Release NY4P Honors Parks Leaders at 2018 Party 4 Parks
L to R: Paula Zahn, Thomas Kempner, Lynn Kelly, Iris Weinshall, Joel Steinhaus
Parks Group Honors Open Space Leaders at 2018 Party 4 Parks
Thomas L. Kempner, Jr. and Iris Weinshall honored for excellence in park leadership; WeWork receives inaugural Corporate Champion 4 Sustainability Award
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Megan Douglas / 212-838-9410 ex.310 / mdouglas@ny4p.org
Michelle Velez / 212-838-9410 ex.315 / mvelez@ny4p.org
(October 17, 2018 | New York, NY) New Yorkers for Parks (NY4P), the citywide independent champion of quality open space, honored parks leaders at their annual Party 4 Parks held at the Loeb Boathouse in Central Park, on October 15th. The event raised over $530,000 to help fund NY4P’s work protecting, preserving and advocating for open space across all five boroughs.
The Party 4 Parks honorees were Thomas L. Kempner, Jr. Chairman of the Central Park Conservancy, and Co-Executive Managing Member at Davidson Kempner Capital Management LP; Iris Weinshall, Chair of the Prospect Park Alliance, and Chief Operating Officer of the New York Public Library; and WeWork, recipients of NY4P’s inaugural Corporate Champion 4 Sustainability Award.
As the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Central Park Conservancy, Mr. Kempner guides the long-term strategic planning for the most frequently visited park in the United States, with over 42 million visitors each year. Under Tom’s leadership, the Central Park Conservancy serves as a leader in urban park management throughout New York City and the world, and has gone above and beyond by establishing the Institute for Urban Parks to share this park management knowledge with others.
As Chair of the Board of Directors of the Prospect Park Alliance, Ms. Weinshall is working to sustain “Brooklyn’s Backyard” for the diverse communities that call Brooklyn home. A life-long New Yorker and tireless public servant, Iris works to foster the long-term stewardship of the park. She also helps guide the Alliance’s pro-bono support for improvements to smaller Brooklyn parks in under-resourced neighborhoods, in the form of design services based on the input and needs of local communities.
The program featured a discussion between Mr. Kempner and Ms. Weinshall moderated by Emmy Award-winning journalist and newscaster Paula Zahn, reflecting on their work and the importance of parks to the health and wellbeing of New York City.
Patty Ornst, Managing Director, New York State and Local Government Affairs, Delta Air Lines and NY4P board member, presents the Corporate Champion 4 Sustainability Award to Jennifer Skyler of WeWork
NY4P recognized WeWork with their inaugural Corporate Champion 4 Sustainability Award, for the company’s inspirational commitment to creating community and championing sustainability through initiatives to drive down energy consumption and support local entrepreneurs with a social impact focus. WeWork has recently committed to becoming fully carbon-neutral across global operations no later than 2023, to removing major single-use plastics, from all of its 287 locations by the end of 2018, and to no longer serve or pay for meat as a company.
“Tom Kempner and Iris Weinshall have both shown incredible dedication to not just Central Park and Prospect Park, but to parks across the city through the Conservancy’s and the Alliance’s philanthropic and educational initiatives,” said Lynn Kelly, Executive Director of New Yorkers for Parks. “We’re also delighted to honor WeWork with our very first Corporate Champion 4 Sustainability Award. Their business model is built on community and a shared sense of place. With their significant commitments to sustainability, WeWork members also have a shared sense of responsibility. The same is true with parks – they’re our most democratic spaces, and it’s up to all of us to protect and improve them.”
###
View photos from the Party 4 Parks. All photos copyright Sarah Merians.
About New Yorkers for Parks
For over 100 years New Yorkers for Parks has been the independent champion for quality parks and open space for all New Yorkers. Through our research, advocacy, and the Daffodil Project, we work with communities and elected officials to create and preserve quality open space across the city. To learn more visit us at www.ny4p.org.
CONTACT: For photos and quotes, contact Megan Douglas 212-838-9410 ex.310 / mdouglas@ny4p.org Michelle Velez 212838-9410 ex.315 / mvelez@ny4p.org