Empire State Building at night as seen from Midtown TerraceThe 16th annual Night to Fight Cancer (NTFC) took place on October 24th, 2019 at the Midtown Loft and Terrace in New York City. This annual event benefits The Life Raft Group’s research programs. LRG Board President Jerry Cudzil co-hosted the event with Matthew Knopman. Friends for over 16 years, Matt considers Jerry both a friend and mentor which is why he continues to support The Life Raft Group with his participation in this event and his generosity.

NTFCO co-hosts Jerry Cudzil and Matthew Knopman

NTFCO co-hosts Jerry Cudzil and Matthew Knopman

Jerry and Matt were overwhelmed by the immense amount of support and generosity from friends and family who attended the event. “Each year we are blown away by the number of participants, and this year’s number did not disappoint!” said Jerry.

With close to 200 participants, we were able to raise close to $200,000 for the Life Raft Group. With the funds raised from NTFC, the LRG will continue to enhance survival and quality of life for people living with GIST through patient powered research.

Back this year with catering was Scoozi Events. Attendees enjoyed the Taqueria Streatery’s pulled pork carnitas and carrot asada. The night’s specialty cocktail was Rosemary Lemonade. Hors d’oeuvres included past crowd favorites Mini Big Mac and the Ramen Noodle Burger among others. Our guests ended the night with the famous deconstructed s’mores and crème brulee.

Night To Fight Cancer 2019

Left to right: Diana Nieves, Matt Knopman, Arie Bedell, Robert Scherzer, Eugene Gokhvat and Jerry Cudzil

While the poker event took place on the main floor, guests enjoyed casino games on the Terrace as the spire of the Empire State glowed nearby. By the end of a very exciting game the winners of the night were, Robert Scherzer, 1st place, Arie Bedell, 2nd place, and Eugene Gokhvat, 3rd place!

And let’s not forget to thank all those who helped make this event possible! We would like to thank our NTFC Ambassadors Brian Behrens, Lyon Carter III, Benji Cheung, Armando Petruccelli and Netty Tsai for their continued support year after year. A special thank you also goes out to our corporate sponsors. Club Sponsors who donated $10,000 included Bank of America, Morgan Stanley, Pfizer, RBC, and Tradeweb. Hearts Sponsors who donated $5,000 included Cantor Fitzgerald, J.P.Morgan, and IMC. Many thanks to major donors Jerry Cudzil, Matt Knopman, and the Dan and Stacie Allen Charitable Fund for their very generous contributions. In addition, we would like to thank Lyon Carter III who was our beverage sponsor, our volunteers Anthony Cashin and Cora Ramadan, and our awards donor, Murray Rosenthal.

Events like these support the research efforts of the LRG. If you would like to see how The Life Raft Group uses research monies, please visit our digital library to view our donation and research fact sheet: https://staging.liferaftgroup.org/library/.