Celebrities, tastemakers, executives, and philanthropic individuals gathered in stunning ball gowns and fitted tuxes on Saturday, November 9th, at the Pacific Design Center in West Hollywood to attend the 2024 Baby2Baby Gala, presented by Paul Mitchell.
The event honored Charlize Theron with the “Giving Tree Award” and featured an exceptional performance by Nelly and Kelly Rowland (they performed their classic song, “Dilemma”). Over 800 guests attended the gala, and special guests helped raise more than $17 million to support Baby2Baby’s mission. Over the last 13 years, the organization has distributed more than 470 million critical items, including diapers, formula, and clothing, to families in need nationwide.
Baby2Baby is a non-profit organization that provides impoverished children with diapers, formula, clothing, and the necessities that every child deserves, serving more than one million children across all 50 states. Led by Co-CEOs Kelly Sawyer Patricof and Norah Weinstein, the organization has distributed over 450 million items over the past 13 years to children in homeless shelters, domestic violence programs, foster care, hospitals, and school districts, as well as children who have lost everything in the wake of disaster.
Baby2Baby recognizes a woman each year with the “Giving Tree Award” who utilizes her position in the public eye to advocate for children in need. Baby2Baby honored Academy Award-winning actress, philanthropist, and founder of the Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project (CTAOP), Charlize Theron, with the “Giving Tree Award” for her work as a lifelong champion for vulnerable women and girls worldwide.
During Theron’s acceptance speech, she said, “I’m not sure about all of you, but I think we all needed a night like tonight, a night that feels like hope. We all need a little bit of hope…the impact of the work that Baby2Baby is doing, I think all that work means hope,” said Theron. Theron illustrated the parallels between her organization, CTAOP, and Baby2Baby, “At the core of it, what we are talking about is equity, dignity, and compassion, because we all could do something that makes the lives better for somebody else out there.”
While guests enjoyed their culinary-rich dinner experience, which features dishes from Los Angeles’ top chefs and restaurants, like Jon & Vinny’s, Badmaash, Bar Chelou, The Benjamin Hollywood, Escuela Taqueria, Found Oyster & Queen St., Funke, Mr. Chow, and more, they also had the opportunity to become inspired by Baby2Baby’s
Baby2Baby Angels Ciara, Ayesha Curry, and Katy Perry addressed attendees to highlight Baby2Baby’s incredible year-round work. “The devastating increase in maternal mortality in the U.S. is honestly so crushing to me as a woman of color, as Black mothers are more than four times more likely to die during and after childbirth. It is so infuriating and heartbreaking. I’ve been so honored to be a part of Baby2Baby’s work to combat the maternal health crisis in this country,” said Ciara.
“This work happens because of an incredible team at Baby2Baby – a group of fast, efficient, dedicated entrepreneurs and advocates for the cause. Baby2Baby is recognized internationally by Fast Company as the world’s most innovative nonprofit. And was named on TIME’s 100 Most Influential Companies List. Not just the non-profit list, companies period,” said Curry.
Baby2Baby Co-CEOs Norah Weinstein and Kelly Sawyer Patricof took the stage to call attention to Baby2Baby’s core mission and their critical work serving over one million children annually.
“We have distributed 470 million essential items in the last 13 years to families from coast to coast. We reach millions of children living in poverty across 300 cities in all 50 states. We provide everything children need that we might take for granted— backpacks and school supplies, warm clothes and jackets, soap, shampoo and detergent, food, toys, books, car seats, strollers, and so much more. These items are delivered to children daily at 1,000 different organizations nationwide and to new mothers at hospitals immediately after giving birth,” said Sawyer Patricof.
The Co-CEOs also shared that Baby2Baby continues to support hundreds of thousands of children and families who have lost everything in the wake of disasters, including Hurricanes Helene and Milton, which impacted several states across the U.S. this year.
“It’s hard to talk about 2024 at Baby2Baby without leading with our disaster relief efforts as families in the south have been devastated not once but two times by catastrophic hurricanes. Our entire disaster relief program at Baby2Baby is focused on distributing the most urgent essentials to children impacted by fires, floods, hurricanes, and other crises– because in every emergency, children, specifically children living in poverty, are hit the hardest,” said Weinstein.
To close out the evening’s program, the dynamic duo and stars of the upcoming reboot of Simple Life, Baby2Baby Board Member Nicole Richie Madden and Paris Hilton, thanked the room for their generous contributions. They brought the crowd to their feet to welcome Nelly.
He performed crowd-favorite hits “Ride Wit Me” and “Hot in Herre” and surprised the audience by bringing Baby2Baby Board Member Kelly Rowland onstage to perform their 22-year-old duet, “Dilemma.” D-Nice kept guests dancing throughout the after-party to celebrate Baby2Baby’s biggest night of the year.
Learn more about Baby2Baby’s impactful work, here.