Eleventh Annual Miami Benefit Gala (2017)
Miami, FL • October 13, 2017
The René Moawad Foundation USA held its 11th Annual Miami Benefit dinner at the exclusive Vanderbilt Mansion on Fisher Island on Friday October 13, 2017. The dinner was organized and chaired by the Board Member and President of the Miami Chapter Mrs. Rima Otrakji.
The evening brought together a select group of supporters from the most prominent members of the Lebanese-American and Lebanese-Latin-American communities in Miami. The mansion was filled to capacity with 140 people who came to honor one of their own successful Miami businessmen of Lebanese origin, Mr. Nadim Ashi, who received the RMF Distinguished Lifetime Achievement Award.
Nadim Ashi is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Fort Partners, a privately held real estate ownership, development, and management company. Under his leadership, Fort Partners is acquiring and enhancing properties with unique provenance, utilizing the top talents in the fields of architecture, design and hospitality to reimagine these properties to align with the Fort Partners vision. Among Fort Partners’ projects is The Surf Club in Surfside, Florida.
Presenting Mr. Ashi was Lebanese-American/Australian Mr. Jacques A. Nasser AC who most recently served as the Chairman of BHP Billiton and presently serves on the Boards of 21st Century Fox, Koç Holdings, and the International Advisory Board of Allianz. He achieved great prominent during his 33-year global career with Ford Motor Company, having served as a member of the Board of Directors, and as President and Chief Executive Officer of Ford.
The dinner was MC’d by Sara Ganim a CNN reporter of Lebanese background as well as famous plastic surgeon Dr. Julio Gallo. Amongst the guests and supporters were the Mayor of Miami Beach Mr. Philip Levine, Former Miami Dolphins coach and Mrs. Don Shula, new RMF Board member and former honoree and head of the Gary Nader Art Institute and Latin American Museum Mr. Gary Nader, the general Manager of Fisher Island Mr. Lackner and many more.
In her keynote speech Mrs. Moawad thanked everyone for their continued support and highlighted the USAID Baladi project which RMF is undertaking in Lebanon. She stressed the fact that when ignorance, poverty and hopelessness prevail, it becomes the perfect recipe for a future terrorist. That is why RMF works so hard on human development through education as well as economic development to attain a harmonious and united Lebanon.
