On Friday, Nov. 7, The LGBT Center (The Center) held the 28th annual Women’s Event, New York City’s premiere event celebrating the contributions of LGBTQ women.
“Orange is the New Black” star, producer, and LGBTQ advocate Laverne Cox was selected to host this year’s gala and live auction at the Ziegfeld Ballroom.
“I’ve had a relationship with the Center since 1999,” Cox said in a red carpet interview with Gay City News. “I used to come to the Center for support groups and the Gender Identity Project, and those support groups helped save my life.”
The Center’s CEO, Dr. Carla Smith, echoed this sentiment. The two appeared together on the Kelly Clarkson Show earlier this year to promote awareness of the center’s responsibility to LGBTQ+ youth.
“[Laverne] has a long history with the Center, so for her to come back home, as we say, and to stand alongside of us, and for me to be able to share the stage with her — I can’t describe it,” Dr. Smith said as guests began to trickle in to the gala.
Honorees for the night included Kim Stolz, a managing director at Bank of America Private Bank, former MTV News Anchor, and former America’s Next Top Model contestant, who was recognized with the Visibility Award. Stolz has been involved with the Center for over 20 years and officially joined the board in 2024.
During her remarks, Stolz shared her experience with conversion therapy when she was a teenager in Manhattan, which ended after just a few sessions when her therapist determined she was a lost cause, and “irredeemably gay,” according to Stolz.
But while Stolz was able to “flunk” out of conversion therapy in Manhattan, she acknowledged the countless youth in the community who don’t have that same option, or who are forced to continue conversion therapy in less forgiving environments.
“The most powerful thing we can do right now is support the Center,” Stolz emphasized.
Cox returned to the stage to briefly touch on her own experiences with conversion therapy in Mobile, Alabama: “It’s a matter of life and death for so many of us,” she said.
The second honoree was Shamina Singh, founder and president of Mastercard’s Center for Inclusive Growth and executive vice president for sustainability at Mastercard.
Singh recalled coming to New York as a young closeted woman and discovering the Center out of pure happenstance. Still, it took several tries before Singh was able to muster up the courage to step inside.
The Women’s Event recognized Singh with the Corporate Impact Award for her efforts to create space for LGBTQ voices at Mastercard. Singh also helped produce the first credit card that doesn’t require the user to state their gender in order to open the account.
A live auction was held after dinner for high-end beauty and skincare products, as well as luxury experiences like a trip to Costa Rica. Proceeds from the auction will be directed towards the Center’s life-saving programs.
