Arianna Huffington Celebrates New Book at The Jefferson

A group of well known reporters and journalists gathered at The Jefferson Hotel in Washington, D.C. to celebrate Arianna Huffington’s latest book, Thrive: The Third Metric to Redefining Success and Creating a Life of Well-Being, Wisdom, and Wonder. Hotel owner and businesswoman Connie Milstein hosted the party along with Gail MacKinnon and Rachel Pearson. 

Huffington, best known for her news website The Huffington Post, was inspired to write the book after spending time in the hospital due to a fall caused by exhaustion and a lack of sleep.

“The motivation for writing the book was my own burnout, and then looking around and seeing how many millions are burned out. And then, asking the questions that we stop asking after college, ‘What is the good life? What is success?’ And if you think about it, we define success, in search of these two metrics of money and power, and in this town, especially power. And this is like trying to sit on a two legged stool. Sooner or later you fall off. Nothing wrong with these two metrics. It’s just that you need the third leg of the stool,” Huffington said during the party.

Since The Jefferson underwent renovations and reopened in 2009 it has hosted a number of notable events, including a dinner between President Obama and GOP senators, a book launch for Mark Shriver’s A Good Man, and a farewell party for former United States Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano. 

Disney Donates Books to Blue Star Families' Books on Bases Program

Blue Star Families has an exciting new partnership! Recently, the non-profit committed to supporting and empowering military families, partnered with the Walt Disney Company to grow its Books on Bases program. In June, more than 250 Army and Marine Corps family members from Joint Base Fort Myer-Henderson Hall near Washington, DC, received free books from Disney. Mickey Mouse made a surprise appearance at the event, where families also took part in group readings and craft activities.

Books on Bases was created by BSF as a way to positively impact the lives of military children through the power of reading. A healthy love of books can help military children cope with absent parents, frequent moves and other life changes. Other partners and supporters of the program include BAE Systems, Sleeping Bear Press, Operation Paperback, United Concordia and Random House. To date, the program has touched more than 150,000 lives and Disney’s donation of more than 30,000 books will go a long way to help the program continue to grow and prosper.

Connie Milstein is a member of the Blue Star Families Board of Directors and a Washington, DC local. She has been a long-term supporter of active duty military members, military families and our country’s veterans. 

Fourteenth Annual Heart's Deligh Wine Auction Takes Place Next Week

Mark your calendars! The 2013 Heart’s Delight Wine Tasting & Auction will be taking place May 1-4 in Washington, D.C. Started by the American Heart Association in 1999, Heart’s Delight is widely recognized as one of the most exclusive destination events in the country. Since it began, Heart’s Delight has raised more than 11 million dollars for the American Heart Association. Next week master winemakers, culinary greats and a number of distinguished guests will celebrate, and bid on, an amazing selection of food and wine to add to this total. 

The party kicked off on Tuesday, April 23, with the Hall of States Reception held on a rooftop overlooking the Capitol building. Members of Congress mingled with Heart’s Delight guests at the event, which also included a live auction. The evening’s honorary chairmen were Senator Saxby Chambliss and Congressman Mike Thompson. 

This week guests will be treated to a presentation on American wine, intimate wine dinners, both live and silent auctions, and a virtual wine cellar tour. This year’s chairman is Nicholas E. Calio, President & CEO of Airlines for America. 

Connie Milstein was honored to be the 2010 Heart’s Delight Chairman. She and her husband, Jehan-Christophe de La Haye Saint Hilaire, are longtime benefactors of the American Heart Association. She was recognized at the 2010 Vintners Dinner by David Markiewicz, the American Heart Association’s Executive Vice President. He praised her dedication and generous support of heart research. Earlier that year, the Vivian and Seymour Milstein Family Heart Center opened at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital thanks to generous contributions from Connie and other members of the Milstein family.

NSO Announces European Tour in Early 2013

The National Symphony Orchestra recently announced that they will embark on a four country European tour beginning January 31, 2013. The orchestra, under the direction of Christoph Eschenbach, will perform in Madrid and Murcia, Spain; Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Nürnberg, and Frankfurt, Germany; Paris, France; and Muscat, Oman. The tour date in Oman was added after the tour’s initial announcement and the National Symphony Orchestra will be the first major American orchestra to perform at the Royal Opera House Muscat.

The NSO is currently wrapping up its second international tour in eight months. It is currently wrapping up the Americas tour, which included stops in Trinidad, Tobago, Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay. Over the years, the NSO has celebrated many touring milestones. The first international tour was in 1959 and made stops in 19 countries over the course of 12 weeks.

“From the earliest days of my appointment as National Symphony Orchestra Music Director, I have said that I wanted to bring this great orchestra to the attention of the world,” Eschenbach said. “To be making our second international tour so quickly after our first, is tribute to the wonderful musicians of the NSO, and to our work together.”

Connie Milstein, a Washington, D.C. resident and huge supporter of the arts, serves on the National Symphony Orchestra’s Board of Advisors.

NYU Washington D.C. Academic Facility Officially Open to Students

Connie Milstein, right, attended the NYU Washington D.C. ribbon cutting on Monday, Sept. 24.

Last week, NYU expanded its presence in the nation’s capitol as it cut the ribbon on the Constance Milstein and Family Global Academic Center. University students can now “study abroad” in D.C., taking classes, conducting research and pursuing internships from the 75,000 sq. ft. academic facility. Located just blocks from the White House, the curriculum offerings will focus on politics, government, public administration, and journalism, among other trends. NYU hopes to place many of the visiting students in internships or jobs by tapping the large number of NYU alumni in the city. 

The campus was made a reality through generous donations by Connie Milstein, Principal and Co-founder of Ogden CAP Properties, LLC, and local philanthropist; and Ronald Abramson, a shareholder in the firm of Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney.

“On behalf of the entire NYU community, I thank Connie Milstein and Ron Abramson for their wonderful gifts, as well as the many other alumni and friends who supported NYU Washington D.C. Their philanthropy 

and their belief in us are potent validations of the global academic network NYU is building,” said NYU President John Sexton.

NYU’s Washington, D.C. site is the 14^th NYU-operated academic center outside of New York City. It was designed for NYU by Hickok Cole Architects and the general contractor was the Sigal Corporation. Construction began in December 2010 and the University is currently applying for LEED Certification for the building.

Facebook Launches Suicide-Prevention Services for Military Families, Active Duty Members and Veterans

Last week, Facebook announced a new partnership with Blue Star Families and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to provide customized crisis support to military families who are at risk for depression or suicide. Facebook launched suicide-prevention services in December, but the new, military-centric service will provide users connected to active-duty service members, military family members and veterans with content and services tailored to the military – including the Veterans Crisis Line.  

Facebook is a lifeline and a major way of communication for many members of military families. Not only do they use the social network to talk to deployed family member and loved ones, but can use it to connect with other military families going through similar experiences. The 2012 Blue Star Families Military Family Lifestyle Survey showed that 90 percent of the 4,000 military families surveyed reported some level of Facebook usage. Eight-six percent said they were on the Facebook website daily. The survey also revealed that the percentage of military family members who have pondered suicide is nearly equal to the number of service members who have also contemplated suicide. 

Connie Milstein serves as a member of the Blue Star Families Board of Directors.

Singer Mary McBride Tours Asia as HDI Spokesperson

This month, singer-songwriter and HDI spokesperson Mary McBride will travel to Vietnam, Laos, Taiwan and Iraq to perform with the support of the American Institute in Taiwan and the U.S. Embassies in Vientiane and Hanoi. The tour itself is hosted by the Humpty Dumpty Institute and Project RENEW. Prior to this tour, McBride shared her unique blend of R&B, American Country, and old-school Rock ‘n Roll to audiences in Pakistan, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Russia.

One of McBride’s concerts in Vietnam was held at the Quang Tri Mine Action Visitor Center in Dong Ha Town. The center serves as a place where local residents and students can come to learn how to avoid bombs and mines. It is also frequented by international tour groups visiting the former Demilitarized Zone (DMZ).

Connie Milstein is a co-founder of the Humpty Dumpty Institute, which is working alongside Project RENEW to reduce the impact of Explosive Remnants of War (ERW) by providing income-earning opportunities to the families of landmine victims. HDI also works more broadly to promote public diplomacy and create dialogue between the United Nations and the United States Congress. The New York-based NGO’s other humanitarian efforts include feeding school children in Laos and teaching landmine awareness in Myanmar.