BIG NIGHT OUT!

Big Night Out!

On Saturday, May 2, 2009, parents, staff, alumni, board members, and friends of Manhattan Country School gathered to celebrate 43 years of leadership in education, building community and making change.

Event Co-Chairs:
Jose Perez: Co-Chair, Parent Fundraising Committee
Nicole Letelier: Class of '94

"Living the Dream" Mentor Awards celebrate and honor individuals whose outstanding leadership and achievements serve as inspiration and example to young people who want to make a difference in the world.

This year awards were presented to::
Nell Gibson (pictured above) : Parent of Alumni, Class of '83 and '86; Chair of Reparations Committee, Episcopal Diocese of New York. Nell has a long history of working for social justice, challenging the Episcopal Church to accept the gifts, services, and liturgies of African-American and Hispanic people to protesting apartheid in South Africa, and supporting reparations for slavery through the 2006 General Convention. Nell is the mother of two MCS alumni, is an inspiration to young activists, and embodies the history, present, and future of MCS's mission.

Franklin Sirmans: Class of'83; Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art, The Menil Collection. Franklin has worked at the Whitney Museum, Harlem's Studio Museum, and the Dia Center for the Arts. He has one countless awards for art and scholarship, and this year received Rush Philanthropic Art Foundation's Gold Rush Award for his contributions to social awareness through the arts. Franklin's leadership and creativity reflect the core mission and values of MCS and make him an inspiring mentor.

Lynn Vogelstein: Class of '80; Supervising Attorney, Brooklyn Family Defense Project. Lynnn is both an accomplished film writer/producer/director and an advocate for the legal rights and protections of low-income families and incarcerated women in New York City. She has been a Soros Justice Fellow of the Open Society Institute, has trained law students at NYU 's Family Defense Clinic, and continues to act as a role model for young people at the Brooklyn Family Defense Project, where she works on behalf of low-income parents in child welfare preceedings.