Corps, and the Flushing Financial Voices Benefit Concert. Sheldon business partner who passed away in ration, Donna was instrumental Corporation. She is a graduate of has served on the board of multiple 2001. Joi and Sheldon instituted the in bringing healthcare and social the College of the regional and national not-for-profit Howard S. Cohen Memorial Schol- services providers to the Highbridge Holy Cross and has her Masters in arship at Monmouth University community. Health Administration from St. School of Real Estate and the Gisela Professionally, Donna contin- Louis University. and Bernard Dolinger Scholarship ues her work in healthcare as the Tom is a Business and Informa- at Monmouth University. They also President of Strategic Visions in tion Technology Solutions Execu- assisted their son Jason who created Healthcare, a healthcare consult- tive. He is a Senior Director in the the Christopher J. Mejia Endowed ing firm specializing in strategy and Corporate Performance Improve- Memorial scholarship, also at Mon- business development. She served ment Consulting Practice at Alvarez mouth University. Sheldon also sits as a Special Advisor to the Direc- & Marsal. Tom’s professional and on the Monmouth University School tor of the National Cancer Institute civic activities include serving on the of Business Scholarship Commit- in Bethesda, Maryland from 2005 Board of Councillors of the Ameri- tee and is the chairman of the New to 2014 and received the National can Association of the Order of City Rotary Scholarship Committee, Institutes of Health Directors Award Malta, and on the IT Board of Advi- which awards scholarships to well- in 2009 for her work in developing sors for Hofstra University ZARB deserving college bound students. a new model for community-based School of Business. He also serves They are honored to be co-chair cancer care. Donna serves on the as a Trustee of St. Joseph Parish in persons for tonight’s event. Board of Directors for Fidelis Care, Garden City, NY. Tom is a graduate the International Cancer Expert of Adelphi University. 2018 JOURNAL AND YEARBOOK • 5 2018 BENEFIT CONCERT SPONSORS MAESTRO —$100,000 and above— The Family of Mr. James S. Dineen appy Twentieth Anniversary, Highbridge Voices!! And a warm welcome to all SOPRANO Hof our friends and supporters and to the families of the wonderful Highbridge —$25,000 and above— Voices students! Kevin R. Alger Tonight we are celebrating three people: Mr. Jorge Batista, Monsignor Donald The Frank J. Fee Foundation Sakano, and Mr. Bruno Casolari. Twenty years ago, these men had the vision and Ann Thivierge & Richard Durkin energy to establish an after-school choral program in the basement level of a few Catherine Vaughn & Markus Deutsch Highbridge Community Development Corporation buildings on Merriam Avenue ALTO in the Bronx. The buildings themselves had been burned down to their studs during —$10,000 and above— the fiscal and spiritual crisis of New York City in the late 1970s – and Mr. Batista Kenneth Browne and Monsignor Sakano were instrumental during the 1980s in helping to execute The Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of New York Devon & Bijan Eghdami NYC’s housing rebuilding program under Mayor Koch. No sooner were the build- Flushing Bank ings repaired and rented out to low and middle-income families, than Monsignor Eileen & Thomas Lamberti turned to Bruno Casolari, his parish’s organist and the director of the Summer TENOR Youth Theater at Purchase College to do something in music for the children of the —$5,000 and above— Highbridge community.