This year's gala on April 30 was truly an extraordinary event. Four hundred fifty members of the extended BFS community turned out to celebrate Michael Nill and the tremendous growth he has shepherded in his 15 years at Brooklyn Friends. A glorious evening was the setting for our event. Guests perused our silent auction and there was much excitement over our new electronic bidding system BidPal. This hi-tech system encouraged people to keep bidding - even as they took their drinks outside to enjoy remarkable views of Brooklyn and Manhattan!
Once the guests were assembled at their dinner tables a touching tribute video was presented -- a compilation of messages, thoughts and songs from faculty members to Michael. Toukie Smith, PAT Co-President, Alice Pope, Co-Chair of the Board of Trustees and Dana Cook Stone '76, Honorary Alum Chair of the event all spoke of Michael's remarkable dedication and impact that he has made to Brooklyn Friends. The Gala's Honorary Parent Chair, Robert De Niro, sent a video greeting from the Tribeca Film Festival. In her words, Dana discussed Michael's commitment to scholarly pursuits - and therefore felt it only appropriate to announce that she and her husband Andrew, have made a contribution to the school to name the library at Brooklyn Friends "The Michael Nill Library."
Michael spoke about his love for Brooklyn Friends, and presented three pieces of advice that he wanted the community to continue to make a priority moving forward.
1) Our values - It is not what we teach to our students, but how we teach it. Quaker values is what makes us unique - that our students are learning with a purpose. We must continue to make that a priority as we grow as a school.
2) Strong academics Preschool through 12th grade - A Brooklyn Friends education is truly complete when the education process begins at a young age and goes through high school. Michael pointed out that, while we have a way to go, this piece has been moving in the right direction over the last several years and, next year, 37% of the graduating class will be "lifers."
3) Voluntary Giving - Michael impressed upon the gathering that Brooklyn Friends is behind other independent schools in our level of voluntary giving and that to be a truly great school we need to improve our level of giving back.
After a standing ovation for Michael, Lisa Sack, M.C. for the evening, built upon Michael's words and asked that the community support The Michael Nill Ednowment Fund for Faculty Development. Using their BidPal devices, we watched live on the big screen as the numbers climbed to an impressive $45,000 for the fund!
Overall the night was a huge success, raising over $130,000 for The Michael Nill Endowment Fund for Faculty Development. Thank you to all who joined us and we'll see you next year!