Stand Up for Heroes (SUFH), New York’s highly anticipated night of hope, healing and laughter returns for its 15th annual celebration to honor our nation’s impacted veterans and their families, on November 8, at 8:00 p.m. ET at Alice Tully Hall at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts.
The event will raise awareness and funds for the Bob Woodruff Foundation, whose mission is to find, fund, shape, and accelerate equitable solutions that help the veteran and military community thrive. Stand Up for Heroes is presented by the Bob Woodruff Foundation and the New York Comedy Festival and is brought to you by Craig Newmark Philanthropies, Veterans On Wall Street, HSBC, Citi, UBS, Wells Fargo, H.C.S. Foundation, Vehicles For Veterans, TriWest, TOYOTA, Steven and Alexandra Cohen Foundation, Ann G. & James B. Ritchey Foundation, Philip Morris International, State of Qatar, Barclays, PayPal, EY, Balyasny Asset Management, Bloomberg Philanthropies, Citadel, Bank of America, BlackRock, BNP Paribas, Bank of the West, Dave & Busters, The Barbara Bradley Baekgaard Foundation, and Valley Guard Supply. SUFH kicks off the New York Comedy Festival which features more than 200 comedians from around the world performing in over 100 shows at some of New York City’s most prestigious venues from November 8 – 14.
SUFH will feature performances by comedians and musicians including Nate Bargatze, Jim Gaffigan, Grace Gaustad, Nikki Glaser, Sing Harlem, Donnell Rawlings, Bruce Springsteen, Jon Stewart and more. The event will also highlight inspiring moments, memorable surprises, and stories of resilience while recognizing the men and women who have served in our nation’s military.
“Our military community sacrifices so much for their fellow citizens. They have earned our enduring respect, and more importantly, our support. For 15 years, that has been the inspiration behind Stand Up for Heroes – an evening to honor, celebrate, and take action in support of our veterans and their families.” said Bob Woodruff, ABC News correspondent and co-founder of the Bob Woodruff Foundation. “The performances will be incredible, but my favorite part of the show is sharing the stories of our heroes.”
In 2007, New York Comedy Festival founders Caroline Hirsch and Andrew Fox partnered with Bob and Lee Woodruff to create this special event as a tribute to wounded, ill, and injured veterans and their loved ones. Since its inception, Stand Up for Heroes has raised $60 million to create long-lasting, positive outcomes for our nation’s impacted veterans, service members, and their families. Over the past 15 years, comedians and performers including Stephen Colbert, Eric Church, Sheryl Crow, Jim Whoopi Goldberg, John Mayer, Seth Meyers, Hasan Minhaj, John Mulaney, Trevor Noah, Conan O’Brien, Jerry Seinfeld, Bruce Springsteen, Jon Stewart, Ronnie Chieng, Ray Romano, and Robin Williams have taken the stage to advocate for our extraordinary service members.
“We are very proud to continue our partnership with the Bob Woodruff Foundation and Stand Up for Heroes and are thrilled to be back together with a live, in-person audience after having to go virtual last year due to the pandemic,” said Caroline Hirsch, founder and owner of the New York Comedy Festival and Carolines on Broadway. “We’re honored to continue celebrating our heroes with this very special night of live comedy and music that serves as a reminder that now more than ever, we must keep these brave men and women who defend our freedoms top of mind.”
For the past 15 years, the Bob Woodruff Foundation has been a change-maker in the veteran space, forging partnerships and uniting leaders at the highest levels of government, military, business and philanthropy. BWF has invested more than $80 million to find, fund and shape the most innovative programs supporting our heroes, reaching more than 11 million veterans and their families across the country.
“Last year, the Bob Woodruff Foundation and the New York Comedy Festival were able to take Stand Up for Heroes global, bringing a virtual night of hope, healing, and laughter to more than 100 countries around the world. But as any music or comedy fan will tell you, there’s simply nothing like being there live,” said Anne Marie Dougherty, CEO of the Bob Woodruff Foundation. “You just can’t capture that energy virtually, and there’s a special magic that happens when we bring together an amazing lineup of stars and a theater full of supporters to show the wounded heroes and their families seated in the front row: ’We’re here for you. We appreciate you. We’ve got your six.’”
Tickets for Stand Up for Heroes go on sale September 28 through bobwoodrufffoundation.org and the Lincoln Center box office. All attendees must be vaccinated and wear masks in accordance with state and venue guidelines. Proof of vaccination must be provided on site.
The NYCF is produced by Carolines on Broadway and is made possible by its partners Citi, Audible, Liquid Death, ABC7, iHeart Radio, Mayor’s Office of Media & Entertainment, NYC & Company, New York Magazine, New York Post, SiriusXM Radio, Variety and Vulture. Among those who will headline this year’s festival are Vir Das, Tim Dillon, Colin Quinn, Michelle Wolf, Norm Macdonald, Megan Stalter, Ronny Chieng, Jon Lovett’s Lovett or Leave It, Smart Funny & Black Live!, Nick Kroll, ALOK, Marc Maron, Brian Regan, Gary Gulman, Bill Maher, Michelle Buteau, and Andrew Santino. Stand Up For Heroes is sponsored by Craig Newmark Philanthropies, Veterans On Wall Street, HSBC, Citi, UBS, Wells Fargo, H.C.S. Foundation, Vehicles For Veterans, TriWest, TOYOTA, Steven and Alexandra Cohen Foundation, Ann G. & James B. Ritchey Foundation, Philip Morris International, State of Qatar, Barclays, PayPal, EY, Balyasny Asset Management, Bloomberg Philanthropies, Citadel, Bank of America, BlackRock, BNP Paribas, Bank of the West, Dave & Busters, The Barbara Bradley Baekgaard Foundation, and Valley Guard Supply.
