The generosity of Hollywood will once again be on display this May 18, 2017 as the community comes together to celebrate Uplift Family Services at Hollygrove’s 6th Annual Norma Jean Gala, presented by Houlihan Lokey, at the W Hotel Hollywood, an event to benefit the agency’s behavioral and mental health programs that provide help and hope to more than 1,200 at-risk children and their families in the Hollywood and South Los Angeles communities.
This year the gala proudly honors the agency’s friends and champions Matt Bomer and Simon Halls with the Ambassador of Children Award. They were selected to receive this honor because they, through deed and example, embody the values of the organization’s mission, share its passion to strengthen and support children in crisis, and advocate for those most in need.
“We are so honored to be recognized by Uplift Family Services at Hollygrove in this way and are in awe of the work that they do to support children and families in need,” said Bomer and Halls in a joint statement. “Our family is the centerpiece of our lives, and we understand firsthand how important it is to provide each and every child with the tools they need to succeed. We are thrilled to be involved with an organization that fights so fiercely for this cause, and are looking forward to a wonderful evening of celebrating their work.”
“We are so excited and proud to have Matt and Simon as our honorees this year,” notes Elena Judd, Uplift Family Services’ Regional Executive Director. “They are both committed to helping those who exist on the margins of our society, especially children, and I’m so thankful they support our work to do whatever it takes to heal the child – and strengthen the whole family.”
Matt Bomer is a Golden Globe-winning actor who is best known for his roles in the TV series “Chuck,” “White Collar,” “American Horror Story,” and Amazon Studios’ current series “The Last Tycoon”, as well as the films “Magic Mike,” “Flightplan,” and “The Nice Guys” (among others). Matt has been married since 2011 years to Simon Halls, a founder and partner at SLATE PR, the entertainment industry’s leading PR agency. With more than 450 clients, Simon and his partners manage the media relations activities for such luminaries as Ryan Murphy, Tom Ford, Jared Leto, Sarah Jessica Parker, Ang Lee, Annette Bening, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jennifer Aniston, Neil Patrick Harris, Anne Hathaway, and Ridley Scott. Matt and Simon are the parents of three children.
About the Norma Jean Gala: its namesake is the Hollygrove campus’ most famous alumni — Norma Jean Baker, who benefitted from the agency’s care as a child before she ultimately came to be known as the international icon Marilyn Monroe. Now in its 6th year, the gala has attracted a host of notable individuals, celebrities and organizations who come together one evening each year to honor and celebrate the work of Uplift Family Services at Hollygrove and spirit of “Norma Jean”, including: Neil Patrick Harris & David Burtka, Rob Reiner, Busy Philipps, Colin Hanks, Cobie Smulders, Ike Barinholtz, Tom Arnold, Diane Ladd, George Lopez, Lori Laughlin, Ian Ziering and many others.
Proceeds from the Norma Jean Gala support Uplift Family Services at Hollygrove’s unique and effective privately-funded therapeutic afterschool, summer and parent support programs that help create stability, strengthen the family and provide a greater chance of success for the child to become productive and thrive. In addition to underwriting support from Houlihan Lokey, major gala sponsors include CB Technologies, RETS Associates, Bryant-Reichling Real Estate, the Johnny Carson Foundation and Paramount Studios.
For questions about the organization or gala, or for more information about how to purchase tickets or sponsor the event, contact Director of Fund Development Kathleen Felesina at kathleen.felesina@upliftfs.org or 323-796-7142, or visit the gala website.
