More than 400 of New York’s real estate and business professionals crowded Ascent Lounge New York for the AIR Society’s THE SKY’S THE LIMIT benefit. David A. Falk, president New York Tri-State region of Newmark Knight Frank was honored at the event. The event raised more than $500,000 for National Jewish Health, the leading respiratory hospital in the nation.
“David’s passion and devotion to this cause is truly unbelievable. Each year, we generally raise $250,000-300,000. This year, with David’s help, we crushed it,” said Roger Silverstein, founding member and chair emeritus of the AIR Society and National Jewish Health national trustee.
After touring the hospital in Denver, Falk spent much of the past year sharing the mission of National Jewish Health with his friends and colleagues. Many of those people attended the AIR Society event where he received the Irving Borenstein Memorial Award for his devotion, talent and integrity in the real estate industry. Falk’s friend and the 2016 award recipient, Jonathon K. Yormak, presented the award to Falk.
“I’m honored to receive this award. Irving Borenstein was someone of great compassion, integrity and commitment to National Jewish Health and those are words that mean a lot to me,” Falk said.
National Jewish Health President and CEO Michael Salem, MD, thanked Falk for his tremendous fundraising efforts and spoke about the care and research taking place at the hospital. In particular, he talked about why the hospital is committed to curing severe asthma.
“For individuals with severe asthma, going to work or attending school can be a daily struggle,” Dr. Salem said. “Nighttime is not much easier for the parents of severe asthmatics. These parents spend many nights listening to their children’s breathing, hoping they won’t have to make another anxious 911 call and race to the hospital. These are real fears. Every day, 10 Americans die from asthma.”
Silverstein and his family have personal experiences with asthma and the care provided by National Jewish Health. “Because of the total commitment of the medical center to treat and cure diseases affecting the nervous system and the lungs, the lives of its patients have been forever transformed – including those of my family,” Silverstein said. Several members of the Silverstein family have battled food allergies and asthma.
Experiences with care at National Jewish Health led Silverstein and others to found the AIR Society and host fundraising events to help others benefit from the same care.
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