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On Thursday, April 29th, Sex and the City star (and RAN’s newest Honorary Board member) Chris Noth threw RAN a fabulous birthday bash at Manhattan’s (Le) Poisson Rogue.
Chris Noth has been a supporter of Rainforest Action Network for over 20 years now and started throwing a yearly NYC benefit party a few years back. These big apple parties always bring together New York’s finest celebrities, eco-gliteratti, musicians, and long-time RAN volunteers and supporters.
This year’s party really kicked off RAN’s 25th anniversary year in style!
The unforgettable moment of the night was a completely hilarious and raucous live auction that raised a ton of money to support the critical work RAN does to defend forests, fight climate change, and support Indigenous rights.
Party co-hosts Chris Noth and the fabulous Trudie Styler kicked off the auction with a lively bidding war for two backstage passes (and a lil’ something extra) to Sting’s July shows at the Met with the London Philharmonic Orchestra.
Other lucky party-goers grabbed work-out sessions with Chris’s personal trainer (and a year’s membership to Nimble gym) and a private dinner with ‘Mr Big’ himself.
And for all of you waiting, Cosmos in hand, for the Sex and the City sequel, Chris helped nab 2 tickets to the World Premiere of Sex and the City 2 and sweetened the deal with a gorgeous stay at Le Hotel Plaza Atheene.
Besides being a fantastic fundraising event, the party was also a fantastic way to connect and engage on the issues we are fighting everyday.
Rainforest Action Network’s Acting Executive Director Rebecca Tarbotton gave a rousing speech about the breadth of our campaign work and our 25 history of pressuring (and inspiring) some of the world’s largest corporations to transform their social and environmental practices.
As she spoke about our recent recent successes to get Indonesia fiber out of high-fashion bags I saw Barney’s Fashion Director Julie Gilhart nodding and eco models (and activists) Summer Rayne Oakes and Kate Dillon cheering along.
When Trudie Styler – who has traveled and worked extensively in the Amazon rainforest where Chevron is responsible for massive oil contamination – spoke about the environmental and health disaster in the region, the crowd was gasping and asking for ways to get involved in our campaign to Change Chevron.
With such a star-studded and perfect event, what was my favorite celebrity sighting of the night? It wasn’t anyone you’ll read about in People magazine. Pablo Fajardo and Luis Yanza, the two courageous men, who have been defending the 30,000 impacted people in Ecuador to force Chevron to do the right thing and clean up the oil pollution, made a surprise appearance.
Speaking with Pablo and Luis reminded me why we do this work, and why the support of so many people have kept RAN going strong for 25 years.
Want to join the community of support? Become a monthly sustainer today. We can’t offer you backstage passes to Sting, but we can guarantee that your donation will help protect forests, fight climate change, and support human rights.